The victim will be left with a choking sulfuric odor that tears the eyes and lasts for days, with little hope of quick relief - scent on the skin can linger for a month or more. If one fails to heed the skunk’s warning the skunk will leave a lasting impression. Then, turns its body into a U-Shape or does a handstand on its front legs…RUN!! The polecat is set to go off! Prior to dousing its victim with its foul smelling mist, the skunk does give off a warning.ĥ. Additionally, possessing a “six-shooter,” the skunk can fire this liquid off up to six times before reloading. The skunk’s spray is stored in two walnut-sized glands inside the anus and when it feels threatened, the skunk is capable of squirting this oily, yellowish liquid from vents under its tail up to 15 feet.

Anyone who has been a subject of defensive spray of the skunk knows this well. Skunk meat is not a feature of fine restaurants, the animals are rarely pursued by sportsmen and they are not beloved literary symbols or pleasant companion animals.Īnimals and humans alike avoid this smelly resident of farms and woodlots with its characteristic black and white striped body and wedge-shaped head - and for good reason. To be called a skunk implies that one possesses a sort of maleficent odor lingering about his essence.įurther, as author Alyce Miller rightly points out, the skunk is a very unglamorous animal.

Nobody wants to be “skunked” when fishing or playing a game.

Beyond the lovable “Flower” in Disney’s Bambi, or the laughable Looney Toons caricature Pepè le Pew, the skunk rarely graces the silver screen. Exuding a potent musk that stifles the breath and curls the nose, the skunk does not rank high on most people’s favorite animal list.

Skunk by Alyce Miller