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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 15, 2011 19:17:50 GMT
My homemade skunk trap is finished. All that’s left to do is set it and wait until morning. I’ve got three of those SOBs (that I saw in my yard) to trap and send on their way  Now whether that place is to mess with someone else yard or where ever dead skunks go but they will be gone from here soon. I might dump them over in west Hopkinton  ;D |
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Post by ecgreen on Jul 19, 2011 12:55:15 GMT
Take some pics if you snag 'em. Shot them in the heart/lung if you can, sometimes they dont spray in my experience.
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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 19, 2011 13:31:00 GMT
Will do ecgreen but so far nothing has been happening Now I don’t know skunks very well but I’m thinking that maybe they are out wondering around. The reason I say that is because nothing has even touched the bait (tuna) I put outside the hole they went into the other night. Heck, I thought for sure on the nights it rained that I’d have one in the trap seeing I tend to see skunks on rainy nights. Again, I’m not expert but I believe the rain makes the ground softer for them to root around in the yard. |
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Post by ecgreen on Jul 19, 2011 13:39:12 GMT
Skunks can have a very large range from what I have read. I have had it take as long as a week near a known hand out.
Try adding something sweet like honey. Anise works wonders on skunks, use black licorice if you have it.
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Post by ecgreen on Jul 19, 2011 13:40:50 GMT
Hard-boiled eggs too.
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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 20, 2011 11:25:44 GMT
they'll find their way back to your house in a couple days....one way or another ;D ;D So which way do you drive to work Ken? I'll pop it on your route to clear your sinus for a few mornings  Well Jake came into my room this morning all excited. It seems that last night one of those little stinking bastards got the munchies for tuna & Lance toasted peanut-butter crackers (hated to waste them ) in my trap and the door was tripped. I've got to look if they're in season and if they are, can you say road trip with "Natalie" this morning  |
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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 20, 2011 12:25:18 GMT
Well I'm not allowed to take "Natalie"  Maybe I'll take it over to the furbearer project leader house and release it there  Or maybe right at the headquarters front door and see how quick they shoot it ;D |
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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 20, 2011 15:12:50 GMT
I called F&G and they said you can but you need permission from the landowner. So I texted TC to see if I could relocate him over at his house and he said no  I’ll remember that one TC  I ended up taking it down on to Locke Rd in Concord. I figured it would have to cross the river plus maybe a thousand of great houses & sheds in order to get back to my house ;D The next one might be put into a burlap bag as an experiment just to see if it floats ;D Anyways, I took the camera for some release photos but it was a pain in the butt to get out of the box. I need to drill a hole in the back end for a stick poker. I had to lift the trap upside down on its end. Well out it he came and he was moving too! I was moving too just in the other direction ;D You can see in the dirt in one photo how many times I had to lift the trap trying to scoot him out. Skunk in trap at relocation site  Trap after I finally got it out. That crap trail isn’t from me running either!  The mess it made inside my nicely built trap  The trap set  |
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Post by ecgreen on Jul 20, 2011 17:28:12 GMT
If you really want an adrenaline rush, Try using an axe handle to dispatch a skunk in a foot hold. Oh boy...
I must say, you are quite the craftsman! That trap is a work of art.
If you still have stinkers roaming around in the fall, drown them first and I'll skin em for ya.
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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 20, 2011 20:03:32 GMT
Thanks ec for the complement but it was easy to make with a few modifications by me. In case someone has the same skunk issues, here are the plans I used to build the trap. It's a lot like the trap that bluemtchuck has. I only wish I knew what I did with the plans for a trap he gave me  Homemade Skunk Trap The door and the guides are the critical points, due to the fact that gravity must close the door once the trigger is tripped. Make sure that there is enough space between the guides so that the door will slide without binding. Many people extend the guides about approximately 1 inch above trapfs top in order to support the door. Once the door is raised and the triggerfs set, at least 2 (the more, the better) inches of the door should be in the guide tracks. The opening should be 4 inches high, or more. You can adjust the height by changing the stringfs length between the lever and the door. The trigger is not that complex, though it may require some delicate tuning in order to insure a fast release once the contact is made. This is a versatile type of trap because with little modifications in the trapfs size during the construction, it can be adapted to catch other smaller or larger animals. Here is the materials list for building a skunk trap: All box parts can be built from a single 1 x 8 board 10 ft. long Lever: 3/4x 3/4 x 181/2 Pivot: 3/4 x 3/4 x 71/2 Guides: 3/4 x 3/4 x height of side Trigger: 3/8 or 1/2 dowel 11 inches long Here is the blueprint for the skunk trap: NOTE: I made my trap 36" long but kept the trigger set up the same. I also made the lever detachable from the door so I don't have to try and carry the trap and lever together taking the chance if it opening. I need to drill a hole in the back of the trap for a poke hole to help aid the skunk out. I also added eye screws instead of tying the string straight to the trap door, trigger and lever. I'm also thinking for cutting out a hole in the top towards the back of the trap. I'll add on a small lockable sliding or hinged cover for it so it makes placing the bait in the trap easy for my wife & son if they need to set it |
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Post by bluemtchuck on Jul 21, 2011 14:18:29 GMT
Nice trap Tom, they work well. It's a little different from mine but the same idea. Those little rascals don't like to come out very fast. I think they're comfortable being in the dark inside the trap.
They say we have them here in Indiana, but I haven't seen or smelled one yet in 2 years that I've been here.
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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 21, 2011 14:52:04 GMT
Charlie  How the hell have you been? I hope all is well and that you had a great turkey season. I liked your trap design better I looked all over for that plan you made up but couldn't find them. However, I did find something you probably would like in my office piled under crap on the wife desk You'll know what real soon. Please PM me your phone numbers so I can give you a call and chat hunting sometime. Great to see you on here |
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Post by MK-M-GOBL on Jul 21, 2011 16:46:56 GMT
It wasn't me ;D ;D ;D
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danf
Poult
Transplanted BOILERMAKER
Posts: 403
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Post by danf on Jul 22, 2011 0:20:53 GMT
Charlie, trust me, there are skunks that reside in Indiana, and plenty of them! I'm guessing being up in 'da region you don't smell them much because the stench from Chicago is in the air. ;D ;D ;D
If you doubt whether there are skunks, simply take a drive through the countryside in early spring when they start coming out of the dens and are active again for the first time all winter. Many a skunk is hit on the road then, and the smell is wonderful for miles around! I remember having to change the starter on my old pickup a few days after I hit a skunk many summers ago.............. Yes, there are skunks in Indiana!
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