Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Trapping How do you get rid of skunks ??

I am having a skunk problem normally I can spot them at night and shoot them but now I have a smart one I can smell him but I have not been able to spot him. We have chickens and I am afraid he is going to get them . Anyone ever catch one in a live trap if so what is a good bait?

Cat food or sardines should bring him in. Chicken guts will work, too. Be sure to cover the live trap somehow, .... he'll feel safer and be less likely to spray . Have fun. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I once used moth balls to run off some that had squatted under my mother's house. Filled up two old gym socks and shoved them under the house with a long cane pole.

marshmallows in a live trap work wonders.... YES, cover the trap with an old tarp or something... they wont spray if you p iiicccc kkkkk it up real slowly ...... and cant see you!!!

MOVE TO ALASKA

220 conibear in a 5 gallon bucket baited with eggs - this will get rid of any critters that enter your yard.

Thanks Cat food did the trick

We built a live trap out of wood when I was a kid. Just a wooden box with a door that slid up and down on the one end. Inside was a tin of sardines with a string tied to it that went up through a hole, along the top to a pin that stuck into a hole in the bottom of the sliding door. The skunk goes in, eats the sardines, pulling the string and thus the pin out of the door which then slides down and keeps the skunk inside. It worked for the few we had around and was cheap.


SS

The best solution I found was a wire live trap, a long pole, and a 50 gallon barrel filled with water.

Gently lift the live trap with skunk on the long pole and gently lower into the barrel of water. The skunk will drown most of the time without releasing any of the musk. Even if they do, all you will see is an oily slick with no odor, but they rarely relesed any musk.

I will be surprised if you only have one skunk; chances are it is a colony or a pregnant female, or thats the way it usually turned out for me.

Good luck and move slow.

P.S. Handled them different in Coyote trap sets; would lash my very sharp pocket knife to a long pole, and with the skunk facing you gently find the opening into the chest and gently thrust the knife in. Sticking the knife in isn't the problem. If you can wait a while the skunk will bleed to death internally.
Most of the time, if you are in a hurry (and what trapper isn't always in a hurry?) you can gently slide the knife out! It must hurt on occasion, and when it does the skunks lets loose and empties the musk glands.

Which creates the mess you are trying to avoid, but it will enhance the set for Coyotes. Just blind set the high spot on the edge of the circle. The next Coyote will be smelly though!

Just my experiences.