Skunks look for shelter in people’s yards, particularly under porches and sheds and in wood piles. Skunks can be a nuisance if they spray people or pets with their foul-smelling oil. Fortunately, there are some simple steps you can take to make your yard a less attractive place for skunks to make their dens.
Remove Food Sources from Your Yard
Skunks are opportunistic creatures that look for places where food is easily accessible. They are drawn to yards with garbage cans that are left out overnight. You can discourage skunks from going through your trash by putting it out as close to the pickup time as possible.
Skunks are also attracted to yards with pet food left outside. If you have outdoor pets, try to bring in their bowls right after they eat. If that is not possible, bring in the food before dusk to avoid attracting skunks.
When a lawn is wet, grubs are pushed closer to the surface. Skunks dig for grubs in those circumstances. If skunks are digging up your lawn searching for grubs, it could be because you are overwatering your lawn. Try watering it less often and see if skunks stop digging for grubs.
How to Keep Skunks from Moving into a Den in Your Yard
If there is a hole in your yard that you think would make a good den for skunks, you can keep them from moving in. First you need to make sure that there are no skunks already living in the hole. Loosely fill the opening with leaves, soil, straw, or crumpled newspaper and wait a few days to see if a skunk pushes the material out of the way to leave. If the material is still there after a few days, you can assume that there are no skunks in the den and seal it off with welded wire in an L-shaped footer.
What to Do If Skunks Are Already Living in Your Yard
If you know that skunks are already living in a den in your yard, you should not try to remove them yourself because there is a good chance that you would get sprayed. Instead, you should call the professionals at Anderson Wildlife Control. We will humanely live-trap and remove the skunks and relocate them to another location far enough away from your home that you will not need to worry about them coming back. We will seal off the entry points to prevent other skunks from taking their place. Contact Anderson Wildlife Control today to get an estimate for skunk removal in Connecticut.
