# Skunks as pets?



## Lucifus

Ok after doing a lil browsing ive seen that people keep skunks as pets.

How much do they cost to buy and do you have to de-scent them after you buy them? If so how much does that cost on the top.

What sort of keepings do you recommend or do you keep them like cats/dogs and what do they eat.

Sorry for asking so much but its really got me interested. : victory:


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## stubeanz

hiya skunks can cost between £400 - £800 depending on what colour and what teh seller feels right to sell it at, unfortunatly its now illegal to have skunks descented. so you would have to have a fully loaded skunk, some people keep fully loadeds in their house but most dont as they tend to smell a bit more from what i have been told.

they eat a variety of vegetables and some fruit along with cottage cheese, cooked chicken, pasta and a few other things (best to reasearch lots, as differnt people say different things)
most people keep them indoors as a house pet sort of like a cat/dog but they will get into anything and pretty much trash the place but thats what makes them so fun :lol2:
there are some people that keep them, outside in enclosures although im not sure on what dimensions you would need but im sure there are people that can add to this and give their view on keeping skunks also you could ask nerys or rory on here as they will probably be able to find you one.
if you are serious about getting one just research as much as possible on everything about them : victory:
stu


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## stubeanz

stubeanz said:


> so you would have to have a fully loaded skunk


sorry just realised you might be able to get an older skunk that has been descented if it was born before april last year : victory:
stu


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## loulou

Welcome to Skunk Haven&#8482

hi ink might be of some help to you as well with regards to care etc but it is american so some things are slightly different


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## Issa

Is the de-scenting law uk or EU wide? if its a uk law, whats to stop anyone de-scenting (or purchasing their De-scented) skunk across in Hamm or somewhere else in europe?


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## Lucifus

Eep, wouldn't like to have a fully loaded skunk in the house.


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## loulou

we have a fully loaded skunk in our home


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## glidergirl

It is an EU law, it's not allowed on the continent either. But even if it was you couldn't bring the skunk back legally anyway, they're not covered under the pets passport scheme so even if YOU took it over there you still wouldn't be able to bring it back legally, unless of course you wanted to quarantine it!



loulou said:


> we have a fully loaded skunk in our home


Oh ... Ray told me the funny smell was you


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## Issa

glidergirl said:


> It is an EU law, it's not allowed on the continent either. But even if it was you couldn't bring the skunk back legally anyway, they're not covered under the pets passport scheme so even if YOU took it over there you still wouldn't be able to bring it back legally, unless of course you wanted to quarantine it!
> 
> 
> 
> Oh ... Ray told me the funny smell was you


ahhh bummer. Bang goes that idea.......:whistling2:


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## loulou

glidergirl said:


> Oh ... Ray told me the funny smell was you



now i could believe that as well LOL


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## DeanThorpe

huh?
you cant get them de-scented now?
i didnt know that, I had heard soem vets consider it cruel and wont do it but thought that was the minority...gosh things change quickly...


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## brittone05

IT falls under the new AWA DEan, and is now classed as an unecessary mutilation - which id defined as any interference witht he soft tissues for non medical purposes.

Some people still view it as cruel too where some vets don't understand the issues - my vet doesn't agree with this particular clause at all.

I always beleived the AWA to only be applicable in the UK and Netherlands - don't ask me why but I never thought it was an illegal thing to descent in other EU countries.


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## DeanThorpe

Hi.
I was not disputing it, im just suprised as trese has wanted one and we have been speaking to various people regarding them over time and one of the first questions we asked was about de-scenting and then we were told some vets were gettin iffy about it....but had not been told it had been outlawed...and it just doesnt seem like as long ago as before last april when we were last in correspondance regarding it and stuff...but obviously it must have been as the people who trese has spoken to about it would know.


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## brittone05

A lot of vets still don't know it Dean so understandably, less people know than vets!!

It actually came into play in April 07 when the AWA came into law. 

Tis a shame really as skunks can make amazing pets given the right setting and I am sure many more people would work with them had this AWA not affected the descenting issues


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## Fixx

brittone05 said:


> Tis a shame really as skunks can make amazing pets given the right setting and I am sure many more people would work with them had this AWA not affected the descenting issues


It's also a shame that people won't give 'whole' skunks a chance as well as they still make amazing pets with their scent glands.


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## Mush

u need to speak to dave at luton reptile rescue, hes got a great little skunk!!!!


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## DeanThorpe

Fixx said:


> It's also a shame that people won't give 'whole' skunks a chance as well as they still make amazing pets with their scent glands.


Unfortunetely its simply not something that is personally acceptable in our home, by me, or our landlord.
Even a chance of that is just too much.
Was your first skunk de-scented?
if you had never been able to get them de-scented and had to take them as they are [before you had experience with them for instance] would you have?
would the person you got yours from?


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## loulou

yeah our first skunks were descented, (the skunks before we got Fred) so we are lucky that we have seen the best of both worlds so to speak

I understand the landlord problem completely, we can sing and dance about fred now if we want to because we have moved and our new landlord thinks fred is great.


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## GRB

hmmn. I guess this is a weird one. For me personally, I dont really see the appeal of a skunk over a dog or cat - it almost seems like getting an exotic for the sake of it. Of course, I know that you guys arent in that category, its just how I see it a bit.


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## DeanThorpe

have you been in contact with them?
or otherwise hung out and got to see what they are like?

if, for instance they suit the tastes of a person, they are pleasing to the eye and you can cater for thier needs that is how people decide they want that pet.
From what I hear, skunks make very entertaining and adoring pets.


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## Nerys

lou - there is a scented skunk living up here in lincs (not with me) as a house pet these days.. i got sent a pic lately of her snoozing by the fire with her other skunk (who is descented) tis very sweet 

pretty sure you have talked to the owner via LF before..

found out another thing recently from a mate in belgium, apparently its against the law to keep skunks as pets over there?

N


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## loulou

yeah I talk to her via email now and again, bumped into her via LF , I'm still looking for more "intact" skunk owners to natter to though its handy to learn others experiences

and I never knew that about belgium oh well, some states in america are the same so its not surprising other countrys make them illegal


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## Nerys

did she tell you about the fur difference?

she thinks her scented one, has an almost... like greasier coat.. compared to the de scented one..

have you found any difference between fred and the girls in that department? or is it not comparable as they are 07 born, wheras he has a more mature coat? i've noticed snuff and teyahs coat has changed as they have matured

N


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## loulou

fred has the better coat out of the three tbh, he also has a better coat than mary jane and stompy had and my friends skunk down the road (whos the same age 06) coat, could be diet related but he definitely isnt greasy thats for sure. I dont know if the presence of the anal glands would effect the coat with greasiness but i only have fred to go by with intact glands,


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