A Colorado Springs skunk is one visitor that you probably never want to see near your home or property. They can cause damage to structures and plants, and of course they can release the toxic smell they are known for, making your living situation very unpleasant. You may think that if you build a fence around your property that that will be sufficient enough protection to keep Colorado skunks out of sight. But can skunks climb fences? This is a question worth looking into if you want to be sure to keep this nuisance animal away from your home, pets, property and family.

Skunks have long claws and sharp teeth. Even though the skunk may be nearsighted, they have sharp senses of hearing and smelling. The striped Colorado skunk is not good at climbing, but it can climb up wire mesh, boards or fences. Their long nails are their handicap when it comes to climbing. However, the spotted Colorado Springs skunk is a good climber and it can easily climb a tree in a matter of minutes.

Even though the Colorado skunks are poor climbers, you should keep in mind that they are good diggers. When you raise a fence to keep them out, you should also bury it a certain distance into the ground. Before you erect the fence, you should be aware of where the skunks live. In the urban areas, the skunks may live in the crawl spaces under a deck. You should start by making sure that these places cannot be accessed by the skunk before you decide to use the fence. Remember that skunks breed in spring, so if you want to keep the Colorado Springs skunk away, you should do it before that time so that you do not evict them when they have babies.

Even though Colorado Springs skunks are not known for their climbing skills, they will be able to manage to climb over certain types of fences, especially those made of mesh material or wood. Even fences that are constructed of slicker materials may not be able to fully protect your property if the skunk has room to burrow and dig underneath it. If you are worried about encountering a skunk on your property, be sure to use other deterrents in addition to a solid fence that goes at least a foot underground in order to avoid a surprise visit from this cute but annoying Colorado creature.

Visit our Colorado Springs wildlife control home page to learn more about us.