Finding a veterinarian that can properly take care of your domestic skunk should be a top priority.  Do you have or know of a veterinarian in your area that is willing and is knowledgeable in caring for your skunk?  In addition, their staff should be vaccinated against rabies and knowledgeable in how to handle a pet skunk to minimize the chance of them being bitten while treating the skunk.  Having a vet that knows skunks is important, and can mean the difference between a happy, healthy skunk, and one that does not thrive as well.  It is best to have a knowledgeable vet and one that is willing to correspond with other qualified vets on acceptable methods of treatment.  Skunk metabolism and needs differ from other pets they are accustomed to treating.  Trying to treat them as a dog, cat, or even a ferret, could be detrimental to your skunk’s well-being and life.  Make an appointment to meet the vet in person, ask how long they have been treating skunks and how many skunks are seen in their practice.

Advance thought should be given about whether your home is the proper environment for a skunk.  All members of the household should be equally eager and excited about the new “baby”.  Special consideration should be given to the other pets in your home.  While a skunk will get along with most other pets, will those pets be willing to get along with a skunk?  A skunk is a predatory animal and high prey drive animals such as a Jack Russell terrier should not be forced to live together with predators.   By the same token, a skunk would not be a good choice if you have a pet such as a rabbit, hamster, etc. that the skunk may consider food, unless you have a separate space for these pets away from your skunk.  Be prepared to keep other types of animals totally separated from your skunk.   Always supervise your pets when they are together and never leave them alone with each other.  There have been instances where the most loving and trusted dogs attacked a skunk while the owner was away.  We know of some skunks  and ferrets that get along, but it is not recommended to let them free roam together unsupervised.  Ferrets and skunks are natural enemies in the wild.  Don’t subject your new “baby”  or other pets to injury or death because you didn’t consider the entire makeup of your household.  Having a skunk in your household will require changes to your lifestyle and everyone should be willing and ready to make the changes required to raise a happy, healthy skunk.

Do you have children in the home?  Skunks need to be carefully supervised around children.  Small children especially do not always understand how to properly handle animals.  The animal or the child could easily get hurt.  Baby skunks have to be taught not to bite or your child could end up being bitten.  It is also possible that the child could react out of fear or pain and hurt the skunk if they get bitten.  It is probably a better idea to wait on getting a skunk until children are of an older age, i.e.10 years or older (depending on their maturity), and better understand the handling and care of a skunk.  They should also know enough to keep doors leading to the outside closed so the skunk doesn’t escape and also to watch when going in and out of doors to make sure the skunk isn’t following them and trying to get out.

Skunks require a lot of time and patience.  Baby skunks require more.  Time and attention are needed to mold them into bonded, friendly, loving pets.  Babies need constant supervision, holding, cuddling and handling.  A skunk left constantly alone and confined in a crate, not receiving proper attention on a daily basis, can become aggressive and difficult to handle or want to sleep all day.  A healthy skunk  gets lots of exercise.  They are curious animals that like to be out exploring and to have the warm feeling of being part of a family.  You should allow them to roam in as much of your house as possible.  An inactive skunk can become overweight.  Obesity is the number one killer of skunks.  An obese skunk becomes susceptible to a variety of health problems, including heart disease.  Household routines may need to be adjusted to ensure your skunk gets the proper amount of exercise.  The amount of quality time you spend with your skunk will reflect greatly on your skunk’s personality.

Skunks can climb, especially baby skunks as they aren’t as bottom heavy as adult skunks.  Most skunks lose their desire to climb by the time they reach 1 year old but that does not mean they won’t try if there is something out of reach that they really want, especially food.  You will need to put some things out of reach and possibly even out of sight or smell.  Many skunks can climb onto couches,  chairs, beds, over baby gates, and occasionally have been know to make it onto kitchen tables and even counters.​

Skunks can also flatten themselves out enough to hide in places that you would never expect them to fit.  You need to make sure they cannot get behind washers, dryers, refrigerators, dishwashers, under sofas, box springs, and any other place that it could be difficult to retrieve them.  They are excellent at opening cabinets, so special latches may need to be installed on cabinets where you do not want them to go and especially those with harmful products for cleaning, pest control, etc.  The magnetic child proof locks are highly recommended.  They are even able to open refrigerator doors, especially the double door refrigerators.  So far, we have not found any that can open the refrigerators with the freezers on the bottom.  If you have a refrigerator with the freezer on the bottom, you need to be especially mindful that the skunk doesn’t slip behind the freezer drawer and get shut in there as they will freeze to death.  Unfortunately, we know someone who was aware of this problem but never thought to warn a houseguest and the skunk was not found until the next morning frozen to death.

Skunks need space to roam.  It is a huge responsibility to keep them safe from things that can harm them.  If for any reason you become unable to care for your skunk for a day, a week, a month, or permanently, you will need someone to care for your skunk during this time.  This may not be as easy as it sounds.  A good skunk sitter needs to know a lot about caring for your baby.  If you run into this problem, do not hesitate to contact us at the Florida Skunk Rescue and we will be glad to help however we can.​

You should be financially prepared to handle a skunk.  Depending on the area where you live, some vets charge more to treat a skunk because they consider it an exotic animal.  Outside the normal costs of food, bedding, and other necessities, there are vet bills.  Depending on your skunk, wellness examinations are recommended once a year.  You may also need to travel to different vet for a medical solution if your vet cannot handle the problem.  You need to research an emergency clinic that can handle a skunk emergency during the hours your vet is not open.  A lot of emergency clinics treat wildlife and these usually always have a vet that would be willing to see a skunk in an emergency.  Call around and ask, or even check with your vet, don’t wait till emergency arises and you’re in a panic about what to do.  We all hope for long and healthy lives for our skunks, but you have to be prepared for just about anything.  as of this writing pet insurances do not cover pet skunks.  If you have a skunk emergency occur and you do not know what to do or cannot reach a vet, do not hesitate to contact us for assistance at 727-809-0975.  (NOTE:  WE do not recommend using any Blue Pearl location or Dr. Nicholas Maldonado as they have put a skunk to death for biting a tech that didn’t know how to properly handle a skunk so it wouldn’t bite them during treatment)

Skunks can be potty trained but depending on your skunk, it might not be the easiest thing to do.  Skunks like to do their business in corners.  Your skunk will definitely let you know which corner or corners are preferred for litter boxes.  One litter box will usually not be enough and it may take several spaced throughout the rooms your skunks goes to satisfy your skunk’s potty needs.  Be prepared if you attempt to change the mind of your skunk on the choice of corners and it fails.  This is one battle you may not win.  Eventually, you will come to a mutual understanding.

The most important thing in caring for a skunk is to insure they receive a proper diet.  Unfortunately, there are not any pre-packaged foods, kibbles, or shortcuts available.  They need to be fed precise amounts and types of foods to keep them in good health.  A skunk’s stomach is only about the size of a half dollar and it does not have a shut off switch to tell the skunk when it is full.  For this reason, you need to be very aware of how much food your skunk is consuming in a day otherwise you to can end up with a very obese skunk.  Just like people, once the weight is on, it takes a big effort and strict diet control to get them to lose the excess weight.  Make sure all family members know not to feed the skunk snacks constantly.  Just because a skunk begs does not mean they are hungry.  They are very clever at going from one person to another to beg and act like they’ve never been fed.

Since the domestic skunk just made the leap from wild into the home in such a short period, their diet should mimic as best as possible the diet they would have eaten in the wild.  Feral skunks consume a wide variety of foods.  In particular they eat beetles, crickets, grasshoppers and are fond of bees.  In summer they eat some fruit, rodents and eggs.  As colder months approach, they eat leaves, nuts, and carrion.  Therefore, your skunk’s diet should consist of fresh fruits and vegetables, and animal protein such as superworms, mealworms, crickets, grasshoppers, raw chicken necks, cooked ground turkey or chicken.  The need for supplements may be determined by blood analysis.  If a well balanced diet is not fed, deficiencies will occur.  Harm can also occur from over supplementation.  You will quickly realize that your skunk is probably eating better than you do.  The importance of a good balanced diet can never be stressed enough.

If you are a juvenile or young adult thinking about getting a domestic skunk as a pet, there are a few things you need to consider.   In the State of Florida, you must be 16 years old before you apply for a permit to have a pet skunk. Your parents should be 100% supportive in your decision to have a domestic skunk as a pet and, if you are younger than 16, they will have to obtain the permit in their name.  This would also make your parents responsible for any action your domestic pet skunk may take.  In addition, they may one day become the primary caretaker of the skunk depending on your life choices after high school.  Your parents are also the ones that will be buying the food, cleaning supplies, and paying the vet bills.  They are the ones that will be making the most changes in the way the house is cleaned and what products are used.  A juvenile considering a domestic skunk as a pet is probably in high school, or of an age where there are many unknowns which will affect your pet skunk.  High school and after school activities can be very time consuming; and that means time away from your pet.  High school is a time for your social development; offering dances, sporting events and other social events you will not want to miss and these all mean time away from your pet.  Will your skunk have to be locked up in your room while you are away, or will your parents allow it to have free roam of the house and will they tend to him/her in your absence?

Many of you will want to go off to college or military service.  College is a big step in life and with it comes stress.  It requires a lot of hard work and study time.  There are events that are even more social in college than in high school.  This means a lot of time alone for your skunk, or you missing many activities.  What happens to your skunk if your dorm does not allow pets or you go to a school in a State that does not allow domestic pet skunks.  Even if you go to a college in a State where pet skunks are allowed, you still may not be able to legally bring your pet skunk into that State.  Will it be left behind at home with parents who do not love your skunk as much as you do and will be saddled with taking care of it?  Or will you have to give up your skunk to a rescue?  You will also have to consider what happens when you move out either into a place of your own or with a roommate.  Will that place allow you to bring pets, especially a pet skunk?  Will your roommate be OK with you having a pet skunk?  Later there is the consideration of marriage.  You really have no way of knowing whom you will marry years down the road.  What will happen to your skunk if your mate does not want a pet skunk or by some odd chance is allergic to the skunk?  It is hard to know what the future may bring, but for your skunk’s sake, all these things need to be considered and thought out before adopting or buying a domestic skunk.  We’ve gotten more than our fair share of rescues because a significant other didn’t want any part of having a pet skunk or because a person once married relocated out of State and couldn’t take their beloved pet with them.  It is a lot harder to move within the State or out with a pet skunk than a dog or cat.​

If after reading and considering this information, you still want to obtain a skunk as a pet, go to www.myfwc.com.  Under licenses and permits you will find the application for a Class III Captive Wildlife Permit.  To start, we recommend obtaining the free pet permit which allows you to keep your skunk in your home and take it out only to the vet as this permit is good for 2 years.  We just never know how soon we will get a rescue for rehoming.  If after getting a skunk you wish to take it out in public, you can convert your permit to the $50.00 per year exhibition permit. 

Once you have your permit, if you would like to adopt a skunk, go to our website www.floridaskunkrescue.com and fill out our adoption application.  Just be patient and we will contact you as soon as we have a skunk that fits your needs.  All permits must be applied for on-line at www.myfwc.com. 

If you have any questions or need additional information, email us at:  floridaskunkrescue@verizon.net.