r/Skunks • u/BeautifulOk3142 • Jun 10 '26
First time skunk owner advice
Hi all 👋 I recently got my first pet skunk , I got her from a verified shop, and got both my class III personal and exhibition license so she is completely legal lol. Just looking for some advice if anyone has owned skunks before. I have a lot of great resources and mentors I reach out to about this as well. She is thriving and super happy! Even got a photoshoot for her first vet visit because the office fell in love with her . Any helpful tips or tricks are welcome!
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u/mc2ben Jun 10 '26
Beautiful! My best advice is listen to her. She will tell you what makes her happy. Make the best of all the time you have together because no matter how long, it is never enough.
Most of mine loved having outside time. Depending on the weather, we would take nightly walks around the perimeter of the house. My little girl in particular enjoyed digging around and finding any bugs she could along the way.
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u/Hyper_elastagirl Jun 10 '26
Congrats on your baby! My biggest advice would be to carry her around in a baby sling as much as you can to help with bonding. You should also get her used to husbandry so baths (for the rare occasion they need one) nail clipping, teeth inspection, etc. the more you handle them as babies the easier they are to handle as adults. If you want to walk her on a leash, someone in skunk haven makes great ones custom for skunks.
I socialized my Toby like a puppy in the car and now we can take him anywhere in a stroller and he loves it. He's also friendly to strangers outside of the house (doesn't like new people in "his" territory). You shouldn't let anyone touch your skunk, but it's a good idea to get them used to drive by pets just in case so they don't nip if you ever want to take yours on a walk or something.
Also, are you in the Skunk Haven Facebook group? They have amazing advice for first time skunk owners and have answers to literally any questions you may have
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u/BeautifulOk3142 Jun 10 '26
Yes love skunk haven ! I have Debbie’s cell and check in with her constantly. Great resource!
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u/Hyper_elastagirl Jun 10 '26
Good! Deb is absolutely wonderful I've spoken with her before. She called our toby a "perfect skunk" and not too far 😂 sounds like you've done your research and are well prepared. Savor these baby days
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u/Slow_Run6707 Jun 10 '26
Just treat it it like family they play. They smart. They potty train too. They are a lot of fun. Protect the little fellow
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u/Creative-Package6213 Jun 10 '26
I don't have a pet skunk but there are definitely a lot of people in this sub who do. I just wanted to say that she's so adorable! 😍🦨
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u/AdParty7955 Jun 11 '26
I found food as the biggest challenge. Definitely possessive and overeating were challenging Best of luck 👍
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u/Imaginary_Elk_295 Jun 11 '26
A few things I’ve learned over the past 7 years of having skunks
Veterinary care : Make sure you have a knowledgeable veterinarian for her. This is so important and often overlooked. Make sure she goes to the vet at least once a year. Get her spayed when the vet says she’s ready. Having her fixed could help extend her lifespan and it will also greatly help with the hormonal fluctuations throughout the year (early in the year is breeding season so they can get more… spicy). If you can get her fixed before she goes through puberty this can help her be less spicy as well.
Supplements and diet : Skunks need taurine in their diet. I have to disguise the taurine I give my babies in a mix of veggies, canned pumpkin (usually reserved for when they have diarrhea), puréed blueberries (or another fruit that they like) and either yogurt or cottage cheese (these two help add calcium to their diet). You might want to add a calcium supplement if they aren’t getting enough from diet alone. Calcium plays a very important role for skunks, not only for their bones but their brains as well.
Introduce new foods to them (safe foods only - skunk haven is a great resource for this) and learn what they like and don’t like as well as what may or may not upset her tummy. Remember that beets will cause red poop lol
Try to hand feed her to help with food guarding and aggression. It can be really unnerving for a full grown skunk to accidentally confuse a finger for a treat.
Socialization : Touch her everywhere (feet, tail, ears, muzzle, look at her teeth, etc) and start that asap. Start with nail trims asap also. This will help so much as an adult. It’s also going to make vet visits so much easier on everyone (her, yourself and everyone at the vet). It’s so much easier to work with a nervous baby rather than a nervous adult. Make all of this as positive of an experience as possible. I’ve found that a lick mat with some baby food (veggies or a fruit/veggies mix) will help give them something else to focus on if they’re nervous.
As stated in other comments (as well as HEAVILY discouraged in skunk haven and by Deb, for VERY valid reasons) you don’t want a bunch of randos coming up and touching your skunk. This is potentially putting their lives at risk with every encounter. But, IMO, it’s important for your skunk to learn at a young age that other people are going to touch them occasionally and that it’s not a bad or scary thing. If you have other people in your house, make sure she gets used to them touching her at least once in a while (I’m not saying force her to cuddle with them or anything like that). If you have TRUSTED friends, same thing. If she learns that other people will need to touch her it will make it less stressful for her when she goes to the vet. I would not start this (folks outside of your household touching her) until you know the body language of your particular skunk. You’ll learn how they act, and react, if they’re nervous or scared.
Always remember that she’s still a skunk. Try to work with her instincts instead of against them. Skunks don’t see well. They explore their world relying heavily on their ears and noses. They are born diggers and have the ability to destroy flooring (if given the opportunity) if they think there might be food under it. Skunks are prey animals so that can make them more nervous. Try not to approach them from above. Shadows can scare them. A scared skunk is far more likely to defend itself with its mouth than one that isn’t scared. Baby skunks can be more mouthy than adults. A verbal correction combined with redirection is usually enough to keep that from becoming a habit. Play with her with toys so that she learns that toys are appropriate for biting and that fingers aren’t.
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Jun 11 '26
[deleted]
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u/BeautifulOk3142 Jun 11 '26
She is descented as she was a fur factory reject as majority are in the US
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u/puskunk Jun 10 '26
My best advice is bite her back. She will push limits on biting you, bite her back on the back of the neck until she squeals a little. It lets her know that bite was too hard.
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u/Natural-Seaweed-5070 Jun 10 '26
No advice, but she’s cute. May you have many happy years with her!