Family Of Skunks In Peninsula Rescued From 14-Foot Hole

MENLO PARK, CA — A family of three skunks found themselves trapped in a 14-foot-deep hole at a construction site in the Peninsula this week and had to be rescued by an animal shelter using an extendable catchpole.

The skunks “likely would have perished” without assistance because they wouldn’t have been able to climb out of the hole by themselves, according to Buffy Martin Tarbox, the communications manager for the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA.

The humane society was contacted by a construction worker who spotted the skunk family deep in the hole at a Menlo Park site. They couldn’t reach the skunks by hand, so they expanded a catchpole to 12 feet in length and used a net to haul the skunks up to safety.

The three skunks — a mother skunk and her two babies — were placed into crates to be checked for injuries. Fortunately, according to Tarbox, none of them were hurt, the staff wasn’t sprayed and the skunks were grateful to be rescued.

The skunks were released on the back side of the property — far away from any holes.