Skunks are a very beneficial part of the urban eco-system, acting as a natural pest control in many ways as they hunt mice, voles, bees, wasps, grubs, beetles, and more. They can, however, become a nuisance either because their territory comes into conflict with that of domestic pets - threatening pets and property with that famously pungent odour when they spray, or when they wreak havoc in the garden or flower bed as they search for food.
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 denning sites on, or near, your property. Fill in holes near your fence and foundation, and add fine mesh fencing to gaps where skunks may enter your yard, or underneath decks.
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 denning sites, or the application of pheromone scents such as fox or coyote urine to key areas around the property. 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 denning sites, etc..
Trapping
Property owners may elect to trap the skunks on their property. Traps can be requested from the Town of Strathmore by calling 403-934-3133. When you have your trap, place it somewhere you know the skunk is frequenting in your yard. Cat food is a suitable bait. Use caution when trapping skunks in June, during this month a female skunk is likely to have babies. If you're able to wait until July, the babies are often big enough to care for themselves without their mother. Once you have trapped a skunk, you can either relocate or dispatch the animal.
- Relocation - This involves releasing a trapped animal in another location. Take the skunk at least 1km from the location they were trapped. Do not release trapped skunks within Town limits as they will just become a nuisance to someone else. Take them to a rural location that has shelter available such as trees, bushes or abandoned man-made structures. Be considerate and do not release skunks onto someone's rural property.
- Dispatch: The Agricultural Pests Act declares the skunk a nuisance and therefor skunks are not protected by law in Alberta. If you trap a skunk you can choose to dispatch of the animal in a humane manner.
Rabies
Rabies isn't common in skunks in Alberta, but when dealing with wild animals it's important to be aware of the signs of infection.
- Any skunk that is active in the daytime, unusually aggressive or approaches people and other animals without fear should be avoided.
- In the later stages of rabies infections skunks may wander, be listless and docile, and have head or body tremors.
If you come across a skunk displaying these behaviours, do not try approach it, or try to trap it. Keep pets and children far from the animal and contact Alberta fish and wildlife, 403-297-6674.
Traps are not available from October 1 through mid May. During the colder months if an animal becomes trapped they may die of the cold or become susceptible to frostbite.
Resources:
Skunk Information Pamphlet
Alberta Wildlife Institute - Skunk rehabilitation and abandoned kits
Government of Alberta - Biology and Control
What to do if you get sprayed - Tip Sheet
