Mating season for skunks in Kentucky usually begins in April. However, thanks to a more mild winter, skunks are beginning their mating season a bit earlier. Residents will most likely be seeing more of the animal around their homes and perhaps smelling them as well. During these months, the animals become more active as they look for mates. Residents can call the Kentucky Wildlife Center for help in what to do should they encounter a skunk on their property.
Coyotes have once again been spotted close to a suburban area in one Kentucky town. Like skunks, this is the typical mating season for coyotes so they are likely to be more active, especially during the daylight hours. They can also become more aggressive during these months as they are looking for food and mates and also protecting their new young pups. Precautions should be taken during the mating season to keep you and your smaller pets safe.
Skunk mating season usually starts around April, but with a more mild winter, those creatures are already getting up and active.
That means more little stinkers to brake for on the roads, and even some trying to find new homes… near your home.
“Sometimes mommas will take their babies under your house. An easy way to get them to move on is putting cayenne pepper around the entrance of your crawl space, use flashlights,” William Anderson, the Marketing Manager at the Kentucky Wildlife Center, said. “Also a stereo system if you put that under there the noise often times could get them to move on.” Read more
Summary: Mating season for skunks in Kentucky usually begins in April. However, thanks to a more mild winter, skunks are beginning their mating season a bit earlier.
Coyotes spotted close to residential areas
Coyotes have been spotted closer to residential areas in Ashland, an Ashland city commissioner said Thursday.
This is their natural breeding season, so they are more present, according to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. That agency put together some tips on how to keep you and your pets safe. See more
Summary: Coyotes have once again been spotted close to a suburban area in one Kentucky town. Like skunks, this is the typical mating season for coyotes so they are likely to be more active.
The Kentucky Wildlife Center is preparing for “baby” season which typically starts in March and ends sometime in the summer. The mission of the center is to rescue and rehabilitate the area’s native wildlife and to help preserve wildlife through educating the local residents. The center takes all types of animals, however, they mostly see raccoons, bats, squirrels and possums. They are currently asking people for donations of incubators to help sustain the baby animals who cannot regulate their own body temperatures.
Another wildlife rehabilitator is taking a stand for raccoons infected with canine distemper. At the end of December of last year, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife reported three raccoons that had tested positive canine distemper. The increased rates of canine distemper can be attributed to the increasing raccoon populations in the state. The wildlife rehabilitator is giving advice to residents on what to do when they encounter a possibly rabid animal and how to get them help.
Ky. Wildlife Center taking donations ahead of baby season
The Kentucky Wildlife Center in Lexington is preparing their facility ahead of baby season. The center says ‘baby season’ starts in March and usually goes through the summer.
The Kentucky Wildlife Center’s mission is to rescue and rehabilitate the state’s native wildlife and to improve the welfare of wildlife through education. Each year the center takes in about 1,500 babies and takes care of them using incubators. Read more
Summary: The Kentucky Wildlife Center is preparing for “baby” season which typically starts in March and ends sometime in the summer. The mission of the center is to rescue and rehabilitate the area’s native wildlife.
The Kentucky Wildlife Center in Lexington is preparing their facility ahead of baby season. https://t.co/2Q5CM6JaIK
Wildlife rehabilitator says to report animals in need
A wildlife rehabilitator is speaking up after recent confirmed cases of canine distemper in hopes of educating residents on how to act when they find an animal that might have distemper.
Angela Cox, the operator of Critter Ridge Sanctuary, has been a licensed wildlife rehabilitator for about a year. While she helps a variety of animals, her passion is raccoons.
At the end of December, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife confirmed that three raccoons found in Frankfort had tested positive for canine distemper. Learn more
Summary: At the end of December of last year, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife reported three raccoons that had tested positive canine distemper. The increased rates of canine distemper can be attributed to the increasing raccoon populations in the state.
Raccoon populations in the state of Kentucky are currently higher than they have been in the last couple of decades. Due in part to things such as reduced interest in the fur trade and a reduction in the amount of trappers and hunters that actively try to nab raccoons, the number of raccoons that we now see in urbanized areas has been allowed to skyrocket. There is a natural ebb and flow to animal populations and it is expected to level out at some point, but for now the little masked bandits are flourishing.
Due to higher numbers of raccoons and the closer proximity to humans, the concern for the spread of rabies is also growing. The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services runs a rabies program that is geared towards the prevention and control of the disease. Rabies is a common disease amongst animals such as raccoons, bats, coyotes, and skunks. In 1999 alone, skunks accounted for 21 out of the 35 confirmed rabies cases in the state of Kentucky.
Speaking of masked mammals, it’s difficult to mask the probability that we have an excessive population of raccoons nowadays.
Back in what millennials would consider ancient times, about 1970, there just weren’t oodles and gobs of raccoons. They were out there, certainly, but ‘coons at that time were country critters of modest proliferation.
Lawn raccoons weren’t prevalent at the time. And where raccoons did live and do business, there were ‘coon hunters and trappers that held numbers in check. Read more
Summary: Raccoon populations in the state of Kentucky are currently higher than they have been in the last couple of decades. This is due in part to things such as reduced interest in the fur trade and a reduction in the amount of trappers and hunters.
Kentucky Rabies Program
In 1999, skunks accounted for 21 of the 35 confirmed cases of rabies in Kentucky. Rabies is an infectious viral disease that affects the nervous system. People get rabies from the bite of an infected, or rabid, animal. Wild mammals like raccoons, skunks, foxes, coyotes or bats can have and transmit rabies.
Domestic animals like dogs, cats, horses and cattle also can transmit rabies to humans. However, domestic animals account for fewer than 10 percent of all reported rabies cases in animals. via CHFS
Summary: The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services runs a rabies program that is geared towards the prevention and control of the disease. Rabies is a common disease amongst animals such as raccoons, bats, coyotes, and skunks.
Coyote sightings have been increasing in numbers all over the United States. Kentucky is no exception. Thanks to things like increased human development, coyotes have been moving closer and closer to humans. Coyotes are opportunistic hunters and can thrive wherever there is a food source for them. Mating season for the animals is around this time of the year, so it is not unusual to spot more of them out and about, experts have said. A coyote was spotted at a popular outlet mall near Frankfort and bystanders kept a safe distance.
Coyotes are not protected under Kentucky law but there are hunting regulations in place to determine where, how and when you can trap or hunt them. They can be hunted year-round, day or night and with no limitations on how many you bag in a day. There are certain protected lands that night-hunting for coyotes is prohibited on and shotguns are the only legal firearm that you can use when hunting at night.
Coyote spotted at outlet mall, residents to be extra vigilant
Coyote sightings increase around this time of year and officials are reminding Kentucky residents to be extra vigilant.
A cell phone video was posted on Facebook Tuesday showing a curious coyote wandering outside of The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass in Simpsonville, Kentucky.
The video showed the coyote peeking through the glass doors as bystanders kept their distance. Learn more
Summary: A coyote was spotted at a popular outlet mall near Frankfort and bystanders kept a safe distance. Coyotes are more active during this time of year thanks to mating season.
Furbearer Hunting and Trapping Regulations
Coyotes may be hunted year-round, day or night, with no bag limit. However, they can be hunted using lights or night vision equipment after daylight hours from Feb. 1 – May 31 only. Lights or other means to make coyotes visible at night cannot be connected to or cast from a mechanized vehicle. Shotguns are the only legal firearm for night coyote hunting but a shell containing a single projectile may not be used.
Night hunting for coyotes is prohibited on Kentucky lands managed by Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Daniel Boone National Forest, George Washington and Jefferson National Forests, Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area, Clarks River National Wildlife Refuge, etc. See more
Summary: Coyotes are not protected under Kentucky law and can be hunted. However, there a few regulations that determine where, how and when you can hunt them or trap them.
After a few cases of canine distemper were confirmed last month, the city of Frankfort urged residents to remain vigilant and cautious around wild animals. A couple of raccoons tested positive for the disease that has symptoms that often mimic those of rabies. The city issued a statement about the disease and what residents should do if they encounter an animal that they suspect to have the illness.
A popular restaurant on the campus of the University of Kentucky is opening up a new location. The eatery will specifically cater to squirrels, the “underserved population of the campus.” The miniature eatery will be named Squirrels Squirrels Squirrels, a play off of their main restaurant, Girls Girls Girls. Although there is a humorous side to this restaurant, they will be serving actual food to the animals that is crafted for their specific diets.
City urges residents to be cautious around animals that might have distemper
The City of Frankfort is advising residents to be mindful of raccoons that may have canine distemper after three raccoons in the city tested positive for the virus last month.
The city issued a statement Wednesday with information about distemper and what a resident should do when encountering an animal possibly with distemper. The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife confirmed three raccoons were positive for distemper at the end of December. Read more
Summary: After a few cases of canine distemper were confirmed last month, the city of Frankfort urged residents to remain vigilant and cautious around wild animals.
The City of Frankfort is advising residents to be mindful of raccoons that may have canine distemper after three raccoons in the city tested positive for the virus last month. https://t.co/wlAbcJCvuF
New girls girls girls location caters to Squirrels Squirrels Squirrels
Popular Tex-Mex campus favorite, girls girls girls Burritos is branching out into the pop-up restaurant trend with a new concept eatery that will surely attract a new customer base.
The restaurant’s new spinoff, a scale replica of the South Limestone location, will cater to UK’s “underserved squirrel population.”
Naturally, the only difference between the replica and the human-size restaurant is the new name: “Squirrels Squirrels Squirrels Burritos.” via WKYT
Summary: A popular restaurant on the campus of the University of Kentucky is opening up a new location. The eatery will specifically cater to squirrels, the “underserved population of the campus.”
New girlsgirlsgirls location caters to SquirrelsSquirrelsSquirrels on UK’s campus https://t.co/AN5p9pSeDR
Three raccoons have tested positive for a disease known as canine distemper in Kentucky recently. The cases were all tested and confirmed around the holidays and it is unclear if these results are related to the case that was detected in October. Canine distemper is a disease that is often found in raccoons, gray foxes, coyotes, and sometimes skunks and many of the symptoms can mimic those of rabies. The Department of Fish and Wildlife has advised against trying to handle any animals that appear sick on your own.
A company in Kentucky is looking at its contracts after residents expressed concerns over the killing of trapped beavers. Killing beavers in the state of Kentucky is legal, however, many find the practice to be unnecessary and inhumane. The company, MSD, said it no longer wants its vendors to follow that practice upon trapping nuisance beavers. Some of their vendors are contracted to trap nuisance animals, such as beavers when they pose a threat to certain areas, such as building a dam along a creek that is crucial to keep flowing for flood control.
Three raccoons found in Franklin County tested positive for canine distemper, according to results from the past week.
Kevin Kelly, a spokesman for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, told The State Journal on Monday that two of the raccoons were found in Downtown Frankfort and the third was found dead behind behind the Salato Wildlife Education Center. The samples were submitted before Christmas for testing and the department received confirmation on Friday, Dec. 27, Kelly said. Read more
Summary: Three raccoons were tested positive for canine distemper in late December. Officials are unsure if this is related to the case detected in October in Kentucky.
Neighbor concerned about beavers being killed, MSD looking to change rules to trapping
Killing beavers is legal in the state of Kentucky, but MSD said it no longer wants any of its vendors to follow that law when trapping nuisance beavers.
The company is taking a look at its contracts after WHAS11 asked questions based on concerns brought to the news station by a woman who lives near Whipps Mill Road. A creek is behind a neighborhood on the road where Lisa Barker lives. Learn more
Summary: Killing beavers in the state of Kentucky is legal, however, many find the practice to be unnecessary and inhumane. The company, MSD, said it no longer wants its vendors to follow that practice.
