Skunks: They're So Cuuute!!!
Yes, I'm serious. I've always thought skunks would be fun pets as they seem like such friendly little critters. Apparently some think the same thing, as this Daily Mail story reports, the gal featured in the story is very pleased with her little skunkster.
What I didn't get, and isn't mentioned in the article, is what these people do to vaccinate them? Skunks are supposedly big time carriers of rabies, but I understand you can't vaccinate skunks for rabies because vaccination gives skunks symptoms of rabies.
Doing a quick search on vaccinating skunks I found this page on skunk myths. I guess skunks can be vaccinated against rabies, but you have to use a "dead" vaccine. So much for the vaccination problem.
From what I've read so far, though, skunks demand a lot of attention and can be a handful to deal with. That might be a bit much for me as one of our cats, Miss Kitty, tries my patience more than enough. Maybe I'll hold off on getting a skunk?
Oh, there's a comment posted on that Daily Mail story from some gal in Arcata.
Thanks to Radley Balko for the link to the story.
posted by Fred Mangels @ 10:16 AM
6 comments
6 Comments:
Back in the 60's my sister had a pet skunk. He had been "deodorized". He had his scent glands removed, and he had also been castrated. He had a slight odor, but not objectionable. Castrated males make better pets than females. Females have a tendency to become “bitchy”.
He loved to back up to people and try to scare them. He was inquisitive and like to hunt behind the couch and dressers. He was a great house pet, and yes he was house broken.
His name was Phew.
Skunks are cool Fred. Now if you see one out in the middle of the day that's NOT good. But, I have allowed numerous Pepe la Pu's to dine on my cats food on my porch.
if you see one out in the middle of the day that's NOT good..
That certainly is cause for concern but, as has been noted elsewhere, if food is available, skunks can be up at all hours.
We had a family of skunks living under our house some years ago. At the peak of their activity we'd see them out by the back garden and around the sides of the house in the middle of the afternoon, the young ones anyway.
Quite starling to the two of us, especially walking around the corner of the house and almost stepping on a skunk, but they just felt at home here. I'll admit to never feeling comfortable with the skunks running all over the place, especially in the daytime.
When living in So. CA we had a skunk family that would come into the yard around 4 in the afternoon. The baby skunks were so young that if the grass was not really short they would tumble about at times. I think mom skunk brought them out in the afternoon as there were predators around but not usually at that time. The five tiny skunks would just about walk up to us with no fear and look around and mom would be watching them.
They are friendly little critters. When we had the family (7 or 8 skunks) living under the house, one morning four of the kits were at the back door scratching on the glass as if asking us to let them in to eat the cat food right inside the door.
They were sooo cute with their little black eyes looking up at me as if begging. Call me a softy but I almost felt like letting them in.
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