How to find and remove a dead skunk

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While a live skunk already has a bad reputation because with its putrid-smelling and sticky spray, and it certainly doesn’t get better in death. A dead skunk that is not located and removed in time will result in unimaginable odor that may persist in the area for months or even years. Porous items like cloths within the vicinity of the stink may have to be disposed of.



Skunk carcasses need to be removed from your house or environment in an urgent and calculated manner, bearing in mind the health risks involved (rabies and other infections). Here is a brief guide on how to pull this feat off successfully and a few points to observe.

Locate the carcass
This is the first step, simple and straightforward. Follow the odor with your nose to the area where the ooze is strongest. After this, search thoroughly within the identified angle to locate the dead skunk. In cases where the carcass is located inside the walls or attic of a house, you may want to invite your local animal service department or get help from a wildlife practitioner.

Wear thick gloves
It is of utmost importance that you protect yourself by wearing thick gloves while handling anything skunk. Do not touch or handle a dead skunk with bare hands. Skunks are rabies carriers and it is easy to get infected through contact with an infected animal’s saliva.

Use a shovel
Even though you have worn your thick gloves, it is still not advisable to carry skunk carcass with your hands. Use a shovel instead to scoop it up as well as any material or waste around it. Subsequent to the operation, remember to disinfect this shovel thoroughly.

Seal it up
Drop your scoop into a strong garbage bag and seal it up tight.

Dumping
Do not dump the bagged skunk in the trash can on your property or any other one around as its stench would continue to pervade the neighborhood. Take the garbage bag to a dumpster or landfill far from your house and dump it there. You may also incinerate it.

Disinfect
Very often, maggots and foul smelling body fluids are left at the spot where the dead opossum was removed from. Carefully use a strong disinfectant or enzymatic cleaner to sanitize this area to prevent spread of diseases.

You may also want to deodorize the area in order to dispel the odor faster.

Go back to the Skunk Removal page, or learn tips by reading How to get rid of skunks.

Dead skunks under a shed - Getting skunks away from the home might actually be easier if those skunks are under a shed. You might not think this is true; how can an animal be easier to get out from under something? Well, if the animal went under the shed, it has to come out eventually, or else it will die, and there are only so many places for that to happen. What most trappers have the best luck with is erecting a barrier fence around the base of the sed. Leave one space open, just wide enough to set up a cage trap. If the skunk wants to leave, it has no choice but to go inside the trap. In this situation, you don’t even have to bait the trap, or you could place the bait on the other side of the trap, encouraging the skunk to walk through the device. You still have to be careful with how the trap is set. It should have a tarp over the top and sides. This will protect you from spray, but it will also keep the skunk calm once it realizes it has been captured. The heavy tarp will also help keep the cage stable. Too much wobble will scare off the skunk. However, if this doesn't work and the skunk dies under a shed or porch or deck, you have to put on a gas mask and crawl under there and grab it and bag it!