Skunks Take 2

We lived in an old house in Oklahoma that was actually two houses that had been pushed together. One side had an unfinished basement, the other side was balanced on concrete blocks. Little did we know that the concrete block side was a skunk magnet! Our first clue was waking up one night to the sounds of a cat fight on steroids. That was "exciting" as it sounded as if it were right under us. Turns out that it was. Right under our bedroom. sigh

Our children were small, about 4 and 1. You know, the age when they are either movng or asleep. The time of life when there is no mute button.

There was a wonderful racetrack in the house. They started off in the living room, then on to our bedroom, breeze through the bathroom, whizz through the dining room and wind up back in the living room. This was a wonderful game -- to chase each other around and around. Sometimes just one of them ran it. Screeching in laughter at the top of their lungs. Nathan couldn't move very fast, but it didn't matter.

Unfortunately, the skunks resented being awakened as they slept under our bedroom floor. They really didn't like the noise. And showed their displeasure as skunks are wont to do.

We tried all of the home remedies we were told about. How many of them were to tease us? I don't know, they didn't work. Eventually a friend loaned us a trap, and helped dispose of the first skunk. Which got exquisite revenge as it died. The second skunk left for a day or so, and Howard dug out the path to the den, and put down a sheet of roofing materials to deter the skunks.

Didn't work. Wasn't too long before they had moved under our bedroom again. This time the trap was dropped off, with best wishes. I'm not sure he even slowed as he dropped it off. He wanted nothing to do with it!

Eventually the skunks were persuaded to find a different home. But every time it rained there was a skunk odor in that house.

I don't remember how long we had skunks under our bedroom, it seems as if it was a very long time. It probably wasn't, but too much time has passed to know for sure.