Skunks In Calgary
Skunks are very common in Calgary. Skunks do well in urban environments because there is plenty of food, ample shelter opportunities, and very few predators around.
Skunks And Voles
As the snow has now melted away, many people around Calgary have been able to see the damage in their lawns left by the heavy vole populations over the winter. Due to the long winter, and a good blanket of snow covering lawns for most of it, Calgary has seen vole populations boom over the winter. This sudden rise and subsequent disbursement of the vole population also means that we can expect an increase in skunk and weasel activity this spring and summer. Both skunks and weasels are natural predators of voles and mice, and those definitive vole trails that lead under your steps, sidewalks, porches, garages, sheds, decks and driveways, also provide skunks and weasels with a clear map to the voles. In addition to hunting for voles during the spring, female skunks are also looking for birthing dens, where they can give birth to a new litter of kits (typically from May through July). So, if a skunk follows the voles under your front porch, deck, or shed, it may also consider that spot for a den.
Skunks And You
Skunks are very common throughout Alberta, and they thrive in urban environments. Ample food, plenty of shelter and few natural predators make urban life quite attractive to most skunks.
Skunks are typically nocturnal creatures, doing most of their foraging and moving about under the cover of darkness. Skunks can be seen in the daytime occasionally, if their den is disturbed or blocked, if they have been set free from a trap and are seeking new shelter in a new territory, or in the spring time when young kits are starting to leave the den and wander about on their own for the first time.
Skunks are so common inside our cities, that a lot of people can go months completely unaware that they have a skunk living on their property, until it sprays.
Skunks will hunt, forage, and scavenge for food. They love to eat berries and apples, as well as beetles, grubs, wasps, worms, mice and voles. Skunks will scavenge through garbage if the opportunity presents itself easily, but they are not great climbers, and they prefer to stay silent and low to the ground. Raccoons are much more likely to be the ones making a mess of your garbage in search of food (Yes, we do have raccoons in Calgary.)
Signs Of Skunks - What To Look For
Skunks are best known for that famously pungent smell when they spray property, pets, or people. This distinctive smell is often the first sign that people notice when it comes to skunks. Some other signs to look for, are:
Tracks or Foot Prints - These can often be found along fence lines, next to decks or house edges, near gardens, garbage, stored items, or fruit bearing trees and shrubs.
Digging or Holes - Skunks will dig small holes or trenches to get under fences or gates. They will also dig holes to get to potential den sites, such as under sheds, stored items, porches, steps, sidewalks, or patio and driveway slabs. Skunks can also create small divots in lawn or turf as they hunt for food such as bugs, grubs and rodents.
Getting Rid of Skunks
To get rid of skunks from on, or around, your property, there are three ways that you can go about it. Exclusion, Passive Deterrence or Trapping.
Exclusion
This involves installing physical barriers to prevent the skunks from gaining access to your property, or from gaining access to den sites on, or near, your property.
Passive Deterrence
This method of pest control involves applying gentle pressure in a natural way to make your property less attractive to the skunks. This can be done chemically by applying deterrents such as ammonia, or cider vinegar to den sites, or the application of pheromone scents such as fox or coyote urine to key areas around the property. Or, passive deterrence can also be done by making physical changes to the environment to make it less attractive, or less habitable to the target wildlife. Examples of this would include, adding bright lights or noisemakers to the property, opening up side panels or cleaning up stored items or yard debris to expose den sites, etc…
Trapping
Lastly, property owners may elect to trap the skunks on their property. Once you have trapped a skunk, you have one of three options: You can then dispatch (kill) the skunk, or you can relocate the skunk, or you can translocate the captured skunk.
Dispatching - Depending on the method used, this option is probably the most humane option for effectively dealing with a trapped skunk. You can control the death, making it quick and relatively painless for the animal.
Relocation - This involves releasing a trapped animal in another part of its home territory. This is not a very effective method for dealing with a trapped skunk, as it will likely find its way back to your property within a matter of hours. This method is best used as a temporary way to get a skunk away from a den so that it can be closed up. However, you have to be sure that you have removed all the skunks from the den before closing it up.
Translocation - This involves releasing a trapped animal in a completely foreign or unfamiliar territory. For skunks, this method is almost the same as dispatching (killing) the skunk except that it is far less humane. Translocating skunks greatly reduces their chances of survival. Studies have been done that show only about 35% of translocated adult skunks live longer than 30 days, and only about 1-3% of translocated baby skunks live longer than 30 days. People think they are giving the animals a fighting chance by translocating them, but the reality is much more cruel. In a completely foreign territory, skunks are highly stressed and scared. They have no idea where to look for food or water, they have no idea where to find shelter from the elements, or from predators, and they have no idea what predators or other dangers even exist within the new territory.
Our Methods
At Lavellan Pest Solutions, our preferred method for dealing with skunks involves a combination of exclusion and passive deterrence. Using our specialized exclusion methods, we can effectively, and safely evict the skunks from their den sites. This method allows skunks to stay together, and on their home territory, just not on your property. Not only is this method safer, but it also provides a permanent solution to the problem as it also prevents future skunks from finding and using the den site.
We only trap skunks if there is no other option available, and if it proves to be in the best interest of the skunk(s) as well as the property owners.
Call 403-437-9310 to talk to a skunk expert today.
Common Questions And Concerns About Skunks
Q: Do you trap skunks?
A: We deal with a large number of skunks, but we don’t trap and translocate unless we have no other choice. This is the same for dispatching or euthanizing of skunks. We prefer to exclude skunks from den sites using passive deterrence and special one-way devices. This allows the skunks to remain in their familiar territory where they probably already have other den sites. This also allows mothers to remain with her kits instead of getting separated through translocation. The statistics show that after translocating a skunk from its home territory to a new, unknown territory, only 30-35% will survive for more than 30 days. For the young kits who are translocated with their mothers, only 10-15% will survive more than 30 days. For kits translocated without their mothers, only 1% will survive more than 30 days. So, yes, we are capable of trapping skunks, but because we love animals so much, we really don’t like doing it. We have found other methods that are usually better all around.
Q: How do you get rid of skunk smell?
A: There are many myths about what will remove skunk odour, and most don’t work at all. The best formulation for washing out skunk smell is a mixture of 4 cups of Hydrogen Peroxide, 1/2 cup of baking soda, and a teaspoon of dish soap. This mixture will clean the scent off, but may take multiple applications to do so. Use caution with this mixture as it may cause irritation, discolouration, or staining on some surfaces, skin, hair or fabrics.
Q: Why do my dogs keep getting sprayed by a skunk?
A: Skunks spray as a last-resort, defense mechanism when they feel threatened. The scent produced by a skunk when it sprays is quite pungent. A direct hit can cause skin/eye irritation and even temporary blindness. People who are more sensitive may also experience respiratory tightness or vomiting. Most people don’t get to experience a direct hit, as skunks will seldom spray humans unless they are startled and cornered. Dogs, however, are not so lucky. Domesticated dogs rarely heed the warning signals that skunks give off before resorting to spraying. Hissing, stamping, turning and the raising of their tails usually causes most animals to run the other way from a skunk, but dogs are too curious, or defensive, for their own good. Dogs are common victims of skunk spraying. That being said, most dogs who have been sprayed are typically very apprehensive around skunks for a while. It is uncommon, though not extremely rare, for a dog to be sprayed multiple times in the same season. Usually, when a dog gets sprayed more than once in a short period of time, it’s because the dog and skunk are competing over a common resource.