Keeping a skunk for a pet

golok

golok

Joined
Oct 20, 2000
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I have heard of people keeping critters like raccoon and iguanas as pets, so I am sort of wondering if it is at all possible to keep a skunk as a pet.

Skunks have got such an obnoxious image that nobody in his right-smelling body would even entertain such a thought.

But as I have learnt, skunks, like any creatures, are reasonable and act according to the treatment it receives. So being a city-bred who has little inkling of the wild habitat, can skunks be domesticated?

Personally, I find skunks rather pretty, until it raises its tail and spits at you right between the eyes!

What do skunks eat anyway?
 
A former acquaintance had a pet skunk that had been surgically "corrected" as a pup so as to avoid the spray.
It was a very loving pet that ate leftovers off the table - it ate anything it was fed and then some.

Mike
 
They're a lot like cats when they're used to you. An old boss of mine had a family of skunks that lived under his cabin. He fed them every day and they would approach him for ear scratching and affection all the time...
 
The links that unicorn posted ought to be very useful. I just want to point out that they deal with North American skunks. Skunks are the most omnivorous (and thus, the least predacious) of any of our weasels. Pet stores here sell captive-born selectively-bred descendents of the local wildlife. I suggest you find out where your skunk will be coming from. South American and African skunks tend to be larger and to hunt more actively than our local polecats and would be less suitable as pets. This may hold true for the entire southern hemisphere. I have no clue what Malaysian skunks are like, or if that is even what you would be getting.

I agree that they are cool looking animals, even when you know how bad they can smell and realise how very unglamorous their eating habits in the wild are.
 
Check your state laws first!

In some states the health dept rules do not allow for legal de-scenting of skunks.

Some states require a license for possession and such a license will give the state inspection power over your "facility".

Some states require an import permit to bring an animal in from another state. And some states ban the importation of skunks and raccoons specifically.

They are nocturnal. That means when you want to play they are asleep. When you are trying to sleep they are awake.

As far as I know there is no vaccine to innoculate skunks against rabies or other diseases.

If you want a nice pet, go to the local animal shelter and adopt an older dog or cat before it gets gassed.

Wild animals seldom make good pets, especially after they reach breeding age.

$.02
 
Glockdoc has a very good point. You don't want to be watching your pet die if it gets sick. Talk to a local vet first. If they can not help when the skunk gets sick, then you do not need a pet skunk in that area. (That could be different over there. In the US, pets are not considered disposable.)
 
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