On a 15 minute walk with the dogs we saw 8 skunks all within blocks of my parent’s house. I found an article explaining the skunk population is on the rise in the Chicago suburbs. The skunk’s numbers are making a comeback after their numbers plummeted in the 1990’s due to a rabies outbreak. According to a skunk trapper in the area he has captured over 400 skunks in the last year which is more than 3 times as many skunks as he did 5 years ago. Besides their awful smell they are often carriers of rabies and distemper so we were trying to steer clear of these pretty little creatures.