Some people think the situation really stinks but there’s no denying that Bowen Island has a slowly growing population of skunks.
Ellen McWilliams, a groomer at the Dog Ranch, says that in her 30-plus years here, she first heard of a skunk on the island nine years ago. Back then, there was just the odd spraying. Now she’s bathing two to three dogs, as well as the occasional cat, a week.
McWilliams‘s experience is that “It’s the hunting breeds“ of dogs that get into trouble the most. “It’s usually the Golden Retrievers, or Labradoodles, or a few Huskies. It’s just brutal,” she says referring to the stench.
While there is debate about how long skunks have been living on Bowen, Iris Carr from CAWES notes that “three skunks and three raccoons were reported eight years ago in the Miller Road/Miller Landing area,”
One raccoon seemed to have disappeared. The remaining two raccoons were probably of the same gender. “No raccoon kits have been reported in the past eight years,“ she adds. “If they are the very same raccoons, they probably won’t live for much longer.”
Skunks, on the other hand, have increasingly left their scent all over the island. A shy, slow-moving animal with a small range, skunks have only one defence. If threatened, they have little recourse but to diffuse their signature scent to dissuade anyone, or anything, from getting closer.
While the BC Wildlife Act prevents the trapping and removing of wildlife without a license, stories abound regarding the deliberate transport of skunks and raccoons to Bowen.
McWilliams and Carr agree that someone probably came over with a litter that has since multiplied. Bylaw officer Donna Bottay says that her office has followed up on one rumour that a pest control company brings the animals over. “I’ve definitely heard the rumours but there is nothing to substantiate any such thing.”
Aside from the potential clash of dogs and skunks, some people worry about skunks as predators. Billi Gowans, wildlife ecologist, says that mink, eagles, hawks, crows, dogs, cats and owls are more of a threat to a chicken than skunks whose natural diet is bugs, mice and little animals. She adds that she has seen raccoons on Bowen off and on for years.
You may have to hold your nose at the idea, but both Carr and BGowans suggest that a community so close to the mainland could learn to live with wild native species like skunks and raccoons. Gowans points out that some animals get to Bowen by mistake, trapped in a truck transporting goods to the island. Other regional natives naturally come and go to and from the island such as mink and otters. In either case “we don’t have the right to control native species.”
She also points out that people may not realize that we are surrounded by many species that are non-native, from black slugs to grey squirrels. Each non-native arrival has had varying levels of impact on the island.
Gowans, advises islanders that the BC Wildlife act strictly prohibits non-permitted trapping, handling, harassment and killing of any native wildlife. “This includes neutering and removing scent glands.”
Iris Carr says research proves that “skunks can be very beneficial” in a community. McWilliams, is one person who doesn’t disagree. “It works for me,” she says referring to the growing need for deodorizing dog baths. “Every cloud has a silver lining.”
McWilliams says that in the past she used all the odour-destroying dog shampoos on the market. One day, her son had her watch a TV show called Mythbusters, which put all the shampoos to the test in a lab and found that “the only thing that works is a mixture of peroxide, dish soap and baking soda.
“The problem,” she adds, is that “the dog is usually upset from being sprayed, and then the dog has to keep the solution on for 15 or 20 minutes” before rinsing off.
