Do skunks stink even when they have not sprayed ?

[fastfredracing]

Either someone is growing some mean kind bud in the crawlspace under my house, or we have skunks living in there.
I had a family of raccoons living down there last year, so it is possible .
I came home late last weekend, and there was a skunk in my driveway about 100 yards from my house, so I know they are near. For the last 3 days, right smack off my front porch, the smell is very strong .
I guess it is possible that maybe one sprayed another animal and the smell is lingering . My cat , thankfully does not smell, so it was not her .
It is amazing how many critters you have that you never really know about . I am always amazed in the morning after a fresh snow, how many footprints there in my yard. It is like a highway for critters

[id10t]

Yes they always have a funk about them. Even one that has been surgically descented will have a mild smell.

[Craig T]

Call an exterminator. Do not try to get them out yourself. My dog and I were skunked a few months ago and it's no fun. My hands and face smelled like skunk for two weeks. My dog, who took the direct hit in the face, smelled for two months!

[JJ 911SC]

Originally Posted by id10t

Yes they always have a funk about them. Even one that has been surgically descented will have a mild smell.

Just like...

[1990C4S]

Humane trap. Blanket on top. Take them away in a pick-up.

They do not like to spray...it's easy peasy. I've done at least a dozen.

[HardDrive]

No help on the skunks, but if it DOES turn out to be some sticky kind buds, I'm ready to help a fellow Pelican deal with that nuisance.

[stomachmonkey]

Worst is when they get turned into road pizza.

Spring time around here is horrible.

They are everywhere and if one gets splattered, a daily event, you can smell it for miles.

Nothing like going outside in the morning to the stench of skunk hanging in the air.

[ckelly78z]

Just Friday night, I forgot that I left our big Aussie out for awhile late in the evening. I started smelling skunk in the house, and he must have gotten sprayed in the driveway. So at 11:30 at night we were doing the whole shower/bath thing with hydrogen peroxide first, then dawn dish soap, and then baking soda. It worked pretty well, but still a small lingering smell to the dog when close up.

[1990C4S]

Skunks spray as a last resort, they only do it when they are under attack. It is generally dogs that provoke a spraying. If you trap them and don't startle or scare them, you are very unlikely to get sprayed.

After they spray, then yes, they will 'smell' for a while, but it goes away. Generally you can have skunks under your house or porch and you wouldn't know it.

Unless you know they are under your house then there's not much point in worrying about them. If you trap them and take them away, a different group will take their place. Seeing one 100 yards from your house is no big deal.

[JJ 911SC]

Maybe you got some Skunk cabbage growing close by. I got some not too far from the house.

There's no hiding the smell from this particular plant. Skunk Cabbage smells just like skunk once it starts to bloom. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysichiton_americanus

[GG Allin]

Dump a bunch of moth balls where they access the crawl space. I tried that a few years ago when they where under my front porch. It seemed to work.

[mpeastend]

What Craig T said...had one that got into my crawlspace and apparently had a confrontation with a hedgehog that I knew had taken up residence there. The smell in that confined space was...shattering is the only way to describe it. Had to get in there to brick/patch up a hole and seal him in...made me nauseous and made my eyes burn & water. Potent stuff. Hire an exterminator who will put a humane trap in, baited with catfood...won't take long if he's sealed in. They put a blanket over to keep them calm and then do a follow-up baiting to make sure they got 'em all. I think they euthanize them with CO2.

Did a little research on them...apparently they don't see well from farther away, that's why they get hit by cars so much. You don't want to get sprayed...especially in the face/eyes. You get temporary blindness besides the horrible, lingering smell. It may cause some residual damage to the eyes...why take a chance. I feel for you...my experience, despite being rectified quickly, was horrible. BTW, it cost me $600 for the exterminator. Good luck.

[fastfredracing]

I have not done anything just yet, busy weekend packing for a road trip, but I have been looking for them. Been sticking a flashlight down in there at night looking for any eyes . Nothing yet. The smell is really strong from all the accesses to the crawl space, ,so I am sure they are in there. I have traps, so I think I am gonna have a go at it .
Hold ma beer and watch this . Good to know about the blanket . I will likely try to trap them outside the crawl space, that is how I got rid of the raccoons. They were mean little suckers. I was scared to open the trap the let them free. Ham and peanut butter sandwich, and I had one within 30 minutes of setting the trap .
I probably should not tell you about the time I tylenol pm'd a racoon.

[masraum]

Driving in suburban Houston early morning or at night with the windows down, it's not unusual to smell skunk. Smelling them like that, they don't really smell that bad. I'd always wondered what the big deal was. Then one night driving home, I must have driven past where one was hit by a car or had sprayed nearby. It was the same smell, but seemed 5,000x stronger, and at that strength, it's HORRIBLE. I can only imagine that a direct hit would be even worse. I now very much understand the whole skunk thing. I assume that after someone or something gets sprayed, they are highly likely to have learned that lesson permanently.

Good luck. That might make a good pepper spray/mace alternative, or maybe something to add into them so you get the burn and the stink.

[1990C4S]

When you open the cage the skunks usually wander off. Sometimes they just sit there...they ain't too bright.

[M.D. Holloway]

They have poor eyesight as well - or so it seems. There was a momma and a few babies making the rounds here awhile ago. Cute as heck but I would not mess with them. My dogs came unglued wanting to investigate. Ya, no bueno.I can't imagine too many things messing with them save a car or truck. Makes ya wonder way more animals didn't establish that defensive process?

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Worst is when they get turned into road pizza.

Spring time around here is horrible.

They are everywhere and if one gets splattered, a daily event, you can smell it for miles.

Nothing like going outside in the morning to the stench of skunk hanging in the air.

About a year ago on my commute there was a flat skunk about every 1/4 mile. I was like someone had laid them out in a pattern. It was a stinky drive. Fortunately for me it rained hard that day and washed a lot of the carcasses off the road and washed down the streets.

[bkreigsr]

The best bait for the humane traps...discarded egg shells - in the last two weeks, egg shells netted me two opossums, four skunks, and two raccoons.
(just trying to keep the critters away from my tomatoes)
And yes, Fred - you probably have another animal carrying around the stink after he got spritzed.
Bill K

[GG Allin]

As long as we're talking skunks.

[JJ 911SC]

Originally Posted by GG Allin

As long as we're talking skunks...

So cute, happened to me once way before iPhones an the likes...