Skunk under the deck: getting it out without getting sprayed

A skunk living under your deck is only dangerous if you surprise it. It wants a dry, dark shelter: under a deck, a patio or a shed. The right move is to get it to leave on its own, then close the entry with buried mesh. On the South Shore, trapping it to release it elsewhere is prohibited for now, because of raccoon rabies.

Identifying a striped skunk

Striped skunks measure 54 to 77.5 cm including the tail and weigh 1 to 6.3 kg. They are black with two white stripes down the back, active at night and present in Québec year-round. A skunk warns before spraying: it stamps its front feet, backs up and raises its tail. Backing away slowly at that point almost always works.

Signs a skunk is around

• a musky smell that keeps returning to the same spot, even without a recent spray;
• a clean hole under the deck, patio or shed;
• small cone-shaped holes in the lawn where it searched for grubs overnight;
• paw prints in loose soil at the entrance.

A wider burrow with a mound of soil beside a foundation points instead to a groundhog, which comes out by day.

What the law allows on the South Shore

No relocation. The Québec government prohibits moving or relocating a live striped skunk within the municipalities surrounding known cases of raccoon rabies. Every town this site covers is on that list, from Châteauguay to Varennes and from Saint-Lambert to Granby. The ban runs until October 6, 2026 and may be extended: see what the ban means for your home.

Scaring off before trapping. Québec’s Act respecting the conservation and development of wildlife allows trapping or killing an animal that damages property only when it is impossible to scare it off or otherwise stop the damage. A skunk under a deck can nearly always be scared off.

If trapping becomes necessary. The animal is released on site once the entry is closed, or killed as a last resort. No permit is required in that context. Trapping a skunk without getting sprayed takes the right equipment, which is often where a professional earns the fee.

Getting the skunk out, step by step

1. Check the season. From late May to mid-summer, kits may be in the den.
2. Scare it off: light, radio, an ammonia-soaked rag near the entry, for a few days.
3. Track the exits: spread flour or fine soil in front of the hole and read the tracks in the morning.
4. Close it after it leaves, with buried metal mesh, not just a board propped in place.
5. Remove what attracts it: pet food outside, open compost, a lawn full of grubs.

What it costs

A price study for Montreal and surrounding areas puts skunk trapping at $150 to $325, with an average of $226. Installing exclusion mesh around a deck or shed is priced separately, by length. See the other price ranges.

Rabies and pets

Striped skunks can carry rabies. Do not approach a skunk that is active in broad daylight, staggering or unresponsive. After a bite or contact with saliva, wash with soap and water for 10 to 15 minutes and call Info-Santé 811. Keep your pets’ vaccinations current and do not leave their food outside.

Keeping skunks from coming back

The Québec government recommends mesh with openings of 5 cm or less, buried at least 25 to 30 cm, ideally 45 to 60 cm, all around the deck, patio or shed. Install it before spring, when females look for a place to give birth. Yards that back onto fields and woodlots, as in Sainte-Julie or Varennes, see skunks more often: that is where the mesh pays off fastest.

The same mesh also blocks raccoons. For a strong smell inside the house itself, or an animal stuck in a basement window well, see what to do in an emergency.