Skunks, possums, raccoons….yeah, they’re cute – but can also be a nuisance. If you’re lucky enough to live or work in a rural area, you’ve probably encountered one or more these beings at some point. They come out at night, scouring their surroundings for anything they can find to eat. Which, in my case, they usually find at the bottom of my compost pile. And to get to these delicious, decomposed treats, they must dig a hole, which results in a huge pile of dirt, egg shells, and vegetable carnage.

In addition to a compost pile, I also have a curious dog with a very high prey drive. Guess which one of these fine creatures she came across one night, scoping out my compost buffet? The skunk, of course. So after learning the ever so creative way that skunks defend themselves, my poor dog had to endure her second worst enemy; the hose. After a few washes and a few weeks, she was as good as new.

Skunks are not easy to get rid of, and I don’t like to kill innocent beings. So I decided a live trap was my best option. The first oblivious being to find itself in my trap was a possum. No problem; throw the trap in the back of my car, drive down the road a few miles to a patch of woods and let her (and her little underbelly hitchhikers) loose.

I reset the trap and my next prisoner was the skunk. Being the typical “I want it done, and I want it done now” woman, I reluctantly put the trap – skunk included – in the back of my hatchback style car (after I covered the entire interior in plastic). Luckily there were no spraying incidents and I was able to release the skunk in that same patch of woods. So far my compost and dog have remained skunk free.

Moral of this story? Dogs and skunks don’t mix.
Sub-Moral of this story? Living in the country is a constant battle with nature.

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