New neighbors... :(

[Bungleau]

From Yahoo Weird News

Texas border town faces skunk infestation DEL RIO, Texas - The residents of this border town are facing a stinky and growing problem these days: skunks. Eddie Ortega, the director of Del Rio's Community Health Service Center, said there's an unusually high number of the malodorous creatures running around these days. "I'm not positive of the reasons behind this past year's infestation, but we have invaded their territory," he said. "Also, the heat and very little rain have probably caused them to be more active in order to find food." The nocturnal animals are not all bad news: They keep rodents in check. But still, Del Rio residents don't have to keep them around. The health service center is offering cages for residents to catch skunks. A worker will move them elsewhere. ___ Information from: Del Rio News-Herald: http://www.delrionewsherald.com

I used to work for a company with a location in Del Rio, and made more trips there than I care to think about. The directions there are easy... land in San Antonio, and go west until you run out of Texas. At that point, you're in Del Rio. Nearest big town is three hours back where you started, in San Antonio.

One of my co-workers back then (at a plant in Iowa) trapped animals on the side, and told me how he trapped skunks.

Basically, if he saw one in the trap, he shot it from a mile or so away.

Then two days later, he'd go back to retrieve the animal.

Don't know if they'd let you do that in town, even in Del Rio.

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

I'm sure, like in most areas, they have lost more of their natural predators to keep them in check, like birds of prey etc.

[Bungleau]

In Del Rio, I don't know if that's the case as much. While the nearest big town is three hours away, the nearest small town is 30 miles away.... lots o' space for those predators to still be around. Still, lack of food (and lack of *being* food) will cause the population to wander more widely than usual...

Del Rio. The only place I recall being where "shake your shoes out in the morning, in case a scorpion crawled in" was more than just good advice...

On a side note, Acuna, the Mexican city on the other side of the Rio Grande there, was the location for the Antonio Banderas film Desperado.

[Cerek]

A friend of ours had a similar problem around his house a few years ago. He also set out cages and shot the skunks after they were trapped. He shot the first one in the body, which also cause the stink sacks to explode. He and his wife had to go out of town for the weekend. The next time, he made sure he did a head shot.

Bungleau, if you didn't like Del Rio, you likely wouldn't like my hometown either. The climate is nicer, but we jokingly say our area is "two hours from everywhere". That's because it is at least a two hour drive in any direction to the first "big" town - and even those towns likely wouldn't be considered "big" by most people (with the exception of Atlanta, GA). Most people would consider the other "big" towns to us to be small by their standards. lol.

[Bungleau]

I didn't say I didn't like Del Rio, Cerek. I actually enjoyed it... neighbors are fine in my book, especially from a distance.

I've been in North Carolina a few times on business, and I really like the Charlotte area. Which part of the state are you in?

[Cerek]

Originally Posted by Bungleau I didn't say I didn't like Del Rio, Cerek. I actually enjoyed it... neighbors are fine in my book, especially from a distance. I've been in North Carolina a few times on business, and I really like the Charlotte area. Which part of the state are you in?

I live as far west as you can go and still be in NC. My hometown is located right in the very tip of the state. We are 20 miles east of the NC/TN state line and about 15 miles north of the NC/GA state line. The four "big" towns from us are Asheville, NC, Chattanooga and Knoxville, TN, and Atlanta, GA. We are about 110 miles from each place.

Most of my college PnP group lives in or around the Charlotte area. We stay in touch through email, but I haven't seen most of them in person for several years.