Skunk stories...

Hunt'nFish · 06-19-2008, 03:18 PM

This story by AJFishfinder ( Revenge & Victory ) had me rolling.
Thought I'd start a thread so we can share ALL our skunk stories.

Here's one of mine......
This happened a few years back while I was down in Texas turkey hunting.
It was 2 day and we were camped out on a ranch near Brownsville. I'd gone to the far corner of the ranch to investigate new ground. I'd found some birds on the neighbors property but just couldn't get them to leave the the purty ground they were enjoying across the fence. I called, waited, called and waited late into the morning until finally giving up. So I headed back to camp.
As I top the small ridge with camp below I hear the biggest ruckuss down in camp, all sorts of hollering with guys running this way and that. Next I see one of my hunting partners run to the picnic table next to the stock pond where we were cooking and snatch his shotgun hanging from the limb of a mesquite tree. Next I see him jack one in the barrel and go running back toward our tent. KaBOOM, KaBoom.... he blasts into the tent.

I come running down off the ridge, not knowing what was going on, but fearing the worst.
Seems they had gotten back to camp and one of them had walked into the tent and gotten a real big surprise. Yep, a skunk had decided to investigate our tent and was now trapped and scared. After we got the skunk out and inspected the damage their were holes out the back, w/ one lost pillow and EVERYTHING stinking to high heaven. We pulled everything out and hung up the sleeping bags to air out. It was almost a total loss. Everything stunk except my gear and bag!

I don't know what I did to deserve such good fortune but needless to say we slept the next 2 days under the stars after running into town for a couple fresh sleeping bags.

Still one of the best hunts I've had. The turkey hunting didn't go well for us but the bass fishing was OFF THE HOOK!
Hunt'nFish

Troutinator · 06-19-2008, 03:40 PM

We were into week 2 of a very remote fishing trip to northern BC, almost into the Yukon territory. Fishing was insanely good.... we stayed on a small cabin built on a float... we'd pole out 50' or so from shore every evening to get away from the sparrow sized mosquitos then pull ourselves back to shore in the morning for bathroom duty. One evening after getting back onto the raft we were poling out for the night when my cousin started hollering and came tearing around the side of the cabin... with a mad as heck skunk right behind him! That skunk was PO'd!! She was spitting and stamping her feet and generally acting psycho... I was sure she must be rabid! Long story shortened, this skunk was sleeping on the raft under thee edge of a bench attached to the side of the cabin, my cousin didn't see her and stepped right on her. Apparently, if a skunk is really mad rather than scared, they don't spray. At least this one never did... we just pulled the rope to shore as fast as we could while she backed Mark up to the edge of the raft... when we got to within 5' from shore he jumped and when the logs touched bottom, she jumped and landed in the weeds... they went opposite directions and Mark circled back, got on the raft and we poled out again. It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. That skunk was MAD... at Mark! She didn't give my other cousin or I a sideways look... she wanted his skin!!

Anyway... it is one of our favorite stories to re-live when reminicing around a campfire. Mark and the stepped on skunk who was too mad to spray!

ehunter · 06-19-2008, 03:47 PM

Mine was when I was about 14 I have had 2 encounters didn't learn the first time I guess. Any way I had some traps set out they were dry sets and I had to check them every day. After school I grabbed the 22 and headed out to my trap line it was pretty big all of 3 traps. Any way as I get close to the first trap I could see it had some thing in as I got closer it was getting dark I could see a white tail crud I had a skunk he was looking away from me so I snuck into about 5 yards from him and I thought what the heck. I shot him in the back of the head, well as he died he left a reminder I swear I could see a yellow vapor so I backed off about 15 yards I almost had tears in my eyes but I was thinking well I didn't get it too bad. It was almost dark so I figured I would come back tomorrow and get him. So I head home, after you get sprayed you don't smell it on your self or it doesn't smell as bad

. So I figured I was good to go I locked my gun up on the porch (try that today). I walked into the mud room kicked off my rubber boots and walked into the kitchen every body was setting at the table but me I was little late. My mom dropped her glass one of my brothers started to gag like he was going to throw up, my dad dropped his fork and put his hand over his mouth and yelled out side and I stood there and said what what's, wrong. My family still remembers that to this day well I guess I do too....

Critter Getter · 06-19-2008, 10:04 PM

Back years ago , when my daughter was in high school, her boy friend and a couple of buddys were visiting over at our house. After dark our dog started barking and my son went out to see what was going on. The dog had a skunk cornered under my future son in laws pickup. It sprayed things up pretty good , when it finally came out , my son shot it . I'll bet that was the longest ride home that night that those boys ever had.They had all the windows down all the way home. We still laugh about it.

BrianMaguire · 06-19-2008, 10:33 PM

I have a good one. i was quail hunting outside of the Dalles with a bunch of buddies. we were staying at my friends parents ranch. We flush a few quail, I track up, pull and down goes the qauil at 40 yards, into a brush pile. We did not have a dog with us so I go off to dig in the brush. So I pile into the brush with my face down to find the little bugger that was to be dinner. I am not searchng for 1 minitue and come face to face with a skunk. My face is not 2 ft from it, so I step back and sock it with a 2 3/4" 12 ga bird load. bad idea. I take off an entire shoulder but not enough to keep the still alive skunk from quarting to me an letting out a last gasp of spray. that is one of the top 5 worst things to happen to me. We through my clothes out, i had to sleep outside (no sleeping bag) and even had to throw out the borrowed clothing upon return. I won't be doing that again.

WoodShampoo · 06-20-2008, 06:58 PM

One night while I was working graveyard my wife was winding her evening down. She poured a bath and let the dog out to pee. When she went to let the dog back in she could smell a skunk outside, so she hurried the dog inside so it wouldn't get sprayed.(Mistake #1) She went down the hall and took her bath. When she got out the house had such an overwhelming smell she couldn't stand it. She went into the kitchen to find the dog rubbing his head on anything he could find... Turns out she hurried the dog in after it had been sprayed!!!

She called me at work and asked what to do. I told her to give the dog a bath in tomato sauce and arranged a place for her to stay for the night.

She took the dog into the bathroom (Mistake #2) and put it in the tub. She covered it in tomatoe sauce and started scrubbing it in... The dog.. like all dogs when they get wet.. decided to shake it out.. The bathroom looked like a murder scene.

Everything in the house smelled horrible for weeks. The only up side to the story is that when I went elk hunting a week later I had good cover scent.

Abiquadeer · 06-20-2008, 07:19 PM

So a buddy of mine and I are blacktail hunting the last day of season a few years back. It's raining pretty good like it seems to do on the west side. We are walking down a steep hill after climbing to the top of it, just to run into another hunter. I'm taking up the point when I notice a skunk about 50 yards down the hill. I turn back and ask my buddy what he wants to do about it. In my head I'm thinking do we want to veer left or right of the stink machine. But he replies with "I wanna shoot it". With a what the hell look on my face I say "uh ok". So I step behind him holding old trusty in one hand and covering one ear with the other. Well he lets the skunk have it with his 7mag. .0013 seconds after he explodes the skunk, a small buck jumps up from his bed and heads down the hill not ten yards from the skunk. I take one step to his right. Lay a bead on the deer and put him in a nose first slide down the hill. That was the smelliest gutting job I've ever had to perform. Thanks to the perfume in the air.

EvilD · 06-20-2008, 07:55 PM

I have never been sprayed, but, my folks lab has REPEATEDLY! Same thing every time. Let him out for his nighttime doody walk, he bolts and won't come back until the stink is literally dripping off him. They've tried like heck to train the dog but he won't stop protecting his yard, 3+acre yard.
My dad finally trapped the skunk in a havahart, covered it with an old horse blanket, then dumped the whole mess into the watering trough until it drowned.

From experience with this lab and the walker hound who does the same thing, the ABSOLUTE BEST REMEDY for skunk stink is:
1.5 quart of FRESH hydrogen peroxide, (tried this with an older bottle and it didn't work)
1/2 Cup of baking soda,
and two or three tablespoons of dish soap.

Mix in a pail and use immediately. Scrub, scrub, scrub until the dog (or you) is completely saturated. Five or ten minutes is usually adequate, then rinse. We hook the hose up to a utility sink in the washroom and run the hose out to the back so that we can run warm water on the stinky beast without getting him too worked up. Contrary to popular belief tomato juice doesn't work that well, we tried it the first three or four times the dog got hosed. This recipe will get almost all the stink out the first time. You won't be able to smell skunk in a couple days.
WARNING: Do NOT let this get in eyes or on clothing, it burns like hell and it will stain your clothes.

D

Headhunter · 06-20-2008, 08:03 PM

Last year I has the pleasure of duck hunting twice with dogs that found skunks.

One was on opening day when HnF's dog Chance found a few day old/week dead skunk and rolled in it. I'm not talking about kind of nudged it, I mean roooooooolllllled in it. Let me tell you what...skunk and dead critter mix just isn't pretty. When the wind changed I thought I would hurl.

The other was down at Fern Ridge with Ogrejager and Vader. Vader found a fresh pile-o-skunk spray or got sprayed or something because it was a doozy. He would get in the wooden box blind and my eyes would water. I had skunk smell on some of my gear for a few weeks.

Still, I would much rather hunt with these gundogs than not! Their owners...well the jury is still out

SImudBogger · 06-21-2008, 06:47 PM

I hit one with my old mazda one time. In the middle of a sub-division too so you know those people had a rough few days lol

quit wishing · 06-21-2008, 08:07 PM

Last year, deer hunting I was walking up skid road when I hear something to my right. I freeze in place waiting for something to happen, seconds later mr. racing stripe comes out of the underbrush on overgrown deer trail heading directly for me 20 yds out and closing. I take about ten giant steps back where I had just come from, he steps into the skid road and must of winded me. He bristled, waved his tail in my direction as a warning, and continued on his way. I was considering just then how such a small animal in the world commands such respect from all creatures big and small.

ogrejager · 06-22-2008, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Headhunter

The other was down at Fern Ridge with Ogrejager and Vader. Vader found a fresh pile-o-skunk spray or got sprayed or something because it was a doozy. He would get in the wooden box blind and my eyes would water. I had skunk smell on some of my gear for a few weeks.

Dude, it got on his E-collar and the plastic just soaked it up. I had to live with that smell every trip for over a month!

Hunt'nFish · 06-23-2008, 08:54 AM

I'd forgotten about that.
Oh man nasty..just plain NASTY. Just thinking about it has me about to hurl.

HINT to all you waterfowl guys......put some shampoo in the truck. It took me 3 washings at the MudLk launch to get him clean but man talk about save me from the wife!! We'd have both been in the dog house if I'd brought him home covered in stinky dead skunk fat. Man what a white gooey slim! The Neo gauntlets were sure handy that afternoon.
Hunt'nFish