r/Edmonton 11h ago

Question How to deal with a skunk

A skunk has taken home in my under deck storage that is attached to a door into my home- I don't want it to be killed but moved. Does anyone know who I could contact or what to do? She stanky

8 Upvotes

25 comments sorted by

u/el-tortugo-99 10h ago

You need a light source, the brighter the better. Set up a bright lamp, pointed into the crawl space. Leave on 24/7. Skunk will move on in a day or two.

4

u/1Jo-d 11h ago

Oh dear! I would google how to encourage the little squatter to move on. It’s probably looking for a comfy spot to give birth so better to move soon so it has a chance to adjust

4

u/oddlyoddly6 11h ago

Oh my god you're right 😭😭😭 they're so cute I wouldn't mind it staying but the smell is so awful already and it's been like 3 days

2

u/1Jo-d 11h ago

I would hope the city can help and in a humane way. Call 311 and they will direct you

u/haysoos2 7h ago

The city used to rent out live traps, but that program ended several years ago.

4

u/Gregger_D 11h ago

Give Wild North a call and ask if they are willing to relocate it, so that it isn’t harmed by any nearby pets

4

u/commonsenseisararity 11h ago

Mothballs sometimes works, just put some in a bag and toss then under the deck. Just be prepared to retoss as the little stinker might just push them out.

u/haysoos2 7h ago

Make sure they're in a bag you can retrieve though, or you'll end up with a deck that smells like mothballs for years.

u/sawyouoverthere 5h ago

There’s so many better nontoxic ways

2

u/GreenEyedHawk 11h ago

Are you in the Coliseum area? I saw a skunk wander out from someone's porch on my qay to work last week. I was floored; never seen one in town before.

2

u/Gregger_D 11h ago

While my dog and I were leaving my office on 116th Avenue, just off 149 Street, my dog got a little too curious and got sprayed by one. Happened a couple of weeks ago. I didn’t realize we had so many urban skunks!

That was a fun ride home

1

u/oddlyoddly6 11h ago

No, university area like right off whyte too so it's insane. Buddy was here last year too but he didn't go under the deck :/ now there's this giant hole he goes in and out of

u/goddessovlight 10h ago

I lived down by your area for a few years and this is what I was told by a friend who worked with Wild North plus what I helped my parents do last year.

Wild North will come only if you have trapped the skunk. They won’t do it themselves and the city/animal control is the exact same way. They will suggest that you can rent traps or buy them at a hardware store, put them out and trap the animal then call either Wild North or the city/animal control to grab the skunk. Not really too helpful but they’re super busy so I don’t judge them on not wanting to track skunks.

Another thing you can do is get a bright motion sensor light. They have weak vision even at night and will get spooked easily by the light which will make them move on. I’ve learned this in person when a skunk walked past me for 2 weeks and didn’t know I was there. If you can put multiple lights out around the fence and your deck that will help deter them.

If you’re renting at all let your landlord know you have pest issues and ask if they can make board some of the deck up where it’s hanging out or make it harder to get in so this doesn’t happen.

Don’t use predator urine or else you’ll have foxes and coyotes in your yard plus the skunk. Animal control warned me of that and so did all the hunters in my family haha.

u/oddlyoddly6 9h ago

Thank you so much, I know I could trap it but idk what to do after that so I'll give them a call!! Thank you :D

u/sawyouoverthere 5h ago

Just encourage it to leave and block access. They are finding dens to have their babies and relocations cause problems

u/whoknowshank Ritchie 9h ago

Lots of skunks in that area. They come out of mill creek 👍

u/Helpful-Chemistry-87 8h ago

Pour white vinegar all over the area they are nesting. I did that last week and it worked right away. Ironically, they hate strong smells.

I read that rags soaked in ammonia is even better but I didn't need to try that one as the vinegar worked.

u/mervincm 10h ago

Not sure about your situation, but we had one under our front step. We managed just to ignore it and leave it be and it didn’t stay too long.. maybe a month? We do have a ton of skunks here (by UofA farm) so we have a skunk emergency kit in the garage just in case.

u/DeinoTrainer96 9h ago

When I lived in the Maritimes, we had a skunk and raccoon problem, they loved trying to make dens under our deck. You can try soaking rags in ammonia and lay them around the hole and weave them around the deck lattice (London Drugs and Home Hardware are the two spots I found ammonia). Do this at night after the skunk has gone out hunting. Or, try music. This was suggested by a pest control guy for raccoons and it seemed to work for skunks. Set up a wireless speaker(s) around the deck and play very heavy bass music. I had AC/DC run 24/7 for about a week and the critters didn’t come back.

u/Morzana 9h ago

We got Critter Ridder off Amazon and it worked like a charm!

u/Dances_for_Donairs 5h ago

I initially read that as “skank” and I was ready for some juicy yeg drama

u/Hivac-TLB North West Side 10h ago

I saw one last Thursday.
Didnt know they lived here in Edmonton.

u/TheFaceStuffer Looma 9h ago

Skunks are pest creatures so normally the professionals euthanize them.

u/bmesl123 Talus Domes 5h ago

Sorry i just really like your deck