“When I first saw green skunks, I thought the heat had gotten to me” 😂🕵️♀️
Turing, Tesla, Grace, Carver, Franklin, and Lovelace are 11-week-old baby skunks rescued after their mother was struck by a car. Some visitors heard little screams coming from deep down a hole in the earth when they were only about a week old and leapt into action.
“The finders were able to capture three of them and noticed they were very thin and cold, so they contacted us,” Juniper Russo, executive director of For Fox Sake Wildlife Rescue, told The Dodo. “We stabilized them and began rehabilitation… The finders then heard additional screams and discovered three more infants had been left behind deep inside the burrow two days later. We were astounded that they had lived this long! The other three were more difficult to stabilize, but all six infants survived and have grown to be robust and strong.”
The newborn skunks have all adjusted well to their new surroundings and have become quite lively. They adore playing with balls, bells, toy mice, and more natural items such as nuts and pinecones.
“They get into the cutest little battles over them,” added Russo.
Russo went to check on the newborn skunks and clean their container one day. Russo wasn’t anticipating anything unusual until they noticed small flashes of green fur and couldn’t believe their eyes.
Russo had no clue how three of the cute tiny skunks had turned themselves totally green.
“When I first noticed green skunks, I believed it was the heat,” Russo explained.
It was really hot that day, and Russo had been working outside for seven hours, so they initially believed the heat was affecting them. The skunks were still green after Russo massaged their eyes and slapped water on their faces, so they grabbed them to take a closer look — and after a time, they were able to unravel the issue.
“I found a grass home on sale when I was bringing them new toys,” Russo explained. “It was designed for guinea pigs and rabbits, but skunks love it!” Some of the small hut’s sections were colored green and blue, but I read on the label that it was edible, so I knew the colors were okay… They had waded in their water bowls and then sprawled about in their grass house, I thought.”
Russo could only chuckle now that the enigma of the green skunks had been explained. The naughty infants were perfectly OK and didn’t appear to realize that they had changed hue. They’re still green almost two weeks later, but it’s lighter than it was before, and Russo is optimistic that it will fade soon.
“It’s disappearing as they groom and roll in water to cool off,” Russo explained. “None of them have experienced any troubles as a result of it.”
The skunks were just transferred into their last pre-release enclosure, and within the next month or two, they’ll be ready to return to the wild – hopefully no longer green.
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