Skunks are famous for their ability to produce foul
smelling odor to defend a prey. These mammals belong to the
Mephitidae family. Eleven species of skunks are known. The types
of species can be divided into four in general: Spilogale or
spotted skunks, Mydaus or stink badgers, Conepatus or hog-nosed
skunks, and Mephitis or stripped and hooded skunks. Skunks are
found in North America, South America, Canada, Philippines and
Indonesia.
Lengthwise they vary from forty centimeters to seventy
centimeters and in weight they vary from one pound to ten
pounds. They have front claws which help them to dig easily and
have short muscular legs, which go with their reasonably long
striped body. Commonly, their fur is of white and black colors,
but there are skunks with gray, brown and cream colored fur.
Skunks are stripped from birth. A thick stripe runs from their
tail to the top of their head. Some many have two thin strips,
broken strips or white spots. Some Skunks legs are also
stripped.
Some countries have laws about keeping skunks as pets. It is
legal to have a skunk as a pet in United States. Usually
mephitis species are preferred pets as they are very social.
Before selling a skunk, the pet retailers remove the scent
glands of skunks. They are supposed to live longer in captivity
when compared to living in wild. Their lifespan is from ten to
twenty years. It’s usual with Pilgrims and European settlers, in
United States, to keep skunks as pets.
Skunks feed on both plants and animal and hence are omnivorous.
Coming to animals they eat insects, earthworms, lizards, frogs,
rodents, salamanders, snakes, moles, birds and eggs. When they
cannot find meat, they feed on wild fruits and seeds. Some
skunks even feed on garbage, in urban areas.
Skunks are crepuscular animals. Skunks stay aloof when not
breeding, but stay in communal dens in the winters. They do not
hibernate in the winters, but become inactive and do not eat
much. They live in burrows dug by them or man made pits or
natural pits, depending on their necessities and situation. In
winter, a huddle with one male and nearly twelve female live a
den. They use the same den, every year in the winter.
Skunks have superb hearing and smelling sense. But their vision
is not good. They can not see clearly more than three meters and
that is the reason why most skunks are killed in road accidents.
According to a study, nearly fifty percent skunks die due to
road traffic and not more than ten percent cross three years of
life.
Skunks have the ability to carry rabies. Almost thirty one
percent of them are infected with it, but all the human rabies
cases result from dog and bat bites. Before keeping them as
pets, they should be vaccinated to avoid any mishaps. And
incase, a skunk bites certain measures should be taken. Clean
the wound thoroughly with antibacterial solution and water. If
the wound is bleeding, apply ice pack or pressure to stop it.
Emergency service should be called immediately. After getting to
the doctor, insists on taking a tetanus shot. Try to catch the
skunk, either dead or alive, so that it won’t spread rabies to
others in the neighborhood. Also test can be performed to
determine whether the skunk had rabies or not.