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My Prairie Dog and Fennec are tame wild animals, not domesticated.. although before the "political" ban by the FDA (why the food and drug administration is regulating the pet trade is beyond me, which the general public should find rather troubling) breeders did have "fancy" prairie dogs which could possibly be considered domesticated. Interesting tid bit.

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I feel that I need to explain what domestic means. A tame animal is not domestic, just a tame wild or "exotic" animal (or pet). To be considered domestic or domesticated, man must have full control of the genetics of a said species... like the dog, hamster, cat, ferret and... ahem.... the DOMESTIC SKUNK.

Domesticating is done by selective breeding (of course today, people breed dogs and cats in their back yards and do not understand that selective breeding is key to producing healthy and quality animal stock) animals based on colors, size, temperment and even health. This allows breeders to control what traits the offspring will have. Think of this as evolution controlled by man... on the fast track. Domesticating can be ocomplished quickly under the right circumstances... case in point Hamsters which were discovered in 1940 or 1941, quickly being selectivly bred to create new strains.
Ken Walker "

" Doesn't Tobias understand, by definition of domestic... domestic skunks are not "wild". This goes to show you, that ignorance (or misunderstanding) is the biggest obstacle with progress.

We further eliminate confusion between "wild" and domestic skunks by resticting the ownership of non black and white colors if need be. (more to follow) "

" I live in S. Fl., and have had a pet skunk for almost 2 yrs now. My girlfriend suggested it, I thought a little unusual, researched it, and would not trade him for the world now. We don't want people to take wild skunks, they should stay in the wild. Domestically raised skunks have never been in the wild. I don't show mine in public, very few have seen him. People shouldn't say things they don't have all the facts about. Pet skunks should be legal, with reasonable permits, to ensure the proper care of the animal. Mine is as clean or cleaner than my cat. "

" Politicians and Biologist continuously make the same mistake, they correlate the fact that "wild" skunks, can get rabies with some kind of paranoid phobia that ownership of "pet" skunks somehow increase the probability of a human getting the disease. This is totally unsubstantiated. There is not one single documented case of a pet skunk from a registered breeder ever causing the death of a person, due to the skunk giving that person rabies, in ALL of recorded history, in any of the 50 states! The only way for a domestic skunk to get rabies is to be bitten by an already infected animal.

Skunks are legal in 18 states, with no documented increase of humans contracting rabies as a result. In fact, logic would suggest by makings skunks legally available from a state licensed and approved facility would actually decrease the probability to the reduced temptation to take a skunk from the wild. If Illinois really wants to reduce the chance of rabies, instead of just providing lip service with the rest of the sheepple - legalize, register, control the ownership of domestic breed skunks as pets.
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" I have researched this issues at great length over the past 5 years and found that almost all of the laws prohibiting the ownership of domestic farm breed skunks are based on unsubstantiated paranoia resulting from arguable rabies studies done on wild skunks only almost 40 years ago.
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" I am not a dog person at all. I am allergic to their hair/saliva and break out in hives when they come near me. So dogs are NOT for everyone. I am not allergic to monkeys, which I own, and I take excellent care of my exotics. I think that skunks and other exotic, "wild" animals should be allowed as pets so long as the owners are responsible and properly care for them. This applies to all animals including dogs & cats. These "wild" animals are wild when in the wild. In homes where they have been loved and raised they are domesticated even more so than dogs, cats, and other "domestic" animals. I hope they are able to get their lovely companion legal. Best of Luck. "

" Zeva, I have been a skunk owner for over 12 years. Though skunks are wild animals, they are very domesticated in the skunk world. There are hundreds of us that are owners. Not only do they make a great pets, but we also save them from fur farms. Most skunks are sold for their pelts. We do not go out in the wild and capture these animals. The ones running wild and free stay wild and free. As far as people getting a skunk and deciding not to keep them, we have rescue groups that are more than willing to help out. Although skunks have been domesticated for a hundred years, the skunks do not know how to hunt in the wild and will die if released. Skunks have a special diet, they enjoy being in laps and love to dig in plants. There are skunk shows. Domesticated skunks are not just black and white. There are many colors of skunks that you will not find in the wild. Skunks are not for everyone.
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" @Stacey Bill: Surely working at the Humane Society you must realize that not all pets are right for all people. I don't see that allowing pet skunks would diminish from people adopting cats and dogs. For example, due to the number of times that I have been attacked by dogs, I would not be comfortable with one and I am allergic to cats. Maybe it's just me, but I don't really consider birds to be cuddly. I don't think the solution is to push dogs and cats on people for whom they are not the right animal. The solution has to be to reduce breeding to the replacement rate. "

" @Zeva: Both the grey wolf and domestic dog belong to the same species, so species clearly isn't a good way to distinguish wild from domestic animals. A skunk that comes from a couple generations of domestic skunks cannot be considered any more wild (and certainly isn't any more suited to survive in the wild) than a dog.

@Colleen O’Keefe: The trend in rabies cases from the CDC surveillance data it appears that Illinois along with Indiana misses the bulk of the rabies cases in skunks. You sit roughly between the edge of the North Central and South Central skunk strains to your west, and the East coast raccoon strain far to the East. I don't have 2007 data yet, but it looks like since 2000 you've only reported rabies in skunks in 2005. "

" To Zeva: I know someone in another state with a pet skunk. The skunk was found as an infant and its mother had been killed by a car. A baby skunk is easily domesticated, and if you would do some minimal research, you'd find skunks are fantastic pets. The people who have domesticated skunks as pets are responsible and not the type to dump it outside if they no longer want it. Are skunks for everyone? No. Neither are dogs, cats, birds, ferrets, or even fish. Frankly, some people are not responsible enough to have any type of pet at all. Personally, I would love to have a skunk as a pet. As with any animal, a responsible pet owner will do their research first and make sure the pet they've chosen fits into their lifestyle. You are welcome to your opinion, but please do your research before spouting off. "

" ZEVA, please let me state my intentions. I would never take an animal from the wild to be a pet. I would never support someone doing that. I am asking for Illinois to allow domestic skunks from skunk farms and licensed breeders to be pets in Illinois. I only want attention for the issue. I live almost 1 mile from my nearest neighbor. I am a well driller, I do not keep up with the Jonses' and a novelty means nothing to me. Please check out my website and read what started all of this. I am sure we have more beliefs in common than you would initially think.
By the way, coons and skunks are very different creatures. I would not suggest a pet coon, but at the same time, I would not ban them either. "

" This is a law that should never happen. These are wild animals and they belong in the wild. To remove them from their territory is a terrible thing to do. They weren't put here for us to take them in as pets. If you want a pet get a dog! You only want a skunk for the novelty of it and all the attention you'll get from having one. I had friends that tried to domesticate a raccoon, didn't work. Their instinct is wild and it remains in them. How would you like it if someone removed you from a territory you were familiar with and tried to change you into something you weren't suppose to be? I know I'd be unhappy about it. Get a life and move on and forget the exotic pets. "

" "They are wild animals. I don't see the need." What a strange comment! All kinds of animals found in the wild are kept as pets. Fish, snakes, lizards, parrots, the list goes on. Good luck to Mr. Walker and Mr. Durbin on getting your adorable friends legalized. Loved the video on the www.skunklaw.com. "

" Chicago politicians stink and no one has banned them! "

" Domesticated skunks really couldn't 'stink' anymore than the local, state and federal governments do, so what's the big deal here? Actually, since these skunks come 'stink free' they probably smell MUCH better that local, state and federal government officials do. "