Frantic search for deaf pet skunk who escaped from back garden ends in joy after owner finds pet hiding under a car – and gives her chicken wings and cottage cheese as a treat!
- Sky the skunk disappeared on Saturday…’fully loaded with stinky spray’
An old and deaf skunk ‘fully loaded with stinky spray’ has been found after four harrowing days on the run – to the delight of her owner, who has soothed her with chicken wings and cottage cheese.
Sky the brown and white skunk snuck out of her back garden in Christchurch, Dorset on Saturday September 30 after a gate was blown open, leaving owner Sharon Tyler distraught.
Ms Tyler, 55, put up missing posters around her area in the hope that someone would see her, and sought help from drone pilots and even a fellow skunk owner to try to track her down.
Against the odds, Sky was found safe and well just before 10pm on Tuesday night curled up under a car – on a driveway just 10 doors down from Sharon’s home,
The heart-rending moment was caught on video, as a teary-eyed Sharon exclaims: ‘Oh my god’ and cradles the skunk in her arms.
All’s well that ends well: Sharon reunited with Sky the skunk
Sharon Tyler’s sense of relief is etched across her face as she cradles Sky the skunk in her arms
The skunk – who was described as being ‘fully loaded with stinky spray’ at the time she went missing – is now safely back at home, and has gorged on chicken wings and cottage cheese
Sky (pictured) normally has the run of her own back garden – but Ms Tyler is in other accommodation while building work takes place at her ground floor flat
Sky the skunk enjoying cut up fruit at her home in Dorset
She then gives the animal a squeezy cuddle as the search comes to a long-awaited and happy end.
Ms Tyler said: ‘I was searching last night with three volunteers and it was nearly 10pm so we were about to give up.
READ MORE: Causing a stink! Hunt for runaway pet that escaped out of owner’s ‘skunk proof’ back garden… when she left the gate unlocked
‘But then Lily (one of the volunteers) said she heard a noise from under a car on a driveway.
‘I crouched down and saw Sky. I could not believe it. I picked her up and cradled her.
‘Everyone was screaming and I was sobbing. It is such a relief.
‘Sky was dirty so I think she has been in a wooded area but otherwise she is absolutely fine.
‘She has not lost any weight and is as grumpy as ever. I’ve already treated her to chicken wings and cottage cheese.
She was especially concerned for Sky’s welfare as skunks are vulnerable to common suburban predators like dogs, foxes and badgers, and there were concerns that she could have died of dehydration.
Ms Tyler knocked on dozens of doors, put up missing posters and even brought in another skunk owner, Jayden Parr, who walked his own skunk Dexter on a lead around the streets in the hope of picking up Sky’s scent.
She even tried using Sky’s favourite food, chicken, to lure her out of suspected hiding places, scouring local meadows and woodland as she sought to track her down.
Sky managed to escape while ‘fully loaded’ with stink spray – but thankfully was recaptured before she got to use it
Sky went missing on Saturday after a garden gate was blown open and she wandered outside – but was ultimately found just 10 doors down after four days
Sharon Tyler (right) and Jayden Parr, who brought in his own skunk Dexter to help in the search for Sky
Sharon Tyler searched in undergrowth around Christchurch in Dorset looking for Sky – seen here with the skunk’s bed in the hope of luring her out with her own scent
She even appealed to drone pilots with thermal imaging cameras in an attempt to track Sky down with hi-tech methods – but in the end, the skunk was just a few doors down the road
She added: ‘I can’t describe the last few days. I was searching all hours for Sky but it was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
‘It was a race against time because the longer she could have been attacked by foxes or dogs and the thought of that was heartbreaking.
‘I knocked on dozens of doors and walked miles to look for her but the terrain was just so difficult.
‘I hated the thought Sky could be in distress or caught in something.’
Sky normally lives with Sharon in her ground floor flat and has the run of the skunk-proof garden via a dog flap.
Sharon Tyler, 55, of Christchurch, Dorset, went door-to-door asking neighbours if they have seen Sky – and she was found under a car
Sky was treated to chicken wings and cottage cheese after she was found hiding under a car
Sky, before she escaped, pictured with one of Sharon’s dogs
However, Sharon is currently in alternative accommodation while building work is taking place at her home and had been checking on Sky twice a day.
Sky, who weighs about 9lbs, is Miss Tyler’s third skunk in 17 years. They can live for up to 10 years in human care.
Skunks – mephitis mephitis in Latin – are native to North and South America and in the wild they are known to eat rodents, frogs, birds and even snakes.
They are known for their ability to spray a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands.
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