Skunk Traps

How To Trap A Skunk

Skunks often end up under porches or crawl spaces under homes, especially if your home is found near a waterway, pasture, or hayfield. They’re mostly active dusk through dawn and can be lured with a wide variety of household foods. Here are some tips to keep in mind when using skunk traps:

• Use a 7x7x24 or 12x12x36 sized wire trap
• Cover traps with a dark fabric, preferably canvas. This not only makes the trap less noticeable, but also keeps the skunk calm when trapped and lessens the chance of spraying.
• Place traps anywhere you’ve seen skunks. If they’re living under your porch or crawl space, or are trapped indoors, seal off all points except one and put trap near or on that exit point. You can place traps anywhere as long as the skunks can still smell food.
• Bait traps with fish flavored canned cat food, peanut butter, sardines, or chicken entrails, but using mayo, peanut butter, dried fruit, or honey and molasses on bread will be less likely to attract cats and dogs.
• If releasing the animal away from the trapping area, attach fishing wire or a strong string to the trap door to release the animal from a safe distance.
• When transporting the animal to a new location, ensure the trap remains covered and the animal isn’t being jostled or moved too much.
• Make sure you know the laws in your area before trapping skunks. Some animals are protected, even some species of skunks, and it is often illegal to relocate an animal to protect the local wild populations from disease. If you cannot relocate the skunk, you can euthanize it yourself by various methods, including shooting and CO2 poisoning, or you can call animal control for removal.