Cindy_Fitzgibbon's Blog

I could have been someones pet... They can de-scent them and keep them as pets.

I always thought skunks hibernated in the winter. But years ago..our dog was outside and got sprayed by a skunk in late November. Boy was that ever awful. We didn't know the dog had been sprayed and we opened the door to let her in and she ran all over the house. We couldn't get the smell out. It took us a week with ALL the windows open in cold November to finally get the smell out. My poor son's hockey equipment reaked (even worse than locker room smell). I never saw anyone clear a locker room full of hockey players so quickly!

Here's the recipe for ridding your dog of skunk smell (tomato juice DOES NOT work):

2 bottles of hydrogen peroxide
1/2 cup of baking soda
2 tsp of ivory liquid dish soap

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Take a sponge and dab the recipe all over the spot where the dog got sprayed (our dog was sprayed directly in the face). Wait for it to dry and then brush out the powder residue. Repeat if necessary. It shouldn't take more than two applications for this to work and it really does work. I've used it 3 times with my dog and it was a life saver!

Cindy: First we have a russian boar and now a hog-nosed skunk maybe it's time to call Al Gore and he can write a book and blame it on global warming.

If it were a hog-nosed skunk it may have been a pet that someone got tired of having.

You right that skunks are nocturnal and lilbostonian is correct be wary if you see them during the day. You should call your local animal control and report it.

Cindy, was it garbage pickup day in your neighborhood? It may have been attracted to trash in the area? Like you said, being near a highway, I would doubt the creature "lives" nearby, probably got chased out from nearby woods at night and got lost during the day? Sorry to scare you, if that's the case, I now wonder what would have scared it in the first place!

My parents next door neighbor had a family of skunks living in a burrough behind the garage and back wall, every now and then when we visit we'd see the furry creatures scurrying about, but that was mostly at night. The neighbor never did anything about it, and there are many young children in the neighborhood too!

We have more than our share of skunks and frequently see them in the morning, but usually not in broad daylight, Cindy. When taking our dog out at night, we go out ahead and bang pots to scare them off; I am sure the neighbors just love us! lol
They tend to nest under our front porch when it starts to get cold. Time to call the exterminator and get them out of there before they bed down for the winter!

sirB - you sure that T-Rex wasn't John Kerry campaigning in your neighborhood?

Cindy,

All of these sarcastic posts are saying stick to weather and leave the mammal identifying to experts. The reason you believe this skunk was the largest you've seen is because it had the most white on it that you've seen. White images against dark background make that image look larger. It's an illusion.

Ok... so consensus here dictates that I do not have a future in skunk species identification. :)
If it was NOT a hog-nosed skunk... I still don't know what it was exactly. It was certainly larger and whiter than any other skunk I've ever seen here in New England. Not your average stinker.
BTW sirB... the T-Rex could have been an early trick or treater... I know my son is dressing up as a dinosaur for Halloween!

Mr_Ozone...Reading a bit about them through the link Cindy provided,it's true they can grow quit large..up to 6 lbs and 2.7ft.Cindy said she never claimed to be a "skunk expert"she merely made an observation on something she saw in her yard...don't make a big stink out of it!

I think it was a fisher-cat with paint spilled on it. ;)