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what is the best way to trap a skunk with body grips?

I guess maybe define what you mean by the "best way"??

If you mean that they never will spray, maybe there is a sure fire way, but I have found in sizes ranging from 120s to 220s, some dispatch just fine and some will stink it up in about any size of bodygripper. I catch most of mine in cubbie boxes and if pepe is just moving slow and you can get a neck/shoulder hit, probably no smell. If stinkie is all excited (hard to think of a skunk moving too fast without being spooked) and pushes further in and gets caught around the mid of the body, you're going to be washing the hide and eventually your cubbie (if you store it in a barn or something) because they'll probably let go.

A couple of examples from last year:


This one was an early pepe, neck/shoulder catch and not a wipf anywhere of stink. I never washed the hide and even with a yellowish tinge to the stripe, I got a Hamilton for it.



This one was caught when it was a little colder and pushed nearly through the trap. Stinky!! I probably should have skinned it out fresh because it was a pretty nice hide but I let it freeze and then took several months stashed away from the house before it thawed enough for me to skin it. The hide definitely was not in as good of shape by then and its still up in the NAFA fur jail awaiting its fate.



There are guys that are certainly better stinker catchers than me and who have caught a lot more as well. They may give you some better tips...

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"And God said, Let us make man in our image …and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, …the fowl of the air…and all the creatures that move along the ground.
Genesis 1:26

body grip traps work excellent in a box. I have even caught skunks 5 feet off the ground in my marten boxes. Make your boxes according to size of trap. 16 inch long boxes will be good for skunk.

what would be a good bait to use? so 220 be the best trap.
what would be a good time of year to catch them to sell the fur?

First off, welcome to the site Baylor.

Second, fur is basically worthless unless it's prime. Prime means that the fur is at it's thickest which normally occurs from November to February depending on where you live.

Third, skunks will take anything from meat baits to cat food.

Fourth, Check your regulations where you're located. is there a trapping season that regulates the taking of skunks at a certain time? Can you use bodygrip traps on land? Many things to consider here.
For example, I live in Pennsylvania. Trapping season for skunks, opossum, raccoon, weasel, fox and coyote run from the end of October to the end of February. The use of bodygrip traps on dry land is illegal and we have a 36 hour mandatory trap check.

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Autumn! My favorite time of the year.

i live in Minnesota and you can trap skunk year round. There keep digging in our yard and i dont know if i should trap them now or wait tell they are prime? what to you guys think

I guess it depends if they are making a big mess or do you possibly make a few bucks from them??

Trapping pepes with conis in your actual yard may lead to the unsettling of domestic bliss if the critter and weather don't cooperate. In my own yard, I might opt for a live cage. FULL DISCLOSURE I'VE NEVER ACTUALLY DONE THIS but I've been told skunks are pretty mellow and approached slow and calm voice a person can throw a blanket over the cage and the animal can be transported away from the house area. Then you can decide what to do with stinky where if it lets go, you probably don't have to face the wrath of ma...

Good luck!!

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"And God said, Let us make man in our image …and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, …the fowl of the air…and all the creatures that move along the ground.
Genesis 1:26

NonPC is correct that MOST skunks are fairly mellow. Have had a few in live traps that you couldn't get within twenty feet of them without them getting their tails up and taking aim.

Read of an ADC guy, somewhere in the mid-west, who would use water from a hose to make a rain shower, over the live trap, with the ornery ones . Skunks were more interested in trying to get out of the "rain" and he was able to sidle up and do an injection for the coup de gras. Claimed to have done this several hundred times and never had a sprayer. Never tried it myself.

I have done that a good few times before. Never been sprayed yet, had a real wild one once that would lift his tail at the slightest movement, but he never did spray me.

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13/14 hunt/trap season
Geese-13
Grouse-1
Squirrel-6
Coon-4
Muskrat-8 (1 eaten)
Mink-1 (ranched)



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Ok I will give them a try. Thanks guys for that help.

If you build/buy cage box traps with solid sides and top you can approach a skunk in it from the side with ease. toss an OLD blanket etc over the cage gently. Make sure theres a sturdy handle on the top you can grab thru the blanket. You can drop the whole rig in water, horse trough or whatever or take it out in the country for the dispatch(provided you have an open bed truck). Thing i dislike about the solid cages is you have few dispatch options to try and keep him from spraying. head shots are iffy at best, and, with solid sides you cant get the best shot to put him down humanely and keep him clean n stinky free. Id consider the solid cages for water dispatch though. Skunks love anything to eat. If its legal and ethical to use conibears you may want to stay away from all meat and fish baits. In cages you can easily release non targets. Persimmons are good, so are commercial grub baits. We catch them on all kinds of stuff. If it s not too cold out chunks of watermelon work, bananas too. Our skunks are primest around December 20th-Christmas till January 15th or so in Illinois. Some are still in good shape at the end of January and we use to hunt them clear up into early February years ago when our season ended Dec 29th.

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Waitin for the leaves to fall...