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Skunks In Captivity - Pet Advice

Can You Train A Pet Skunk?

July 29th 2009 17:57
Skunks are very intelligent animals, and you can train them but it is very difficult and time consuming. It takes a lot of patience to train a pet skunk. For the most part, the extent of training a pet skunk is going to be litter training and training the skunk to walk on a leash.


If you plan on keeping your skunk in the house, which is ideal and pretty much the only way to go, then you need to start litter training early. You'll want to use wood pellets, recycled paper cat litter, unscented cat litter, or just newspaper within a litter pan. The litter pan needs to have a low entrance for the skunk to walk right in.

You'll want to also make sure that you put an old towel or some kind of material outside the litter pan because skunks will wipe their rear on the floor after using the litter box.

Skunks will opt to go to the bathroom anywhere but the litterbox when mad or excited, so don't get mad even if you know that your skunk is fully litter box trained.

When leash training, you'll want to start simple and just get the skunk used to the harness. Then slowly move to the leash and walking. It's possible to leash train a pet skunk, and when you're outside with your skunk, it can be safer to have a harness and leash on your skunk.


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Posted By: Whitney - Category: Skunks, In Captivity
   


What to Feed A Pet Skunk

July 26th 2009 17:06
Skunks are omnivores and will pretty much eat anything that tastes, smells, or even looks like food, but it's your job as the pet parent to insure that your pet skunk is getting a healthy diet and variety of foods.

You will want to stick with low fat foods and foods that have a low crude protein content of 15-25%. You want to be leery of processed pet food, as they contain unnecessary sugars and generally do not have a good balance of nutrition. A diet of high fats and high proteins will make your skunk fat and lazy, which leads to poor health.

It's a common misconception that you can feed skunks cat food. Don't do it. Cat food is high in fats and proteins.


A proper diet for a pet skunk is to feed about 50-60% vegetables and 40-50% meats and dairy products.

Although fresh foods are always better, frozen is fine too as long as you fully thaw out the food before giving it to your skunk. Make sure that you offer a wide variety of vegetables, as skunks will get bored if they smell the same thing in their bowl every meal time.

You want to be careful of various canned foods and fruits, as skunks are sensitive to processed foods, and because canned foods and dried fruits have a lot of salt and other preservatives that can be harmful to skunks.

Skunks need various supplements that they can't get from their regular diet. They need extra taurine for muscle foundation, vitamins, calcium, and other various minerals for bone growth. For proper dosages of taurine, you may want to consult a skunk breeder or vet who treats skunks. Most say that you should add about 300mg of taurine daily.

Foods to Consider
* (Choice of one per day) Yogurt, cottage cheese, Swiss cheese or other types of cheese, ricotta
* (Choice of one per day) Nutro all natural dog food (chicken and rice), tofu, Skunkie Delight (cooked), cooked chicken, turkey, extra lean ground beef (few times a month), Innova-Evo or any grain-free or all-natural dog food.
* (Choice of 3 to 5 per day) fresh vegetables- broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, napa, yellow squash, zucchini, green peppers, turnip, parsley root, dandelion, parsnip root, corn, peas, sugar snap peas, carrots, black carrots, endive, romaine lettuce, brussels sprouts, egg plant, green beans, wax beans, broccoli slaw, cole slaw, tomatoes, mushrooms, cucumbers, beets (watch for red poop), avocado (skin and seed are toxic), purple cabbage, alfalfa, bean sprouts, Spanish olive (few times a month), celery, cooked vegetables - potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, acorn squash, butternut squash
* (Choice of one per day) honey, flax seed oil, Best Coat, ranch dressing, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!
* (Choice of two per day) raw oats, puffed rice, other types of cereal, almonds, soybeans, macaroni salad, beans, natural bread, pasta, brown rice
* (Choice of one per day) fruits - pear, apple, blueberries, melon, banana, strawberry, cranberries (once in a great while)
* (Every once in a while choice of one) boiled or poached eggs, wheat germ, Multi-Minerals, spray of Willards Water, oregano, cranberry juice, orange juice, organic apple cider vinegar, garlic juice, Old Mother Hubbard dog biscuits, live crickets, meal worms, pinkies.

Foods to Avoid
* asparagus (can cause seizures in skunks)
* onions
* chocolate
* sweets
* cookies
* fatty foods
* processed meats like lunch meat, hot dogs
* some fried food
* pork
* bacon
* lettuce
* cat food

You'll want to guage the amount of food to give your pet skunk by how much he'll eat in about 5 minutes. If the skunk seems to be searching for food between meals, then you may want to add a little bit more to the bowl the next feeding time. If the skunk can't finish the entire meal in one sitting, then you're offering too much food.

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Posted By: Whitney - Category: Skunks, In Captivity
   


Skunks as Pets

July 23rd 2009 16:46
They may not be the most conventional pets, but skunks are actually wonderful pets. Ask any skunk owner, and you won't find one that will tell you different. Skunks are very intelligent and when 'dis-armed' at an early age, they can't spray and smell up the house. But, with any exotic pet, you'll need to make sure that you do all the research before bringing one home, especially as they are not legal pets in all states.

Skunks will not make good pets for everyone, as they are active and curios. They will get into everything and are prone to stealing items to make their bed softer. Skunks can be stubborn and headstrong, as well, but they can also be friendly, loving, entertaining, and playful all at the same time.

Skunks are not low maintenance pets. You can't just throw it in a cage, feed it, and be on your way. In all actuality, you shouldn't put a skunk in a cage, and they really do need lots of attention, as they'll demand it. Skunks require a well varied diet, and they are hard to litter train, although it is very possible to do so.

Pet skunks can be very distructive, tearing up your furnature, wall-coverings, doors, wood trim, plastic, almost anything. A bored skunk will be a destructive one.

Skunks need to be spayed or neutered at a young age; they need to be vaccinated, and require a rabies vaccination once a year. And when it comes to finding a veterinarian that is comfortable treating skunks is going to be a task.

So, as you can tell, skunks just aren't the best pet for everyone, but if you're really ready for a serious commitment, then by all means continue doing your research so that you can ensure that your potential pet skunk gets all the proper care that it needs.

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