Porcupines also feed on shed antlers and the bones of dead animals to obtain sodium. However, an encounter between a young inexperienced predator and a porcupine can be a very painful experience. Some unfortunate carnivores have starved to death because a mouthful of quills has prevented them from eating. In an effort to remove the quills, the predator can cause the barbed quills to work into the deep tissues. However, the quills are coated with a natural antibiotic and rarely cause infection.
Predators have different means of killing and eating porcupines.
The fisher circles around the porcupine until it can bite its nose. After repeated bites to the nose, the fisher then flips the porcupine over to attack the quill-free belly. The porcupine is then eaten leaving an empty quill-covered skin. This method may also be practiced by lynx, wolves, coyotes, and wolverines which have been recorded eating porcupines in Alaska. When the porcupine is relaxed, the hair and quills lie flat and point backwards.