Watch as a California town overrun with skunks deals with their furry problem, and see what life is like for an evolutionary biologist in New Mexico who runs one of the few sanctuaries for skunks. Meet a researcher on the sandy shores of Martha’s Vineyard who stalks her striped specimens at night, and a woman in Ohio who runs a shelter and adoption agency for abandoned pet skunks. Is That Skunk? paints a complete portrait of the misunderstood skunk family, Mephitidae, and the people who love them.

To order a copy of Is That Skunk? please visit the NATURE Shop.

Online content for Is That Skunk? was originally posted January 2009.

Photo credit: Cici Clark / © WNET.ORG

NATURE viewers asked a lot of thoughtful questions in the comments they left on the NATURE site since Cloud: Wild Stallion of the Rockies aired on July 6. Ginger recently took some time out of her busy schedule to answer many of them. 

Cheryl Roemmele wrote:

“I saw Cloud for the first time on July 6th and was deeply moved. Please, someone tell me what I can do to help stop the government from interferring in onw of nature’s most beautiful stories, documented so beautifully by such a talented lady. What can I do? Thank you.”

Hi Cheryl:

Thanks for your kind comments on Cloud: Wild Stallion of the Rockies, which was our first program about this charismatic horse. Right now we are shooting the third show, which should air next spring. You can catch up on everything that is happening in Cloud’s world by going to www.thecloudfoundation.org, a non-profit we started to save Cloud’s herd and the other mustangs still roaming free. There are some very specific people to contact and they are listed on the site. 

On June 30 the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced plans to euthanize (a misuse of this term as they really mean “kill”) thousands of mustangs they have rounded up and are warehousing in sites around the country. The reason they plan to kill them? A budget crisis. It’s too expensive to take care of them. Well, this is a budget crisis of their own making. 

The BLM has rounded up 75,000 wild horses in just the past 8 years, bringing the population of horses that are still free to the brink of extinction. We have to stop this unthinkably cruel plan. Tell all your friends about this and get them to help us save Cloud and the mustangs. We don’t know if the thousands still slated to come off the range this year are candidates for the death penalty or not. No wild horse is safe… not even Cloud.  

Thanks so much for your concern. Now is the time to act. I don’t want the Cloud shows to outlive mustangs in the wild. 

Happy Trails! 
Ginger Kathrens

Yvon wrote:

“Any one can tell me if the Arriflex camers used bt Ginger Kathrens ia a 35mm or a Super16, and perhaps the model number. It would be much appreciated. Carrying this camera as Ginger has must be hard on the back. Thanks, Yvon”

Hi Yvon:

I use an Arriflex HSR (H meaning High Speed, so I can shoot really slow motion). We also used Arriflex 35mm cameras and a Mitchell 35mm for some of the time lapses in the shows. I use Canon lenses, and my favorite is the Canon 150-600mm, which is a huge lens that allows me to be far enough away from the action not to be noticed by the horses, or the bears, coyotes, and other wildlife you see in the shows. It is heavy, but the results are great. I have a special backpack that I can use, putting the camera and the Canon lens in there already assembled. This is the only way I can carry the camera really long distances. The big tripod we have is the real killer. It is unwieldy and heavy but necessary to get smooth shots using those really long lenses. 

Happy Trails!
Ginger Kathrens

Maria Ruggiero wrote:

“love your work of the story of cloud i would like to ask what kind of saddle you were riding on with your horse trace i am looking at trail saddles an want some thing light and will stand up to trail riding. thank you . maria ruggiero”

Hi Maria:

I ride Trace in the programs in a mostly synthetic Orthoflex “Patriot” endurance saddle. It allows my legs to be free, much like an English saddle, and to have closer contact with Trace. It is light weight, which is easier on me when saddling and easier on Trace when we ride. The first saddle you see in Cloud: Wild Stallion of the Rockies when I am training Trace is my first Orthoflex saddle, which I still use. It is a bit heavier than the synthetic one as it is leather. I also have a Synergist endurance saddle for my Spanish Mustang which I use in 50-mile endurance races. This saddle puts me in a more upright position–straighter versus more chair-like in the Orthoflex saddles. None of these saddles has a horn and I think that is safer for the rider. If you don’t plan on roping, then the horn is unnecessary.  My first saddle as a kid was a heavy old western saddle, which was as heavy as me, or seemed like it. These newer, lightweight saddles are the way to go I think.

Happy Trails!
Ginger Kathrens  

Emily wrote:

“I am so crazy about Cloud and horses! I may only be a tween girl, but I still love them all! (12 years old) When I read on the website that there was going to be a Cloud III, I screamed and threw my hat off! When I saw the picture of Image, Rain, and Cloud, I was thinking, “Is Image a filly? I just know that she is Cloud’s daughter.” Image and Bolder are my favorites of Cloud’s offspring and grandkids. But what I don’t get is, is Rain Image’s mom or Sitka’s yearling daughter?

And another question that haunts me is: In the Cloud III introduction, it says the mares are being shot with infertility drugs, and in 2006 there was an untimely death of Cloud’s little son. Which son was it? I just hope it wasn’t true.”

Dear Emily:

Good to hear from you. Image is Cloud and Sitka’s grandson. His mother is Cloud Dancer, who opted to stay with Cloud when Sitka died, although she wanders off to get bred, then comes home. 

You’ll meet Rain in Cloud III, and she is just about the perfect Spanish-style filly in my book. She is Velvet and Cloud’s daughter. You will also meet Velvet in Cloud III. Velvet made a brief appearance in Cloud: Wild Stallion of the Rockies. Remember the little filly that baby Cloud “snaked” off—the pretty little black one? Well, that is Velvet, except he didn’t try to drive her off when they both became adults! She turned into a blue roan and is the same age as Cloud. There is the death of a foal in the new program, the year Rain was born. It was very sad, but remember that death is part of life in the wild, and in all our lives. 

Bolder is doing great and you won’t believe what happens in Cloud III. Stay tuned!

Happy Trails,
Ginger Kathrens   

Christy Reed wrote:

“I would love one of the mustangs. The Blm requirements are so difficult. I would like to save one of the babies or the mother horse. I have a trailer and can pay a small amount for a horse. I want to save a part of history. Can anyone help me. I live in Missouri. Please help me to get one of these horses to save a life!! I will sign any petition please let me know how. I want to help!!!”

Dear Christy:

Here is the BLM link that outlines the requirements to adopt a wild horse or burro.

http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro/adoption_of_wild_horses/how_to_adopt.html

I really don’t think the requirements are too stringent. Remember, you will be taking the responsibility for a wild animal who is probably scared out of his or her mind. These horses have been removed from their wild families and no longer have the option to flee (very far) from danger, which is the way the species survived over the millennia, so fencing is critical. And incredible patience and skill on your part will be required in the gentling process. It took years before Trace was a really steady horse. Now, he is a dream to ride and the calmest and most trustworthy of my three horses, so the effort was more than worth the time and effort. Still, I wish he had been allowed to run free. I think he would have been a great band stallion.  

There are thousands of wild horses currently looking for homes because the BLM has removed over 75,000 mustangs in the past 8 years, while bringing the wild population to the brink of extinction. So, you would have many to select from.

Cloud and his herd are a part of the “lucky” ones, but even they are in danger. To keep Cloud and his family roaming free, go to www.thecloudfoundation.org and see what you can do to help!

Great hearing from you and happy trails! 
Ginger 

Ron J. Klein wrote:

“Please someone tell me where Ginger Kathryn is from in Ohio? We (her and I) have some interesting roots together both being from Ohio, and having horses on a farm there. Also, some in my family also went to BGSU and I (though going to OSU for a couple stints) also went to grad school at FSU, like Ginger. Thanks, Ron Klein.”

Hi Ron:

I’m from Bowling Green, Ohio. Our little farm was right across from the Wood County Fair Grounds on Haskins Road. My family raised registered Hereford cattle which we exhibited at the fair and around the country, even Canada one year. I went to BGSU (like you!) and FSU (like you!).  I was a speech major in undergraduate school and a communications major in graduate school. 

You mention you had horses. I only had one horse at a time on our farm so was totally ignorant about the rich lives wild horses have in their family bands. What an eye opener when I started filming and met Raven, the black stallion who is Cloud’s father. I still get chills when I remember first seeing him in March of 1994, eating snow at the base of a red butte at dawn. He died over this past winter, and I am sad about this of course, but happy that his life was lived in freedom. It is rare that a wild horse gets to live their entire life in the place where they were born. We created www.thecloudfoundation.org to see if we can turn that unhappy statistic around.

Happy Trails!
Ginger

Sara wrote:

“Hmm, an easy solution would be for the BLM to adopt the method of another mustang sanctuary. I forget the name, but they’d give the mares and fillies a type of birth control. I don’t think it would permanently sterilize them, it just kept them from having babies every year. The best part about this solution is that you don’t wind up with a lot of mustangs you have to adopt out or kill.”

Hi Sara:

Many mares in the wild (at least the few that are returned to the wild after a round up) are given a multi-year infertility drug called PZP. Unfortunately, they are given this experimental drug with no further follow-up or monitoring to see what result it may have had. This is essential I believe. 

In the Arrowheads (Pryor Mountains) where Cloud lives, his mother nearly died last year when a nodule on her hip (that developed after she was shot with a dart gun containing PZP) turned into an abscess. She had an open wound that eventually covered much of her hip. It was ugly looking, and she lost a lot of weight. However, she survived the winter as she is a tough old girl. She has a large scar but she is picking up weight and looking more like her beautiful self.  Also in the Pryors, young mares that were given the drugs years ago, who have foaled, have done so in September. One mare even had a filly foal in December. This is no time to be born wild, especially in Montana, where winters, like this last one, can be pretty brutal. We have been told that out-of-season births have been seen in Nevada, but we have no direct knowledge of this. Other young mares on the Pryors have never foaled and appear to have been sterilized even though they were given just a one-year dose of the drug in consecutive years back in 2001 and 2002.

So, infertility drugs might be a solution to overpopulation… if there truly was an overpopulation of wild horses. The animals that are overpopulating our public lands are the millions of head of cattle and sheep, not the 25,000 or so wild horses.

And now the BLM has announced plans to kill thousands of wild horses they have rounded up in the last few years saying they can’t afford to feed them. We just can’t let this happen. Go to www.thecloudfoundation.org to see what you can do to help. Find out more about the issues. Thanks so much for your interest in Cloud and his family and ways to keep them safe. I believe the safest place for a wild horse is in the wild.

Happy Trails!
Ginger   

Lori wrote:

“Maybe, instead of doing away with them, the BLM could have anyone sponsor the horses and these people could pay to take care of them individually.”

Hi Lori:

Your idea is one idea that BLM could look at in lieu of killing wild horses they have taken from their homes on the range over the past few years. Here is another one that I like a lot. There are nearly 20 million acres of land that have been taken away from the wild horses, even though it was land designated for their use. What about letting the 30,000 mustangs in holding facilities go home… to freedom. That is my solution to the budget crisis the BLM talks about.  

Happy Trails!
Ginger

Mike Breiding wrote:

“These horses are not native. Why should they be allowed to breed?”

Hi Mike:

I’m glad you asked this question. Wild horses are native to North America. This is not common knowledge as it is new science, confirmed over the past 13 years or so through fossil finds in the Klondike and mitochondrial DNA research. The native horse is believed to have gone extinct some 10,000 years ago, but returned with the Spanish during the conquest of Mexico. So, technically the wild horse in the West is a returned native with an ecosystem that has not significantly changed since its disappearance. It is important to note that the horses that returned and the horses that died were virtually the same – solid-hooved with a flop-over mane and about the size (13-14 hands) of many of the smaller horses on the Pryors where Cloud lives. 

You can read an excellent article on this topic by going to www.thecloudfoundation.org and clicking News, then “Wild Horses as Native North American Wildlife,” by Jay Kirkpatrick, PhD and Patricia Fazio, PhD. 

Happy Trails!
Ginger

Amanda wrote:

“I love Cloud and the series! I watch it everytime it comes on my tv. I am kind of wondering what happened to the stallion, Looking Glass,though. What ever became of him?”

Hi Amanda:

Thanks for your interest in Cloud and his family. You asked about the stallion, Looking Glass, and he seems to be well, but he lost his family this winter. Some of his mares were stolen by the black stallion, Two Boots, and some by a sorrel stallion named Duke.  I do wonder if Looking Glass is just getting old and tired of fighting. Although you saw him kill the foal that was not able to stand in the first Cloud film, I never observed him being mean to his own foals. 

If you like watching the first two Cloud programs, you’ll be happy to know that a third one is due to air next spring, so stay tuned for more information. It has some unpredictable events that sure surprised me. I don’t want to give away too much, but I will tell you that Cloud is the most dominant stallion on the Arrowheads now – quite a powerhouse.

Happy Trails!
Ginger 

It may be the most unusual — and adventurous — adoption ever attempted. In the spring of 1997, naturalist Charlie Russell and artist Maureen Enns became the proud foster parents of three rambunctious daughters.

But these were no ordinary little girls: they were wild grizzly bear cubs whose mother had been killed by a hunter. And it was no ordinary adoption. Instead of trying to tame the youngsters, the new parents hoped to teach their sharp-clawed “kids” just enough to survive on their own in the rugged wilds of Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula. The NATURE program Walking with Giants: The Grizzlies of Siberia tells the remarkable story of how this human couple went about raising a trio of bears in one of the world’s last great wildernesses. And it highlights how, through a combination of careful study and personal courage, Charlie and Maureen are forcing people to reconsider an age-old image of the grizzly bear as a ferocious man-eater who can’t live in harmony with people. They demonstrate that it is possible to learn to forge a respectful relationship with these seemingly fierce giants.

“We are carefully exploring the question of whether, by treating bears well and with respect, we can create a safe environment for both of us,” says Russell, a former Canadian rancher who has nurtured a lifelong fascination with the powerful predators. “If it is possible to truly understand and live with grizzlies, then it should be of great interest to people all over the world who are responsible for managing and preserving bears in the wild, particularly in areas close to human habitation.”

To many people, grizzlies are symbols of power and ferocity — creatures to be feared and, too often, killed. Indeed, they are awesome animals: capable of weighing 1,500 pounds, standing 10 feet tall, and running more than 30 miles an hour over rough terrain. But Russell, Enns, and others say the big brown bear, known to scientists as Ursus arctos, is too often misunderstood and maltreated. Russell, for one, believes that friction between bears and humans often stems from people’s unthinking treatment of the bears, from hunting and harassing them to feeding them from their cars and trash piles. “Most people fear bears because of a perpetual misunderstanding,” he says, “and bears fear people because of the mistreatment [they] receive due to this misunderstanding.”

Unfortunately, as human settlements have encroached on bear habitats around the world, it has become increasingly difficult to find bears that trust humans. In Europe and the United States, for example, people have all but exterminated bears from most areas: only about an estimated 1,000 bears survive in the lower 48 states, occupying less than one percent of their historic range. Biologists estimate another 40,000 or so grizzlies roam the forests of western Canada and Alaska, but these isolated populations too are beginning to feel human pressure.

But in eastern Asia, biologists believe more than 100,000 grizzlies still lope across the landscape. And some scientists say nowhere on Earth supports a denser and more isolated population of grizzlies than Russia’s rugged, volcano-studded Kamchatka Peninsula. Once, this 100,000-square-mile tongue of land astride the Pacific Ocean was considered a Siberian wasteland. The 19th-century Czars and later the Soviet dictators sent their most feared prisoners here to shiver in the freezing winters and struggle through the ferocious storms and insect hordes of summer.

But in this land of extremes, life also blossoms. Attracted by the millions of salmon that use the peninsula’s streams and lakes to spawn, grizzly bears gather by the hundreds and thousands each spring, summer, and fall to gorge themselves on fresh fish. Readying themselves for their winter sleep, they can eat nearly 100 pounds of food a day — not just fish, but a wide array of berries and other plants as well. Upon seeing this isolated bear kingdom for the first time in 1994, Russell and Enns realized they had found an ideal place to test some of their ideas about learning to coexist with wild bears. In 1996, with permission from Russian authorities, they built a small cabin on Kambalnoe Lake at the southern tip of the Peninsula. Using the cabin as a base camp, they have helped local conservationists monitor local grizzlies and protect them from poachers, traveling across the region by foot, boat, and using a small, home-built float plane piloted by Charlie. Braving the region’s world-famous bad weather, they spent long months observing dozens of nearby bears, learning how to live alongside them as just another inhabitant of the landscape.

As Walking with Giants shows, their careful observations helped the couple develop remarkably intimate relationships with the shy and sometimes playful bears. The two have learned how, when, and where they can approach the animals without alarming them. They have shown that the bears are not necessarily a threat, especially if treated with care. “We have seen some incredible things,” says Russell. Enns, however, stresses neither she nor her partner have thrown caution to the winds. “We don’t sit out there taking unnecessary risks,” she says. “We study the bears carefully and we carry pepper spray” to ward off attacks — though she is happy to report that they have never had to use it. Still, the risks are real. In 1996, for instance, prominent wildlife photographer Michio Hoshino, a veteran grizzly observer, was killed by a 7-year old Kamchatka bear that had become used to eating at a garbage dump and thus lacked the wild bear’s instinct to avoid people.

Russell and Enns hope that what they learn from walking with the giants of Kamchatka will help prevent such tragedies in the future. “We have been able to live beautifully with these animals, with no serious threat, because of what we’ve learned,” Russell says. “Hopefully, sharing what we learn will help people — and be a big help to the bear, too. It is a real problem for any species to be misunderstood.”

Owning a Dog

Dogs are the most popular pets in the world. About 58 million dogs provide love, companionship, and services for humans in the United States, and that number increases every year. But dogs need more than just shelter. They need a nurturing home, food, health care, play time, and rewards for good behavior — even a simple pat on the head.

But all too often, people neglect the dogs in their care, and the results can be deadly. Millions of unwanted dogs end up in shelters every year. According to the Humane Society of the United States, 30 to 60 percent of those former pets are put to sleep.

“There are hundreds of reasons why people relinquish their dogs to an animal shelter,” says Leslie Isom of the Humane Society. A 1996 study found that nearly a third of people who give up their pets were not prepared to deal with the aggressive behaviors that can develop if an animal is not neutered. Other factors include the unexpected daily time commitment, the “no pets” rule in many apartment buildings, and the fact that some cute, tiny puppies can grow to be large dogs with less appeal.

Shelters are excellent places to adopt a dog. Says Isom: “As many as 30 percent of dogs in shelters are purebreds, so if you are looking for a specific breed, you can find it at your local shelter. If they don’t have it, they can probably contact a breed rescue program to locate one for you.” But a dog’s breed isn’t the best indicator of the animal’s behavior, Isom continues. If, for example, you had a Golden retriever growing up, you may want to adopt another one, but nothing guarantees that your new dog will be anything like your former pet. For people who can’t decide on one breed, but still want to adopt, Isom suggests choosing a mixed breed.

Before You Adopt

You’ve thought about getting a dog — someone to share your life and give you unconditional affection. But are you prepared to give the same? You are about to enter into a serious, long-term commitment with a canine. To make sure your dog does not end up among those at a shelter, ask yourself the following questions:

You will likely have your dog for 10 to 20 years. Do you think you might tire of a pet quickly? Dogs need to be exercised outdoors. Are you willing to change your schedule to feed and walk your dog daily, regardless of the weather? Ideally, a dog should be walked three times a day to get adequate exercise. Some small dogs can sometimes get enough stimulation inside the home, but larger dogs need to be run outside.

Are you financially prepared to get a dog? Spaying/neutering, licensing, shots, and yearly food, toy, and veterinary bills all add up.

Consider your living quarters. If you live in an apartment building, are pets allowed? If you are buying a puppy, remember that it will not always stay that small. Are you prepared to share your home with a potentially large animal?

For more information about the realities of owning a dog, contact the Humane Society of the United States. But if you’ve considered all the challenges of having a dog in your life, and feel you can live up to them, you’ll most likely be rewarded by a cuddly, loyal, and boundlessly affectionate friend.