- Wildlife Education Series
SKUNK CONTROL EDUCATION
Do baby or juvenile skunks spray?
Baby skunks are able to spray, and they will spray if they are threatened or frightened. The baby skunks will spray more compared to adults since they are likely to be frightened easily. Whenever there is a baby skunk, then the mother will be near it. If the babies are approached, their mother will run to defend them and it can spray. Skunks, even the babies, will bite, so you have to be careful when you are near the skunks regardless of the age.
The baby skunks will be born towards the end of April and in May. The babies will not be seen until they have fur and are able to follow their mother out in the night so that they can forage for bugs. Sometimes the skunks can be orphaned when the mother has died or when it has been trapped alone and has been relocated.
Whenever a baby is around but there is no parent nearby, then you might worry about it. Whether it is during the day or at night, you should wait for some time to see if there is a mother nearby. If you do not see a mother, you may try to give them assistance or call a wildlife hotline. When you are aware that the mother is no longer with the babies, then you should try to approach them, but you should be careful. Regardless of how small a baby may be, it will always spray if it has been scared or if it is being cornered. Depending on how old the babies may be, you should worry about being sprayed and bitten. When you want to catch a baby, you should be steady and slow to win the race. If you want to catch the babies, then you should use a laundry basket and cardboard box.
When the babies retreat into a hole, you have to be prepared to run away since if the mother comes out, it may not be happy to see you around. However, mothers will warn before they spray. If you decide to handle the babies alone, then you should have rubber or leather gloves on in case they bite. Be careful since the skunks can transmit rabies. If it is a baby that has bitten you, then it will have to be euthanized before it can be tested for rabies, and this is the law.
When you find a baby skunk, you should report it and a rehabilitator will come to take it away. If you keep it, you are going to be fined. Since the skunks have rabies in a large number, the laws around them are enforced and the skunks are not given mercy. The rehabber raises the babies and he is given the right vaccinations to avoid contamination. The baby skunks cannot be raised like kittens and puppies. Their fat and protein requirements will not be the same as that of the cats and dogs.
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