Best site ever

http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf576594.tip.html

That's the best site ever in terms of information for skunk smell removal. Let's just say that there's at least one that's set up a den under our front steps (concrete steps.. it dug under it). I wasn't in a huge panic to get rid of the skunk because I didn't think it would spray near its home. It was a nuisance to be afraid of taking the garbage out.. We didn't have a confirmed sighting of the skunk until the night before last.

But now that I've read more about skunks (more than I've ever wanted to know).. the female will sometimes spray a male if she's not interested. I suspect this is what happened.

Now the problem is the smell in the house. I don't know how to get rid of it. I'm trying lots of different things, but the smell is coming from the front of the house, under the front steps.. likely inside the skunk's den. I think it's seeping in through the walls.

So this is what I've done. I've put out bowls of vinegar, I'm burning scented candles, I'm boiling coffee, I'm baking coffee grounds and cinnamon in the oven at 250, I've got all the windows open, I've got a fan going. I'm very, very sensitive to smell so the only reason why I haven't run from the house screaming is a pair of swimmer's nose plugs (while sitting next to an open window). Thank goodness. Before I thought of the nose plugs, I was shaking from the smell. I had sat myself and my infant daughter beside an open window. It's pretty cold outside.. close to freezing.

Strangely enough, my husband doesn't seem to be too affected by the smell. I wish that I didn't have my super olfactory senses. It's good for detecting spoilt milk better than anyone I know, but this is ridiculous.

What am I doing about the skunk? Previously, we put mothballs in the den and the skunks left. My husband got some heavy wire to block off the opening and covered it all with lots of gravel. That was the one side that was easily accessible. The other side, he put gravel down it, but it was difficult because of the roots of a bush. I thought that would be enough. At the time, it was the middle of winter and my husband asked if he should pour concrete down it. It was very cold, so I told him not to and that we could do it in the spring. Dumb. Dumb. Dumb!

So that's our plan. As soon as they/it leaves, we will pour concrete down the side. Might also dig up the other side and pour concrete down that side, too. I don't know. I don't want to have to go through this again.

It's so bad that my plans are to go live with my sister temporarily. This will be a huge pain because it will mess up both my kids' sleep. I don't know. Maybe the house just needs a day to air-out.

I'll be heading to the store to pick up some vapor-rub to put under my nose. I can't live like this.