Right now, it is perfectly legal in at least 17 states to own a skunk as a pet. But skunks are wild animals, not domesticated ones. This fact is particularly harrowing when you learn that most people remove their pet skunk's scent glands. Doing an invasive and painful procedure that essentially leaves a wild animal defenseless in order to make it a pet is wrong!
Sign the petition if you think de-glanding a skunk should be illegal!
There are cases in which humans may end up caring for skunks, but that should only be happening in instances of wildlife rehabilitation. The aim should always be to allow wild animals to return to nature whenever possible. When it is not possible, they should be kept in appropriate indoor/outdoor enclosures where they can express as many natural behaviors as possible, including using their scent glands!
Breeding skunks as pets should not be allowed. But until that is outlawed, we must insist that those people doing so can at least not mutilate the skunks. One of the reasons removing a skunk's scent glands is so horrible is that if they get out, they will be completely defenseless against predators. Especially for skunks who have been raised in domestic settings, a lack of scent glands means they are easy prey.
Skunks don't have the same ability to navigate back to a place they know like cats and dogs do. That means skunks that get lost from homes will likely never make it home and may die a horrible death because they have none of their natural skills or resources to survive. Sign the petition if you think it should be illegal to remove a skunk's scent glands!
