Why Hudson Valley Air May Not Smell So Sweet in February

I don't believe that there is anyone on this planet that enjoys the smell of a skunk, but I have met quite a few people who love skunks who don't smell. Growing up I actually had a friend who had a skunk for a pet. Apparently it was some sort of wildlife rescue situation so they had the skunk "de-skunked" and kept it like a regular house pet. It got along with their cat and their dog.

Now before you go thinking that I am advocating that you get a pet skunk let me move on to the reason I have brought up the topic of skunks. Turns out while all of us are thinking about Valentine's Day and our sweetheart, so are the striped skunks of the Hudson Valley. According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) striped skunk breeding season coincides with February 14th. I now finally get all those Pepe Le Pew cartoons.

In a Facebook post earlier today (February 10, 2021) the NYS DEC shared that even though it is winter and we have plenty of snow on the ground we can still expect to see and smell our Hudson Valley Striped Skunks. Their breeding season is February and March. Then we can expect the little ones by May.

The information from the NYS DEC, which you can access below, also explains that skunks often find places to live during the winter months in and around our homes. Apparently cats put up with sharing space with skunks but dogs don't. Again, I am seeing the Pepe Le Pew connection. Anyway you may want to keep you dog close by for the next few weeks. De-skunking a dog in the depths of winter wouldn't be fun.