Skunks in greater Tucson, north in Saddlebrooke, and south to Green Valley, and Tubac, can be a real nuisance. Earlier this year, there were two different reports of dozens of cases of rabid skunks south of Tucson. While skunks are known to carry rabies, more often, skunks, left to themselves live and thrive doing what they normally do, foraging for insects, worms, fruit, seeds, rodents, etc. However, when skunks move into an area where they begin to build a home under a porch, in a shed, or destroy a vegetable or flower garden, 1st Response Wildlife is happy to work with a homeowner or business owner to capture and humanely relocate an individual or a family of skunks.
Four skunks are found in Arizona-Spotted, Striped, Hooded, and Hog-nosed skunks. Since skunks hunt at and after dusk, Arizona residents do not routinely see skunks destroying their gardens or digging under sheds, patios, or setting up shop under a manufactured home. Hog-nosed skunks are not seen in the valley as frequently as their more common relative, the striped skunk but, they are larger and, when they begin to dig in and around a home, the Hog-nosed skunk can create a fair bit of damage.
A homeowner, northwest of Tucson, contacted 1st Response Wildlife with a skunk problem. It seems that there was some animal digging in the flower garden, possibly looking for worms or grubs. Its digging was destroying the plant roots and killing plants. Below you can see a hole where the dead plant to the right used to be and, clearly, although this is but one of many plants destroyed, continued digging and destruction of this kind was ruining this homeowner's garden.
The homeowner was not sure what kind of animal it was but, after installing a motion detecting camera, the picture below confirmed it was a Hog-nosed skunk.
1st Response Wildlife set some traps and, as you can see in the picture below, the Hog-nosed skunk was captured and was ready for relocation.
Since the homeowner was upset at the amount of real damage to the flower garden, 1s Response Wildlife determined that the best strategy for a new home for the skunk would be miles away in a safe and comfortable environment. Below is a picture of the skunk’s transportation with a backdrop of safe location where it will be released back into the wild.
Once the trap is positioned, the trap is opened and the skunk is encouraged to leave and begin getting acquainted with its new surroundings. The video which can be viewed at the URL below, shows that it took a little coaxing with several squirts of water to get the skunk to leave the security of its temporary home-the skunk trap. You will see that, as the skunk exits the trap, it stops, looks back, and as it begins to realize its freedom, at first takes a defensive stance. It then walks away from the trap, directly toward 1st Response’s beautiful assistant. Please notice that, at no time, did the skunk feel threatened and did not even posture as if it were going to spray. This is a great example which dispels the myth that skunks always spray when they come in contact with humans. In this case, the Hog-nosed skunk was in close proximity twice and did not spray. Click on the link below to watch the video of the release.
After the Hog-nosed is out of the trap, the picture below is a still of its investigating its surroundings before it eventually wandered off into the desert.
If you think you have a skunk problem, find that an animal is digging in your garden, under your shed, or you have small animals/pets you are worried might come in contact with animals that roam around after dark, please give 1st Response Wildlife a call.
Thanks for considering 1st Response Wildlife
Josh's Cell (24/7 Hours): 520-260-9517
Josh Waling is a humane Licensed Animal Trapper who catches and releases wildlife, removing animals including bobcats (lince), snakes, rattlesnakes (serpiente de cascabel), raccoons (mapache), pack rats, gila monsters (monstruos de gila), rabbits (canejo), owls, bats, hawks, ducks, squirrels (ardilla), peacocks, coatimundi (gato solo), skunks (mofeta), exotics, and domestic cats and dogs. He delivers service that is professional and fast and he is available 24/7. Give him a call the next time you hear unusual noises in the attic or crawl spaces in your home or if you see wildlife eating your vegetation, creating nests, and raising their young too close to your pets or children or have an exotic sighting in your neighborhood. 520-260-9517 Thanks!
