Each foot has five toes. The claws on the forefeet are longer and more curved than on the hindfeet. The striped skunk can reach 32 inches in length, including tail, and weigh up to nine pounds. The spotted skunk is much smaller in length, no more than 18 inches, including tail, and is in general more agile and slender than other skunks. The heaviest spotted skunks will weigh in at two pounds.
Striped skunks breed in late winter or early spring.
After a two-month gestation period they have litters with an average of four to five skunklets. Spotted skunks in the western states have delayed implantation. The females breed in September-October and about 30 days later the embryos become implanted. May. The distribution of spots and stripes on a skunk's coat is distinctive enough to be useful in identifying individuals. In particular, no spotted skunks have ever been found with identical black and white pelage patterns.