Skunk Got You In A Funk?
Try These Tips
UNIVERSITY PARK
(Centre Co.) If it looks like
someone rototilled a circle on
your lawn last night, don’t
assume you have a strange
neighbor. It may be the neigh
borhood skunk, says a wildlife
biologist in Penn State’s College
of Agricultural Sciences.
“Skunks often come into
yards to root around for grubs,”
said Gary San Julian, professor
of wildlife resources. “They also
get under houses, decks, and
sheds. We all know the problem
with skunks if they get scared
or you harass them, they spray a
very disagreeable odor. This
odor is extremely difficult to
remove.”
Skunk damage is easily dif
ferentiated from that of dogs
and squirrels because skunks
tend to tear up patches in the
grass as they search for grubs,
San Julian explained. Skunks
also have tracks with five toes
although the fifth may be hard
to see. Skunk droppings are one
to two-inches long, Vi- to Vi-inch
wide, and often contain parts of
insects, skunks’ preferred food.
“A skunky odor alone doesn’t
mean a skunk’s still in the vicin
ity,” San Julian said. “A dog,
cat, or other animal may have
been sprayed.” Depending on
wind direction, experts say
skunks can spray up to six, 12,
or 18-feet.
San Julian said the best way
to deal with a pesky skunk is to
live-trap and move it. No pesti
cides are registered for use with
skunks, and you need to be ex
tremely careful when using
fumigants, he said.
“Chicken entrails, sardines,
peanut butter or fishy cat food
all make good bait,” he said.
“Cover the trap with canvas or
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dark plastic to make it dark
inside. This probably makes the
skunk feel more secure, and it
can’t see what’s going on. Once
you’ve trapped the skunk,
slowly, quietly move the trap at
least 10 miles to a suitable habi
tat where it won’t harass an
other landowner. Set the trap
down gently and open the door.
“You probably won’t get
sprayed while trapping,” San
Jilian said, “because the skunk
won’t have enough room inside
the trap to lift its tail.”
People in Pennsylvania need a
trapping license to hunt or trap
skunks, unless they are damag
ing property, San Julian said.
“Call your local game commis
sion employee or wildlife conser
vation officer and tell them what
you want to do.”
If you don’t want to get that
intimate with a skunk, San
Julian suggests calling a wildlife
damage control specialist. Your
county Penn State Cooperative
Extension office keeps lists of
specialists registered with the
game commission.
To prevent skunks from
making dens under houses,
sheds or decks, San Julian sug
gests sealing up potential en
tries. “Sprinkle flour in front of
the holes and watch for foot
prints leaving the area to make
sure the skunk is out from under
the house,” he said. “Skunks
aren’t much larger than a small
cat and can slip through three
or four-inch spaces.”
Skunks are dormant for about
one month during the coldest
part of the winter. They breed
from late February to late
March. “You’re most likely to
run into skunks right before the
sun comes up and at dusk,” San
Julian said. “If you get sprayed,
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you probably want to destroy
your clothes. Burn, bury, or get
rid of them.
Although tomato juice works
fairly well, the following new so
lution washes away “eau de
skunk” and other odors. In an
open container, mix one quart
three percent hydrogen perox
ide, V «cup baking soda, and one
teaspoon liquid soap.
“Spray it several times on
walls, structures, your dog or
yourself, then wash it out,” San
Julian said. “Don’t store this so
lution use it all up. Hydrogen
peroxide and baking soda mixed
together produce a gas that can
explode in a container.”
If left alone, San Julian said
that skunks are peaceful and
play an important role in the
ecosystem by controlling insects
and rodents. They’re also fun to
watch.
But beware: like foxes, rac
coons and bats, skunks can
carry rabies. “Rabies has
reached epidemic proportions in
the northeast in the past 20
years,” San Julian said “Be
cause skunks are nocturnal, they
usually stay out of sight during
the day. If you see a skunk
acting strangely in the daytime,
or acting aggressively and
coming towards you, stay away
from it. Call your local wildlife
conservation officer. If you find
it necessary to destroy the
animal, make sure the head is
intact because the brain is
needed to determine if the
animal is rabid. This is particu
larly important if someone has
been bitten.”
For more information, see the
College of Agricultural Sciences’
fact sheet, “Wildlife Damage
Control 11; Skunks.” Single
copies are available free of
charge by contacting your
county Penn State Cooperative
Extension office, by calling the
College of Agricultural Sciences
Publications Distribution Center
at (814) 865-6713, or by down-
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Pork Checkoff Procedures
LANCASTER (Lancaster
Co.) Kathryn Heil, county
farm service agency (FSA) exec
utive director, announced final
procedures and dates for the up
coming referendum on continu
ation of the pork checkoff
program. U.S. Ag Secretary Dan
Glickman authorized a vote on
continuation of the checkoff
program in February.
The congressionally man
dated pork checkoff program is
funded by assessments collected
from producers when hogs are
sold. The funds are used for
pork promotion, research, and
consumer information. Program
funds cannot be used to affect
the outcome of the referendum
vote.
The final referendum rules
provide for in-person voting
Sept. 19-21, at the Lancaster
County FSA Office, located in
New York State
SYRACUSE, N.Y. The
Farmers’ Market Federation of
New York announces New York
State Farmers’ Market Week,
Aug. 6-12, as sponsored by Sen.
Nancy Larraine Hoffman and
adopted by the New York State
Senate.
This honor shows that New
York State recognizes the value
of farmers’ markets to the
state’s economy, to the agricul
tural community, and to the
local neighborhoods.
The Central New York Re-
loading a copy from the College
of Agricultural Science’s publi
cation Web Site at http;//pubs
.cas.psu.edu/.
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Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 5, 2000-D3
USDA Announces
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the Farm and Home Center,
, 1383 Arcadia Road, Lancaster.
Absentee ballots may be re
quested beginning Aug. 1. How
ever, absentee ballots for
producers will become available
from the Lancaster County FSA
Office from Aug. 18 through
Sept. 18.
The public is invited to ob
serve the counting of the ballots
at the Lancaster County FSA
Office on Nov. 29,2000 at 1 p.m.
Producers who have owned
and sold one or more pigs or
hogs at any time from Aug. 18,
1999 through Aug. 17, 2000 are
eligible to vote. Producers are to
vote in the county office where
the producer’s farm records are
administratively located or, for
other producers, in the county
where the producer owns hogs
or pigs. The final rule will be
published in the Federal Regis
ter July 13.
Week Aug. 6-12
gional Market in Syracuse will
be hosting Huck Finn Days Aug.
12-13. There will be frog jump
ing contests and other activities
relating to the Mark Twain
novel. There will even be special
visits by Huck Finn and Becky
Thatcher! And if car racing is
your thing, Coming’s Market
Street Farmers’ Market will be
combining their Farmers’
Market Week festivities with
NASCAR Week events.
To find a farmers’ market in
your area, visit the farmers’
market web site at www.nyfarm
ersmarket.com or call the Farm
ers’ Market Federation of New
York’s office at (315) 475-1101.
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