Skunks and dogs on Cape Ann

MassWildlife lists meadows, woods, wetlands, beaches and suburban streets among the striped skunk's habitats, which on Cape Ann takes in the marsh edge at Good Harbor, the lawns of Annisquam and the alleys behind Main Street alike. In summer skunks sleep above ground in tall grass, under shrubs, in thickets or under decks and buildings. They eat insects, other small invertebrates and fruit, plus garbage, compost and spilled birdseed, and the sign they leave is a single small hole dug into a lawn, leaf litter or sand.

The calendar runs like this. Breeding season is February through March. Between late April and early June a female digs a den and gives birth to between 2 and 10 kits, which stay underground until they are about 6 to 8 weeks old and then follow her on her rounds. They become independent at two to five months, which, counted from a spring birth, puts young and inexperienced skunks in yards from midsummer into the fall. In winter they sleep through the hard freezes, and MassWildlife notes that a night above 30 degrees is enough to bring them out foraging.

Spray and contact are different problems. Rabies, as the Department of Public Health explains it, spreads through saliva entering a bite, a scratch, broken skin or the eyes, nose or mouth, or through contact with brain and nerve tissue. Musk is none of those. A dog that was only sprayed has a smell to deal with. A dog that grabbed, shook or bit the skunk, or came back with a scratch nobody can explain, may have been exposed, and that changes who you call.

The wash is covered step by step in our how-to on getting skunk smell off a dog, including the eye check that comes before anything else, and we do not repeat it here. What this page adds is the order of decisions: look for wounds before you start scrubbing, wear gloves while you look, and make the calls before the bath if there was any contact at all. Once the dog is clean and its eyes are fine, our groomers can deal with whatever smell lingers in a bath and brush at the studio on Eastern Ave.

MassWildlife's advice for residents comes down to food and shelter. Keep garbage in tough plastic bins with tight lids, inside a building if you can, and put it out on the morning of collection rather than the night before. Use compost bins that hold the material but let it vent. Choose bird feeders that keep seed off the ground, and take them down if skunks visit regularly. Keep the dog's bowls inside. The agency also points out that one household's work is wasted if the neighbors keep feeding skunks, so share the list on your street.

Shelter is the second half. Skunks rest under decks, porches and sheds in summer, and a female with kits uses a den from late spring, so a hole under the deck in May or June may hold a family. Before you block one, call MassWildlife's Northeast Wildlife District in Ayer at (978) 772-2145 for advice. On the dog's side, a reliable recall and leave it turn most encounters into near misses, and a Dogtown Academy day at $89 includes a session with our trainer. When the worst happens anyway, a bath and brush at Dogtown, $55 to $95 by size with no evaluation, finishes what the home wash started.