# Skunk question



## abisnail (Jan 1, 2009)

So I was just looking at the pictures of your skunks and they're flipping gorgeous, but I gotta ask. Don't they smell? (No offense! :lol2
I mean, I don't know much but I read that you had them descented (correct me if I'm wrong) but don't they still smell a bit whiffy? 
I imagine they're kinda ferrety smelling....but that _is _my imagination talking! lol.

What do they eat? do you bathe them? Are they house trained? 
So yeah, skunk people tell me about your pets, I'm mega interested!
Educate me!


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

abisnail said:


> So I was just looking at the pictures of your skunks and they're flipping gorgeous, but I gotta ask. Don't they smell? (No offense! :lol2
> I mean, I don't know much but I read that you had them descented (correct me if I'm wrong) but don't they still smell a bit whiffy?
> I imagine they're kinda ferrety smelling....but that _is _my imagination talking! lol.
> 
> ...


 
i have 2 fully loadeds an yes they smell if they loose aload 

an i also have 3 descented but they dont smell at all 

ferrets stink an i would rather smell skunk spray that dirty ferrets if im being honest lol 

they eat veg an fruit an chicken an lots of other stuff 

i have only bathed one of mine cos was very very dirty they tend to keep them selves clean though

non of mine are house trained as such they shite where they please lol 

some of them do go back to cages an go poop there sometimes though


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## Talk To The Animals (Jan 10, 2008)

Ours share their room with ferrets and the skunks prefer to sleep inside and old duvet, so they get regularly washed as they do start to smell. Our adult one is litter-trained but our baby one refuses to use a tray and goes where she likes. She's already ruined one carpet.

As said above, they eat veg, fruit and chicken, our also like tuna and Farley's baby rusks.

Ours have both been descented, so no spraying there. The adult sometimes farts when you pick her up, which we think might be her trying to spray (she came from America and is quite close to wild, although she's really calmed down since we got her spayed last year but she's still quite shy). 

They make crap pets, don't even think about getting one!!! They wreck your house and you have to live by their terms, not yours.


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

Talk To The Animals said:


> Ours share their room with ferrets and the skunks prefer to sleep inside and old duvet, so they get regularly washed as they do start to smell. Our adult one is litter-trained but our baby one refuses to use a tray and goes where she likes. She's already ruined one carpet.
> 
> As said above, they eat veg, fruit and chicken, our also like tuna and Farley's baby rusks.
> 
> ...


 
LOL thats so true my life has never been the same since becoming a skunk owner i thought the dogs took over.............nopes they are a breeze compared to the skunkies :lol2:


Oh just to add as well they have sharp teeth OUCH lol 

i got nailed yest by one of mine 2 of them were getting a bit rough i went to seperate them an OUCH so as friendly an sweet as they are and can be...............you have to remember they have sharp teeth that can do damage and hurt :lol2:


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## bjc (Sep 6, 2008)

the two i have and the one i look after all use a tray and no smell at all
on the down side a skunk bite hurts as you might find out 
but they are nice to have around


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## Ragmoth (Oct 4, 2008)

Awww i didn't know they like farleys rusks. I might get a skunk so we can share rusks. I LOVE rusks, it's the only thing me and the kids shared when they were babies


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

bjc said:


> the two i have and the one i look after all use a tray and no smell at all
> on the down side a skunk bite hurts as you might find out
> but they are nice to have around


LOL i stringed a lovely sentence together after my bite yest :lol2::lol2:

went something like Owweeeeeeeeeee :censoruch:censor::censor::censoruch:censor::censor:


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## Ragmoth (Oct 4, 2008)

Their claws are super hugely long aint they, lol!


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

yes their claws are long but dont hurt they are not used as a deffence they are diggers 

they do need claws clipping when kept domestically as they dont get to wear them down digging


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## Exotica (Sep 26, 2008)

*touch wood* ive never been bitten, but do have a few scars on my chest where i have been scratched.

i agree with a previous statement, they make awful pets, they trash ur kitchen and learn to open the fridge far too quickly, i think mine are smarter than me, but then thats not such a difficult thing to accomplish lol


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## stoaty (Jul 21, 2008)

Talk To The Animals said:


> They make crap pets, don't even think about getting one!!! They wreck your house and you have to live by their terms, not yours.


R all us skunk owners idiots then.....how many owners stick to just one??? It is true though that if you like a nice carpet without it been destroyed in the corners and at doors they may not be the animal for you.


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## Nerys (Apr 18, 2005)

i think we are all slightly Thspecial..

lol

i've not been properly nailed many times, i am pretty good at not getting bitten by things these days..

however.. mars did nail me one day.. it hurt.. lots..

right on the end of my thumb.. took a long time to fully heal, my thumb is still a different shape at the end to the other one, and its still a little numb to the touch some 8 months later!

bless 'em eh..

these were taken after about 5 days i think.. i just stuck it all back together with plasters, stuck a wrap over the top and waited for it all to stick back into place. 











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its better to avoid being bitten if at all possible imho!

this is a shot down snuffs gob.. she still had her baby teeth at the time, but you get the idea..










N


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## cs3ae (Aug 24, 2008)

I once had quite a deep skunk bite on my leg that got infected and resulted in an overnight stay in hospital. The worst thing was it wasnt my skunk that bit me. I see think they make nice pets if you dont mind your house being trashed and life being turned upside down.


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## farmercoope (Aug 19, 2008)

after these stories my minds still set on getting one one day, I must be mad! haha. all but they didnt mean to bite they was just testing to see if yous was tasting nice!


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## africa (Sep 12, 2008)

I've never been bitten by either of mine. they do trash the house though. 

There is some work in progress under the sofa :lol2:- Tinkerbell has a little dig every day and is gradually pulling all the stuffing out!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
wouldn't swap 'em for anything though and could EASILY have more.:2thumb:
Tinkerbell is toatooly trained to a litter tray, Pompom however prefers to poop where he chooses.:devil:


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## africa (Sep 12, 2008)

I've never been bitten by either of mine. they do trash the house though. 

There is some work in progress under the sofa :lol2:- Tinkerbell has a little dig every day and is gradually pulling all the stuffing out!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
wouldn't swap 'em for anything though and could EASILY have more.:2thumb:
Tinkerbell is totally trained to a litter tray, Pompom however prefers to poop where he chooses.:devil:


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## tillie (Jan 9, 2008)

I have to say George my skunk has never trashed anything apart from my laptop....he scratched all the keys off! I leave him in the lounge if I go out of an evening and he is as good as gold. I do have laminate floors though. He is totally litter trained and very affectionate, he just wants to cuddle upto me all the time. 
George has 80% veg, 10% protein (cottage cheese, chicken, tuna or egg), 10% fruit and is fed3 times a day.
He did leak urine all over the place untill he was neutered but he is now fine.
Ive only bathed him a couple of times, he has OCD and is constantly cleaning himself.
He rules my 2 terriers and I have to say makes a good pet.


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## Fixx (May 6, 2006)

tillie said:


> *He did leak urine all over the place untill he was neutered but he is now fine.*
> Ive only bathed him a couple of times, he has OCD and is constantly cleaning himself.
> He rules my 2 terriers and I have to say makes a good pet.


:2thumb: Superb news Tillie.


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## tillie (Jan 9, 2008)

Yes I am relieved (cant call him drippy dick any more!), didnt think the neutering was going to make any diff but he was fine after about 4/5 weeks. He is a little gem since I threatened to make him into a pair of slippers after wrecking my laptop bless. Still very allergic though :sad: his fur still seems to burn my skin.


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## abisnail (Jan 1, 2009)

So do you guys pen them? or animal crate them when you're out? Surely if they were crated they wouldn't cause quite as much death and destruction?! Lol! 
Oh and how long do they live?
Could they live in an outdoor kennel & run?


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

abisnail said:


> So do you guys pen them? or animal crate them when you're out? Surely if they were crated they wouldn't cause quite as much death and destruction?! Lol!
> Oh and how long do they live?
> Could they live in an outdoor kennel & run?


 
3 of mine are never in cages they basically live under the sofa the other 2 i have to cage at nite as i would have no living room left at all mine are now being up graded into big dog crates i couldnt use them before as they were small enough to squeeze through the bars of the dog crates 

im also clearing 2 areas out in my house at the moment to use as night runs for the 2 that have to be seperated when im not about then they dont have to be caged 


i dont leave anything laying about that would be dangerous to the skunks and i always make sure i put things away or keep doors shut of rooms i dont want them to get into 


yes you could pen them outside they would need a large area though with some kind of sheltered heated housing for them too 


they tend to live longer in captivity than they do in the wild think they average between 10 and 20 years


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## Fixx (May 6, 2006)

abisnail said:


> So do you guys pen them? or animal crate them when you're out? Surely if they were crated they wouldn't cause quite as much death and destruction?! Lol!
> Oh and how long do they live?
> Could they live in an outdoor kennel & run?


We pen ours to a degree, in that all the males are kept separate from each other (the girls go with whichever male takes there fancy) but all have a large amount of space to move around in, the smallest area is about 120sq ft but other than the two 'animal rooms', and the bathroom we have skunks every where. We just accept what keeping skunks brings.
Skunks have a large range, males more than females, and they can cover a lot of ground when they want to, in my opinion keeping a skunk in any enclosure with a footprint smaller than an 8x4 for any extended period of time is cruel.

In captivity they can live 10-12 years when kept correctly, in the wild the average lifespan is about 2-3, collisions with cars being a big killer.

You can keep them outside, a few of the keepers on here do, Kodakira springs to mind. They require a nice secure enclosure though and are very adept at digging. Some can climb remarkably well too, considering they are not supposed to, but I don't suppose they have read the 'manual'.


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## abisnail (Jan 1, 2009)

Ah ok, interesting stuff. Thanks guys.


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