Our Environment: “Skunked” by Scott Turner

Our Environment: “Skunked” by Scott Turner

No matter what type of winter awaits us, our home will sill smell like a fall night in late fall. That’s when a striped skunk sprayed Woody, our Shih Tzu.

The incident took place at our backdoor. For years, Karen, my better and wiser half, had warned me not to let an unleashed Woody into the backyard at night to relieve himself. The reason was that the backyard was on the route of both skunks and coyotes.

But I didn’t listen. Just a few steps out of the house, Woody and the skunk crossed paths. Woody is a friendly, tail-wagging fellow. So, he headed straight for the skunk. First the skunk chattered its teeth; next it stamped its feet, and finally, it arched its tail. The Shih Tzu did not recognize any of these defenses. As a result, Woody received a direct hit in the face from spray shot straight out of the skunk’s anal glands.

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The best human analogs might be getting your mug misted by mace or tear gas. Woody went down on the turf and immediately began wiggling his contorted body. Foam/vomit flowed from his mouth, as a noxious odor filled our nostrils.

I pulled Woody into the house, where he flopped onto the carpeting, rubbing himself, before we could corral him and get him into a bathtub. There we covered him in a paste made out of baking soda, Hydrogen Peroxide solution and some dish soap. You can find the recipe online.

After scrubbing Woody, and then shampooing him, we bathed him three more times over the next two weeks to remove the odor.

Meanwhile, we scoured the carpeting, threw out the backdoor mats, the shower curtains, towels and more. Parts of the house, however, still harbored stink. And in very strange places. Last week, for example, my lunchbox, reeked of skunk. I think that the container’s insulating foam had absorbed the scent. This past week, the medicine chest beside the tub emitted skunk smell.

A proliferation of “missing cat” posters in our neighborhood this fall suggests that coyotes were on the prowl. Subsequently, we confirmed their presence by seeing a lone animal three different times. Pets do not comprise a large part of an urban coyote’s diet. Small rodents, such as mice, make up the bulk of a coyote’s food intake. Coyotes also eat fruit such as crabapples that drop from trees. Nonetheless, cats, small dogs, and coyotes cross paths on streets and in gardens.

After having watched the coyotes recently, I’m reminded of how much they look like medium-sized dogs, but with scooping bushy tails. Typically dogs run with their tails up.

So, what would happen if a skunk and coyote came into contact? A coyote is probably smart enough to avoid a mammal with a white warning stripe down its back. The Urban Coyote Research Project notes that, “There has been little evidence that coyotes limit raccoon or skunk populations in urban areas.” My guess is that a coyote would not want to come out of attacking a skunk, stinking like its kill.

I expect that our backyard, which is full of wildlife forage and cover, will continue to harbor skunks and coyotes. Moreover, I can expect to take Woody on-leash into the night, only to step back inside from the cold and dark to the sour scent of home sweet home.

 

Scott Turner is a Providence-based writer and communications professional. For more than a decade he wrote for the Providence Journal and we welcome him to GoLocalProv.com.