Next Year In Jerusalem

Hee, I bet they're adorable. And you know, skunks (sans scent glands) are supposed to be great pets... ;) (I think they're illegal where you are, though, so I suppose you're off the hook.)

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One of my friends had a descented one as a pet when she was little, but yes, I believe it's illegal to keep them now. And cute as they are, the last thing I need is another pet. (Especially when I'm planning on moving for grad school.)

Speaking of skunks and pets, how's your pup doing?

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Puppy is doing well! Growing like a weed. She was 22 pounds at her vet appointment a couple of weeks ago; lord only knows how much she weighs now. She misses my visiting friend, though, and wants to know why the hell she isn't getting the late night walks now! (The friend was staying at a B&B a few blocks from my apartment, so I was walking him back at night and taking the dog with.) She's totally wearing me out, but it's probably good for me. ::sigh::

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Ah! I feel your (ambivalent) pain.

We had a 'family' of four babies move into our garage for a brief while this spring after momma skunk ended up roadkill.

Here is what we learned, legal stuff applicable only to my state:

1. Feral 'farm cat' mothers will nurse baby skunks.

2. State Department of Natural Resources will not come live-trap and remove them for you. They will refer you to your town sheriff/police

3. Legal authorities will not do anything for you unless you want them to come out and shoot them (but not remove bodies or deal with stink) and will refer you to the DNR

4. Local University with an enormous veterinary medicine department will give you lots of useful information, but cannot help with skunk removal. Useful information includes:

a) Baby skunks can 'spray' at 8 days old
b) Baby skunks will stay in a family unit if momma is gone for a few weeks. Particularly if they can find food/shelter.
c) Baby skunks love cat food.
d) It is illegal in this state to catch/keep baby skunks (or any other wild animal) as a pet. Because of this, no reputable vet will do the 'descenting' surgery, no matter how much your kids beg or how cute the skunks are. ;)
e) Baby skunks will eventually 'disperse' on their own when they reach adolescence and want to find their own 'space'.

The end result of all this was that we had fun watching them for a few weeks, but kept our distance. Our dog was temporarily chased away from her built-in doghouse area in the garage, because skunk kits were nesting right under her and objected to her presence. The cats ignored them. The momma cat that was nursing them seemed to pretend she didn't know they were there - she didn't groom or coddle them like she did her kittens.

We went away on a vacation for my brother's wedding, and when we got home they were gone.

Good luck! :)

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Wow! Thanks for all the great info! Yeah, I think the reason they're there is because I have an outside cat and they're after the food. I try to only feed him in the daytime, but when he comes and mews pitifully at the door, it's hard to resist. I suppose I should count myself lucky we haven't found them in the garage.

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Oh, gosh, I love skunks! If I had half a chance at a descented one, I'd jump at it. [/too much Pepe le Pew as a child]

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