How To Get Rid of Skunks: Two things need to take place to effectively get rid of Skunks. First the Skunk needs to be Trapped and removed from the property. Second the home or building needs to be sealed to prevent the Skunks or other animals from also gaining access, the term for this is Exclusion. If a skunk has made a Home in your crawl space or under your shed or deck, the Skunk needs be trapped and removed. You will want to use a trap large enough for the skunk to fit in. I recommend a trap that is 12 inches tall by 10 inches wide and 3 feet long. Most Traps have doors that when open extend past the  front of the trap, which makes them ineffective when setting trap up against a home or open Foundation vent. You will want a Flush Mount Trap. This type of trap allows you to place them flush against a structure. When you are able to do this you eliminate the chance of a Skunk or Animal avoiding the trap and sneaking out to the side. The Skunks only way out will be into your trap. I recommend putting a cover over the trap at this point. I like to use a heavy vinyl cover. I cut the Vinyl in such a way that allows the 2 ends of the cover to be folded over leaving the 2 ends of trap open to give the feel of a corridor and not an enclosed space. This cover technique also allows you to sneak up on the trap with a Skunk in it without being seen. It also allows you to gently fold the 2 ends of the cover back over the ends of the trap to completely enclose the Skunk. It is Beneficial to set the bottom of the trap level with the bottom of the foundation vent if that is the opening where the skunks are getting in. I set Cinder blocks down to the height and then a 4’x2’ piece of plywood on the blocks. With this size of platform I can set 2 flush mount traps up on the opening. Setting 2 can help with the time it is going to take to clear the crawl space of all animals. Sometimes there are multiple Skunks in a Crawl space and all will need to be removed before it can be sealed up again.  Once all of this is done you will need to bait the traps. I recommend a bit of Dry Cat Food right at the end of the trap just past the trip pan. Lastly if the opening the Skunks are using to gain access to your home is in the front of your house or in an area where people could possible walk by frequently you will want to put up another piece of plywood leaning against the ends of the traps. This will protect anyone who could Possibly pass by the traps and will help keep the Skunks calm and minimize the chance of them spraying while you are in the process of removing them from the property.  


How To Get Rid of Skunks


I am a Professional Skunk Trapper and I have performed hundreds of skunk trapping and removal jobs in the Bay Area from San Mateo to Healdsburg. I have seen Skunks in all sorts of situations from under decks, homes and shed to Animals stuck behind retaining walls. Every situation presents a different problem. Sometimes the problems are solved as easily as setting a fence board into a Window Well to allow the Skunk to walk out on it’s own. Other times it call or someone crawling under a deck and securing a barrier to ensure the skunk comes right to trap.


All in All the best way to get rid of Skunks is By trapping and Removing them. There is No Magic Spray or Solution you can put out to get Rid of Skunks. Repellants do not work, you must trap and remove them if you want them gone.