I'm sure some of us have noticed that in the past several weeks, there seem to be a lot of dead skunks alongside the road.
The reason? It's skunk mating season! Although the highway seems an unlikely place to look for a mate, the crawlspace under your home is the perfect spot.
Skunks frequently gain access to your home's crawlspace at your heating/air-conditioning unit, or through damaged foundation vents and drain pipes.
Typically the female skunk is searching for a safe, warm place to raise her kits (6 is an average litter size), and the space under your house is the perfect environment.
The crawlspace has all the comforts that an animal desires.
Warmth from your heating ducts, safety from predators, and even a food source (crickets, mice, small snakes).
The male skunk follows the scent of the female into the crawlspace.
They meet, usually at some ungodly hour, and the mating process is culminated by that unmistakable odor.
How about this scenario...
It's 2 a.
m.
and you're awakened by a horrible smell in your house.
Gas leak? Burning electrical wires? No, it's a skunk under your house! Some folks will assume that the smell is from a skunk passing by the heating/air-conditioning unit, and that the skunk was frightened when the unit switched on.
Or maybe a neighbor's dog frightened a skunk out in the yard.
These are possibilities, but are rarely the case.
Here's how to tell for sure.
If you smell skunk odor in the house, walk outside.
If the smell is stronger inside than outside, the odds are that the spraying incident occurred under your house.
Also try opening your crawlspace door an inch or so.
If the smell is there, so is the skunk.
In the daylight, inspect you home's foundation.
Put a crumpled-up plastic grocery bag in any hole that you find.
Keep in mind that a skunk only needs an entry-point a little larger that its head, as the rest of the skunk's body will flatten down to squeeze through very tight places.
Leave the plastic bags in the holes for 3 nights.
If the bags remain undisturbed you can seal the holes with sheet metal, concrete or heavy-duty screening.
If the plastic bags are disturbed (pushed in or out) call a licensed wildlife removal expert to solve your problem.
You sure don't want to wait until the babies are born in May...
now do you?
The reason? It's skunk mating season! Although the highway seems an unlikely place to look for a mate, the crawlspace under your home is the perfect spot.
Skunks frequently gain access to your home's crawlspace at your heating/air-conditioning unit, or through damaged foundation vents and drain pipes.
Typically the female skunk is searching for a safe, warm place to raise her kits (6 is an average litter size), and the space under your house is the perfect environment.
The crawlspace has all the comforts that an animal desires.
Warmth from your heating ducts, safety from predators, and even a food source (crickets, mice, small snakes).
The male skunk follows the scent of the female into the crawlspace.
They meet, usually at some ungodly hour, and the mating process is culminated by that unmistakable odor.
How about this scenario...
It's 2 a.
m.
and you're awakened by a horrible smell in your house.
Gas leak? Burning electrical wires? No, it's a skunk under your house! Some folks will assume that the smell is from a skunk passing by the heating/air-conditioning unit, and that the skunk was frightened when the unit switched on.
Or maybe a neighbor's dog frightened a skunk out in the yard.
These are possibilities, but are rarely the case.
Here's how to tell for sure.
If you smell skunk odor in the house, walk outside.
If the smell is stronger inside than outside, the odds are that the spraying incident occurred under your house.
Also try opening your crawlspace door an inch or so.
If the smell is there, so is the skunk.
In the daylight, inspect you home's foundation.
Put a crumpled-up plastic grocery bag in any hole that you find.
Keep in mind that a skunk only needs an entry-point a little larger that its head, as the rest of the skunk's body will flatten down to squeeze through very tight places.
Leave the plastic bags in the holes for 3 nights.
If the bags remain undisturbed you can seal the holes with sheet metal, concrete or heavy-duty screening.
If the plastic bags are disturbed (pushed in or out) call a licensed wildlife removal expert to solve your problem.
You sure don't want to wait until the babies are born in May...
now do you?