Season of the skunk: Northern Alberta city offers free capture services for smelly pests

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A black and white striped skunk stands in a field.

Residents and businesses dealing with problem skunks in Cold Lake need only pick up the phone. A contracted trapper is on call to catch the pungent pests and move them safely out of the city.Many municipalities leave residents to manage skunks on their own but Cold Lake, Alta., has taken a different tack and put a skunk trapper on call. A northern Alberta city has taken a unique approach to managing a distinctly odiferous animal.

"We're a community that's living sort of on the fringe of the bush," Copeland said. "Skunks here can be a problem." Getting sprayed by a skunk is an experience most people are eager to avoid. Contracting out the service ensures residents can keep their distance, he said. Once the city's contractor, or "skunk guy," gets a call, he is allotted five consecutive days to stage a careful capture, Copeland said.

Unlike other wild animals that may struggle to thrive after being moved, skunks are better equipped to adjust. They have few natural predators, eat almost anything, and are very solitary creatures.

 

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