Skunks: 10 interesting facts about these striped animals

Skunks are very well known for their pungent spray, but there's more to these striped animals people don't know about. Skunks may vary in colour, and may be spotted or striped. They belong to the family of Mephitidae, and the most common, the striped skunk, found in Canada is called Mephitis mephitis.

Skunks are just as interesting as others in animal kingdom. There are many things about them that makes even these pungent little critters special. Let us take a look at some of them.

1. Skunk's chemical spray is not their normal gas release. The spray is actually produced by two anal glands, is highly repellant, and comes in a limited amount. Skunks cannot spray all the time; they need time to replenish the substance produced by the glands.
2. Skunks warn their predators by squealing or hissing, pounding their claws to the ground and uncurling their bushy tails. They even perform warning dances. This is to intimidate predators and shoo them away, conserving their spray and minimizing the risks of being preyed upon while the glands are out of substance. They can shoot a target within ten feet.
3. Skunk spray contains thiols which are sulfur-based compounds. This makes the spray highly flammable. The spray can cause nausea and temporary blindness, depending on the intensity and to the level of exposure to the spray. It may also take several weeks or months for the odour to go away completely.
4. They are excellent diggers but poor climbers. Their short legs are ideally for digging. They burrow dens and may take refuge under houses' foundations, sheds, decks and porches. They are unable to climb onto a roof and get into an attic.
5. Skunks are nocturnal animals. Since they forage at night, they are more vulnerable to terrestrial attacks compared to daytime hunters. This is also the reason why skunks have evolved to produce an effective anti-predator spray.
6. Skunks are docile animals and are less likely to pick fights themselves. They are even willing to share their dens with other skunks, unless there is a mother skunk caring for her kits.
7. Male skunks usually mate with multiple females. Their mating season starts by the month of February.
8. Skunks have a very developed sense of hearing and smell, although they have poor eyesight.
9. A skunk litter may be composed of 2-10 kits. The mother protects the young and will aggressively defend when threat is sensed. The babies will continue to live with their mothers until the fall season.
10. Skunks can carry rabies. Since they are nocturnal, skunks seen in daytime are suspected to be carriers of rabies, especially if they act uncharacteristically. However, mother skunks also forage by day to find food for their young, so not all skunks that you see roaming around by daytime are guaranteed carriers of rabies.

Skunks are not all bad. They do what they can to survive, and people need to see that they have their own roles in the balance of our environment. They belong to the wild, and if some of them get astray and somehow wound up being in your property, find a wildlife control company that offers humane ways like Skedaddle. You will not only save your family's life, but the lives of these creatures as well.

Why Do Bats Inhabit Homes?

Bats belong to the order of Chiroptera and are the only mammals who have the ability of true flight. Bats are nocturnal animals and almost a quarter of the whole mammal species belong to bats. Disregarding the fact that bats are one the most misunderstood animals since they have been linked with the dark since ancient times, bats are actually docile animals. They forage for food at night, and no, they don't hunt for blood (except maybe the two or three vampire bat species). Most bats feed on fruit, insects and nectar.

Bats belong in the wild and often to live in homes, caves and abandoned mines in large numbers.  They live for a fairly long amount of time, which is about 40 years depending on the species. The majority of bats do not rely on eyesight while hunting for food. They rely on echolocation, which makes use of the sound waves they create while flying bouncing from one object to another to navigate easily through the dark. Indeed, bats are amazing animals, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't be bothered if you have bats infesting your house.

What belongs in the wild should be kept in the wild, or problems will occur. While bats are naturally not aggressive animals, it is still disturbing to have them hanging in your attics or basements. Bats live with their families or colonies,  so they don't arrive in homes as individuals. They take their whole kin with them. It isn't a very good sight to see a swarm of black animals hanging around your house.

So now you may ask, if they belong in the wild, why do they seek refuge in people's homes instead of trees and caves in the nearby woods?

Bats prefer warm areas and human houses that provide shelter and warmth. They also love closed spaces which are rarely used, such as attics and wall cavities, because they serve as an ideal protected environment where they can raise their young. Bats are quiet animals and are active at night so colonies are able to grow quickly without homeowners being aware.

Nevertheless, they should not be encouraged to stay in your house. They can cause problems and expose you to health risks  such as rabies and histoplasmosis. While we mentioned that they are not naturally aggressive, be wary because wild animals are called wild animals for a reason: they can act unpredictably when faced with threatening situations. It would be your wisest choice to leave that DIY animal control idea off your mind and call for animal control experts like Skedaddle's trained professionals who can provide bat exclusion services.

Bat exclusion is the best answer to your bat infestation problems since it is a long term solution. In Canada, bats are protected by the government because of the significant role they play in maintaining the balance of the ecosystem. Identifying their entry points and removing them without locking any adults or babies inside takes practice and expertise.

Illnesses Caused by Rodent Droppings

Pests such as rodents are small enough to enter your home through any small holes, cracks or rotten wood. Once they get in your property, they start building nests and raising their young. When they multiply, the likelihood of transmitting a disease increases.

Rats and mice transmit harmful insects, bacteria and diseases through their bite, fresh urine, droppings and nesting materials. Failure to get animal control services to remove these pests may harm your health or the guests you have at home.

The deer mouse is a rodent that you do not want to infest your home. These small animals may seem cute but may be carriers of disease such as the hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Signs of an infestation include the appearance of their nests and its materials, and gnawed objects..

The Diseases that Rodents Transmit

Hantavirus is a potentially life-threatening illness transmitted to a human host by rodents. People get the infection through inhalation or exposure to droppings, saliva or urine. The chances of getting the disease increase when you live near where mice and rats live. The early symptoms of this include fatigue, fever and muscle aches in areas such as the thighs, shoulders, back and hips. A patient may also experience dizziness, headaches, abdominal problems, vomiting, nausea, chills and others. Without proper wildlife control and proper cleaning and decontamination, rodents are likely to infest your property.

Histoplasmosis is a disease caused by breathing in spores of fungus found in droppings. These spores become airborne during clean ups or demolitions, increasing the likelihood of infection. Most people with this ailment will not feel or display any of the symptoms. However, elders, children and people with a respiratory illness are more susceptible to infection. The symptoms may appear between three to 17 days after exposure, these include; fever, chills, headache, muscle aches and dry cough.

Salmonellosis is a type of food poisoning that rodents transmit through their droppings through eating contaminated food. The symptoms of this disease include fever, abdominal pain and diarrhea. These develop within 12 to 72 hours after you get an infection, and the ailment may last from four to seven days; you can recover without treatment. However, dehydration and diarrhea may be so severe, you might have to go to the hospital.

Rat-bite fever is an acute, febrile human disease caused by bacteria transmitted by mice and rats. These animals transmit this illness to humans through their mucous secretions or urine. You may get this ailment through a rat’s bite or eating and drinking food or water contaminated with urine and droppings.

These are only some of the diseases you may get when you are exposed to rodent droppings and fail to remove them properly. With the help of an animal control expert, you get rid of the mice and rats that infested your property.

How to Remove Rodents Properly

The mistake of many homeowners is that they try to do things on their own, even if they lack the expertise, experience and gear. This same is true for animal control, mishandling nesting materials, droppings and cleaning of living spaces may spread disease in various parts of your home.

An animal control expert will help you get rid of rodents that infested your property. They will make sure to remove all rats and mice in your home, no matter where they are hiding. Once they remove the animals, they will help you implement ways to prevent a re-infestation.

Food Baits and Traps: Why They Are More Dangerous Than You Think

Did you see a raccoon or mouse around your property? There is a good chance that they already have a den in your attic, crawl space or basement. They will also likely have young that they nurse and feed. Your first instinct might be to try to trap the adult animals using food. However, before you trap the animals there are a few things that you must know.

Trapping and Killing Animals

Without proper assistance from an animal control expert, trapping and attempting to kill wildlife may make them more aggressive. For example, a mother raccoon will do everything and anything to get her young back and get to a den. When you trap it, she will claw and bite at you until she gets out. You may get hurt or severely injured trying to defend yourself.

Using a trap injures the animal, and makes it difficult to catch and remove it from your property. There are humane ways to capture, and get rid of raccoons, squirrels, skunks and other creatures safely.

Transmit Disease

It is difficult to determine if the animal you trapped is rabid or not. Trapped and rabid wildlife will be more aggressive, scratching and biting furiously. Trying to approach it to subdue is more difficult. The animal might bite you and transmit rabies, a potentially deadly disease if not treated immediately.

Improper handling of an injured or dying animal may also transmit diseases, germs and bacteria. You need help from a wildlife control expert to handle the creature properly.

Cause Property Damage

When you capture baby raccoons, their mother will do anything to find them. They will claw and tear through shingles to get to their den or determine the location of their young. They will destroy rotten wood, walls, soffits, roofing or other parts during their search. Injured animals will become more desperate to survive, they will tear through anything just to protect themselves and their young.

Best Way to Remove Animals

Do-it-yourself animal removal will save a few dollars or the hassle of looking for an animal control expert, however, you may injure yourself or the animal in the process. With the help of a wildlife remover, things will go smoothly.

Expert removers have the gear, humane techniques and knowhow to determine the exact location of the animals that infested your home. They will remove all traces of infestation by deodorizing, cleaning droppings and urine, and remove nesting materials to prevent a re-infestation.

When you choose an animal remover, select one that has experience, credentials and a high satisfaction rate among previous clients.

A Lowdown on Some Nocturnal Creatures Invading Your Home

Are you having difficulties getting rid of the raccoons, bats, mice and other nocturnal creatures that invaded your home? Nocturnal means they are seldom seen by homeowners and so these animals can live inside your home for plenty of time without being noticed. If you have a better understanding of their behaviour, you will be able to prepare, and get rid of them properly.

With help from a first-rate animal control expert, it will be easier to remove animals, get information about them and prevent re-infestation.

Raccoons

This nocturnal animal develops their distinct mask when they reach ten days old. These animals are intelligent and creative, attributes which also make them destructive when they decide to invade your property. These creatures prefer making a den in dry and warm roof areas, attics, crawl spaces and chimneys.

Raccoons have strong and manipulative paws which they can use to open garbage cans, door latches, windows and jars. They also use it to tear through rotten wood, soffits, roof shingles and flashings. These nocturnal creatures will chew through wiring to get to their den, causing power shortages or potential fire hazards.

Mother raccoons have a very strong motherly instinct and will do anything to get their young back. They will get aggressive and may cause physical harm when you take their kits from them. Wildlife control experts will help you get rid of these animals humanely and safely.

Bats

Bats are warm-blooded nocturnal creatures that use echolocation to find small insects to eat. These animals have the capacity to eat three times their weight every time they hunt for food. These roost in cliffs and caves, but also form colonies in buildings and homes, especially in attics and large crawl spaces or between walls. Once these creatures infest your home, they will enjoy consistent temperatures provided by attics and walls.

Bat colonies vary in size but they can damage property and transmit disease or increase health risks because of their urine, droppings and the insects they bring.

Mice

Mice and rodents are nocturnal animals that are small enough to infest a home by entering through a dime-sized hole. These creatures have a high reproductive health and may multiply quickly unless you get an animal control expert to help you get rid of them.

Mice may bring ringworms, tapeworms and mites, all of which may cause rashes and infect the digestive system. You can contract a mouse-borne disease through their bite or body fluids.

Skunks
Skunks are infamous for the strong odor they spray when threatened. These creatures can damage property and are carriers of rabies, a potentially life-threatening disease. It is difficult to identify a rabid skunk from one that is not that is why it is important to get help from an animal control expert to remove them from your property properly.

The odor that these animals spray may last in ventilation systems, pets or people for weeks or even months. Skunks will build dens under any structure that does not have a foundation. They may use decks, sheds or porches as shelter.

These nocturnal creatures may transmit diseases and damage property, if you fail to remove them once they infest your home. Seek help from an animal remover to get rid of them efficiently and humanely.

Effective Ways to Keep Wildlife Out of Property

Are you dealing with a skunk, bat, rodent, squirrel or raccoon infestation? All these animals damage property once they build a den and may transmit all sorts of diseases. They are not only a nuisance but may also increase health risks because of their urine and droppings, and the insects they bring.

Problems Caused by Animal Infestation

Animal control experts cite that raccoons and squirrels tear through walls and may damage insulation or ducts. This will affect the temperature of your home, it will be difficult to keep warm or cool because of the damage caused by these animals. You will spend more on repairs and replacements to be able to control the temperature inside your home again.

The damage may also weaken the structure of your property. Ceilings or roofs may become damaged because of animal activity and allow water and snow to get into places it shouldn’t. Animals that infest your home may also damage electrical wires because of their search for nesting materials.

Animal control specialists help you get rid of the pests that infest, however, you must also take precautions to prevent a re-infestation.

Repairs and Renovations

Squirrels, rats, raccoons and other pests may enter your property through rotten wood and holes. To keep these pests out renovate and repair certain parts of your house. Making these repairs will deter animals from invading your home. Wildlife control experts can help you determine which parts of your house, which animals can claw their way in.

Block Potential Entry Points

Animals have several options when they invade your home; they can enter through gaps between building materials, holes or cracks in the exterior wall and the roof just to name a few. To prevent wildlife from entering your property, make sure to lock or block these areas. Add locks or an extra wall to deter them from invading.

Keep Food Out of Sight

Your property will attract animals, if they know they have access to food. A garden or food you are about to throw away will catch the attention of raccoons, squirrels and rodents. To keep them out, lock garbage bins with food or store them indoors and only bring them out once the collector arrives the next day. Put a fence around your garden or use natural deterrents to prevent wildlife from stealing fruits and vegetables.

Professional Services

Animal control experts help prevent an infestation by providing tips and assisting you determine weak spots around your house. Some companies also use humane methods to remove animals found in your home. They remove the nesting material and deodorize the area to make sure that no other animals re-infest your home.

These tips will prevent animals from infesting your property. Precautionary measures are better than discovering that your house already has raccoons, squirrels or other animals.

Simple things such as keeping food out of sight and repairing certain parts of your home will prevent an infestation.

Can Skunks Carry Rabies?

Skunks are recognizable animals because of their black and white coat and their distinct scent. One of the misconceptions about spotting this animal in your property is that you might not think they have rabies.

These animals actually are carriers of this deadly illness. You cannot contract the disease directly from a rabid skunk however they can transmit the disease to your pets which then can be passed on to humans. If you find any animals in your property, the best thing to do is seek help from an animal control expert.

What is rabies?

Rabies is an infectious ailment that affects your central nervous system. A rabid animal transmits the virus through their saliva a couple of days before they die. A person cannot get the disease through the urine, feces or blood of an infected host, it does not become airborne either.

The virus travels from the brain to the salivary glands of a rabid animal during its final stages. This is the time when a host can transmit the disease through their bite. Rabies cannot go through unbroken skin; you can get the illness via a bite or through abrasions, scratches, open wounds and mucous membranes that come in contact with brain tissue or saliva of an infected animal.

The virus will not live long when exposed to open air, it will only live in saliva and will eventually die when the saliva dries. If you have a pet who you think had a fight with a rabid animal, wear gloves to prevent saliva from getting into an open wound or broken skin you may currently have.

When you see wild animals wandering near your property, get help from a wildlife control expert to make sure they do not invade your home.

Are skunks dangerous carriers of rabies?

A rabid skunk may present rabies in two different ways; one is the animal will become more aggressive than usual known as the “furious” form, or it will display a complete lack of fear known as the “dumb” form.

A skunk that displays the furious type grows aggressive and foams at the mouth, and is likely to transmit the disease through its bite. If you find a skunk wandering around your yard without any fear or seems disoriented, it may have the dumb form of the illness.

A healthy skunk will normally run away when they see people or pets,if cornered they release a bad smell as a defense mechanism.

What are the signs of a rabid animal?

A rabid animal will display certain behaviors that indicate the type of rabies they have. The signs of the furious form of the disease include:

1. Agitation
2. Bite at real and imaginary objects
3. Excessive drooling

Animals that contracted the dumb form display behaviors such as:

1. No fear of pets or people
2. Appears tame
3. Looks disoriented or drunk

Other symptoms of an infection include; walking around in circles, partial paralysis or self-mutilation.

When you see any of these signs, contact an animal control expert to get rid of these potentially dangerous animals.

How do you get rid of skunks in your property?

Simply killing or trapping skunks you find in your property is a short-term solution. With the help of an animal control expert, you can remove these animals and prevent a re-infestation on your property. They apply humane and proven methods to not only remove the animals, but also deodorize their den and get rid of nesting materials properly.