Gene,
Not me .... I'll be too busy running the other way !!!!
My neighbor traps all the ones we get around here and releases them miles from here in state land. He gets one or two each year and he's been doing it since he moved here in 1977 without any problems.
He says he learned how from his close friend who is a trained naturalist and ran a nearby State nature preserve for many years.
What he told me he learned, and works for him......
He insists you have to use a small trap that the Skunk can just barely fit into. Any larger and it can move round enough to spray.
Also, move very, very SLOOOOOWLY any time the Skunk can see you.
Once a Skunk is in the trap, he would hold a blanket opened out at arms length in front of him as he slowly approched the trap and compleatly covers the trap with the blanket. He said Skunks don't like being out in daylight and that calms the Skunk right down.
Then, still moving slowly, put the blanket covered trap in the car. Keep the trap compleatly covered at all times.
To release, place the trap well away from the car. Preferably near the edge of woods. Reach under the blanket and open the trap door. Then slowly slide the blanket off as you back away from the trap moving in the oposite direction from the trap door - taking the blanket with you.
Once the trap is opened and uncovered, as long as the Skunk does not feel threatened, it will run off into the woods to find cover. Then you can go back and get the trap.
The Skunk is more scared of you than you of it. They only spray as a last resort. They will try to face down what they think is a threat by making short little charges a foot or so toward you and stamping their feet first.
I watched a PBS special on Skunks recently. They interviewed a gal who does alot of the trapping on Martha's Vinyard (over run with Skunks) and, sure enough, she was doing exactly the same thing as my friend said he does.
Paul.
