What does a skunk spray smell like?

Question

I have never smellt it before. Is it really disgusting?

Answer 1

From far away, kind of like B.O.

From close up, kind of like burnt rubber.

I don't think it's the worst thing you can smell. I can think of a few other things that are worse - I won't say to spare you the thought.

Answer 2

I am always really shocked when I see this question posted.  I always have to wonder where people live, that they have never smelled a skunk, not even on dead on the road!

Just between my house, and town, there are four dead skunks, one racccon, one red fox, and two marmots.  I only live 8 miles from town.

We smell skunk nearly every evening on our farm, when the skunks come out at night to hunt.  Drives our dogs nuts.

You must live in a city, and never go for drives in the country.  Of course when I lived in the city, was the time I darn near stepped on a skunk......

When we first moved into our farm in WA, I had chickens.  The rooster was lame in one leg, and could not go to roost with the hens.  He would sleep by our front door.  A skunk came one night and I believe tried to make a snack of the rooster.  The rooster leaped over the skunk with a squack, and scared the skunk.  The skunk sprayed our front door!

The smell in the house was horrid!  There really isn't anything that properly describes the smell of skunk spray.  Burnt rubber, rotted garbage, sulfur, musk.  The smell is "oily" and sticks to everything, including your throat, even if you have not been directly hit, just close to a fresh spray.

If you know someone with a pet ferret, burry your nose into their fur, and take a good whiff.  Now immagine that smell about a million times stronger....now you have a good idea what a skunk smells like.

~Garnet

Permaculture homesteading/farming over 20 years

Washed more skunk sprayed dogs that I care to remember.

Answer 3

it smells horrible. if you leave it too long on yourself though, your nose gets used to it and you don't smell it anymore. It has a very sharp smell. May burn your throat and sting your eyes, depending on who you are. It smells some what like rotten eggs. Definetly has sulfur in it.

Answer 4

like those stink bombs that u can buy at firework stands

Answer 5

it smells like reefer (pot) if youve ever smelled that you would know what a skunk smells like lol

Answer 6

this is one thing you dont' want to experience first hand! consider yourself lucky! :)

Answer 7

its not that bad...

smells really sulphurous

Answer 8

*** CRACK

Answer 9

Esqulax has it rite..!!  skunks smell much like an unwashed, dirty sweaty human being, only the odor is exaggerated, and oil based, and permeable to any thing... glass even holds it for long LONG periods of time!

  Skunk meat tastes much like it smells, too... they sure ain't what i call fine dinning.

  The pelts are 'hair', not fur. They are great curio items if you tan them, but not worth much as fur bearers.

   One 'Oder' that every animal KNOWS as dangerous is the smell of MAN, and skunks apparently figured that out ..

  The closest smell to a skunk i know of is a person who hasn't had a bath in a week or two....  that's exactly what they smell like.

Answer 10

what do u think it smells oh smells bad duh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 11

The Smell of Skunks

The smell of skunks has been compared to burnt rubber.

Here is more input:

* When they spray: putrid. The worst lingering smell you will ever experience.

* Skunks don't really smell like anything else. They are pretty unique in that sense.

* Interesting animals, skunks are. They're really quite mild mannered, and if you don't startle them or make them angry, they're happy to leave you alone. All they want from humans is the scraps of food that we carelessly leave laying around. They normally eat just about anything from frogs to bird eggs to whatever they can find in your garbage can. However, nature has given them a very effective means of self defense in the spray that they direct at an enemy. The spray is a chemical concoction manufactured by special glands in the skunks body. One of the ingredients is actually sulfuric acid, a very strong acid used for making car batteries and other industrial uses. To describe the smell of skunk spray is tough, as there's nothing in our daily lives that resembles it. It can, in very very small amounts, smell something like burned rubber. But, in larger quantities it is just indescribable. Once you smell it, you'll never forget it. It's very strong, and makes your eyes water and breathing difficult. It's very, very unpleasant to be sprayed by a skunk, which two of my dogs will swear to. Hopefully, you'll get a chance to find the answer for your question from a distance. And, remember, skunks are known to be carriers of rabies. If you're ever bitten by one, see a doctor immediately. Otherwise, they're really gentle critters who mind their own business. The only time I take action is if they decide to set up housekeeping under my porch. In that case, spreading mothballs around under the porch seems to chase them away. Mothballs smell to skunks like they smell to us.