• Tuesday-What'sUP June 12 - 05:37 pm

These little guys photographed by George and Paulette Beveridge, hopefully will have the sense to stay off the road in the future. Otherwise the little white striped critters are going to be just another road kill, stinking to high heaven when you drive by! They are cute little things, which is why some folks like to have them de-scented and kept as pets (which only about a third of the states allow). I wonder if you can litter train them like a cat?

This morning as I started downstairs to let the dog out and publish the daily Pasty Cam, my wife turned over and said, "Be sure to check for skunks out back before you let the dog out". Mary picked a timely shot for our wildlife photo this week. It's good to have Mary back, by the way, giving me time to get more done in the morning - like checking for skunks ;p

They really are cute! I remember when we'd stay at my uncle's camp in Freda we'd have to watch for the little guys if we'd go to the outhouse. Surely didn't want to get sprayed.

Yikes! we have them here too; often they're laying out in the road--flat as a pancake.

The largest kit of shunks I ever saw was 10, this included their mother as they were crossing Lake Shore Drive between the Soo and Paradise. The mother leaped easily back into the bush jumping over the sand brim on the edge of the rad but the small ones bumped their noses on it and waddled back across from where they came. It was very comical to see. Of course I didn't have a camera.

My cousin had a pet skunk and did not get him de-scented! Whew, every time he did his business there was quite a stink!

I understand that yes, they can be litter-trained just like a cat. Though I never saw them, a friend my Father worked with in the military kept some as pets and said they are the most loving pet you'll ever have; very cuddly. He had his de-stinkified and the kids used to play with them just as though they was a cat or dog. I wonder if those kids ever got a suprise if they encountered a wild skunk???

Down to 45 days......

Mary, I don't know if they have enough sense to stay off the road, but I'm sure they have enough scents.

Oreo II at the Delaware Mine sleeps curled up against the dog, and is house, er make that "mine-broken".

The little skunks are cute. I could tell fully scented ones skunk stories for awhile, but I'll try keep it short. Skunks are not welcome here in town. A couple of years ago, our neighbors a few doors down had a momma skunk and her babies living under their deck. That meant that they could not use their deck the whole summer! It also meant that many of us were afraid all summer long that our dogs might get sprayed, if the skunks had friends, or something. I even bought some de-scenting stuff for dogs, but I don't know if it even works. And, I think it would be hard to get that awful scent out of their long hair! Also, skunks can be rabid; they used to be one of the biggest carriers of rabies, but I think bats may be overtaking that title now.

Another skunk story: when I was in high school, I went with my parents in their car, pulling their travel trailer to western Canada. A few miles before the US border, before we were to re-enter (at Glacier National Park), we hit a skunk. It did smell pretty bad. When we got to the border check point, the guards just waved us through--they didn't even want us slowing down near their check point! I don't think that would happen today, since 9/11, or I at least I would hope our borders are more secure than that!

Oh, Thumbgardner, that's a bad pun!

If it wasn't for a dead skunk in the middle of the road, Lowden Wainright III one hit wonder of 1973 would not have happened.

How about: That pun stinks.

When I was a kid and had to go outside to the sauna we always had to check before entering or leaving the sauna for a skunk in the wood shed that was attached to the sauna. Those were the days. We didn't even have a tub in the house. We had 7 people in the family with only a half bath in the house. My dad built a sauna in the basement when I was in 4th grade, with a shower with hot AND cold water. Woo hoo!

My brother and his wife had pet skunks and they were always "depued". Although, even after that they still always had that mild smell. And their skunks were always litter trained. They are also great indicators of the winter ahead, if their coats are thick in the fall, it is going to be a cold winter, thinner coats, not a bad winter. They had skunks for about 10 years.

Janie T:
Louden Wainwright III continues to have a very successful career as a singer/songwriter. During his career he has complied enough hits to put out a "Best of" album. He is very popular here in Colorado and I look forward to his next visit.

During the winter I would pour birdseed on our backporch, to keep from having to get out in the cold.....then one night I looked out the window, and to my suprise there was a solid black skunk eating sunflower seeds....he/she had two tiny white spots just above its eyes, but the rest was all black. Then a few nights later I looked out and there was an almost-solid white one doing the same thing. It had black feet and underside, at least as far as I could tell.....but the head, back and tail were white, with a very thin black stripe in the middle of its back. Anyone ever see ones marked like that? Very unusual.

They are cute as long as they aren't stinking things up. I was washing dishes at my Aunts one time and smelled one outside, said something found a skunk. My Aunt frieked and ran around looking for the cat, well guess who found the skunk? That was not fun! The cat got no hugs for 2 days and a very nasty bath she hated.

Check out this website where they talk about color and markings for skunks. http://www.skunk-info.org/colrmark/marks.htm

Thanks so much for that site, Cindy.....I found "my" skunks! The white one I described must be a Silverback, and the closest one that I could identify with our black one, is the picture in the top/middle of the opening page of the site.....however it has more white than our visitor. ;-)

Yep, thanks; I don't think we get much variation down here in the panhandle, but it is unique to see such differences within the breed.

Dave C. Louden pretty much fizzeled here in Iowa after that hit..but then he could probably make a better living in Colorado than Iowa.

Hey Janie T. Bobbysgirl. I hate that song cause it was my senior year in high school (1973) and everyone was singing "dead BRUNK in the middle of the road and she stinks to high heaven"!!!! thanks for that memory lol.

Theresa...gotta agree with you on that!! I didn't care much for it myself, and when it hit the charts I was in drivers ed. so everytime we drove and passed by a dead skunk in the road, my teacher started singing that song. Today that teacher would be sued for distraction. Ha!

I had 3 Ferrets at one time.Some of the best pets I ever had,they are so sly,smart,and easy to train,and the kids just cracked up laughing when watching them playing with their toys,running in and out of dryer vent tubes.They had a musty smell,and needed to be bathed in massengil,scope mouthwash often.I cried when we gave them away to a Ferret rescue place. But they had it nice with 26 other's,a big room just for them with pool and every thing they needed.Some called them a Polish Skunk,I don't know for sure.And Ferrets never bite.But they play very rough with eacher.

A skunk family made their den under our log laundry room this spring in the Keweenaw. When we arrived to open the cabin in mid-May, the laundry room did not smell sweet. In fact it smelled that way for an entire month. We don't think the skunks were still in residence. So finally we threw moth balls down an entry hole we guessed the skunks had used. No more odor. What a relief.