How To Handle Unwelcome Wildlife

Have you noticed an abundance of wildlife in Buffalo Grove this summer?

After a couple of close encounters with skunks — one crossed his wife’s path, and another scurried into their garage when the opened the door to take out the trash — Scott Simon, who has thus far managed to avoid getting sprayed, asked Buffalo Grove Patch for help.

“Is there something the city of BG can do or call animal control to maybe put some traps up or something to get them out of the area before someone gets sprayed or attacked?” he asked on the Buffalo Grove Patch Facebook fan page.

I didn’t have the answer, so I turned to for help.

As it turns out, there’s not too much village employees can do to protect residents from nature’s smelliest critters.

“We do not have a permit from the state to trap or handle wildlife,” Ghida Neukirch, deputy village manager, told me.

The will address complaints about barking dogs, strays or requests for well-being checks on pets. A look through its police blotters reveals citations for noisy canines and transports of lost cats and dogs to local animal shelters.

The village also provides advice on how to deal with feral cats, regulations for the owners of rottweilers and pitt bull terriers, information about coyotes, and tips for encounters with bats.

If a skunk — or squirrel or raccoon, for that matter — decides to take refuge on your property, the village suggests you contact one of these five animal control businesses in the area.

Have you encountered an unwanted wild animal on your property? How did you deal with it?