July 25, 2009
By PATRICK E. LITOWITZ
plitowitz@ncnewsonline.com
Rocco Fazio let the ... er ... skunk out of the bag.
Not that much coaxing was needed.
“You’re not talking about the animal, are you?” the Neshannock man asked. “Gosh, I don’t believe it.”
OK, a little convincing.
“That’s me. I’m the guy moving the skunk all over Pulaski Road.”
For more than a month, neighborhood residents and passing motorists have been perplexed and amused. Where will a stuffed, toy skunk — named Buttercup —show up next?
As of yesterday, near First Assembly of God Church.
One day, a guard rail. Next, a telephone pole. A roof. In yards.
Today? Only Fazio and his family know.
A bit of tomfoolery between friends resulted in Buttercup’s Pulaski Road journey.
It started when Fazio’s dog, Daisy, had a few run-ins with a skunk. Daisy lost the encounters, getting sprayed each time. Fazio, who owns Rocco’s Wildlife Removal, set a trap to snare the troublemaker.
Two days and nothing.
Fazio was cutting grass on his two-acre property when Buttercup emerged. He made one pass in the yard and then another. When he turned his tractor for the third cut, a stuffed, toy skunk appeared.
Hiding behind a tree and laughing were neighbor Kenny Kauffman and his son. Thus began the travels of Buttercup the Skunk.
“I put it on the hood of my trunk that day,” Fazio said.
He then decided, “I’m going to move this thing all over Pulaski Road.
“People are wondering what’s going on. I just laugh.”
Neshannock resident Bill DeCarbo regularly conducts a Buttercup search.
“I’m so curious to see where it will go next,” he said. “It’s grown into a neighborhood thing.”
An attempt to reach Kauffman for comment was unsuccessful.
Fazio and his family transport Buttercup daily — the ride takes place at night or in the early morning. He’s been caught once.
“The lady was howling. She said ‘You’re the guy. That’s the best thing I’ve ever seen.’”
Although his identity has been revealed, Fazio plans to continue his game of “Where’s Buttercup?”
“There’s a lot of places I haven’t hit yet.”
As for the real skunk that taunts Daisy, it hasn’t been nabbed.
“We got so overwhelmed with this thing.”
Buttercup declined to comment.
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