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Porcupines cannot throw quills, but a nosy dog can get quilled

All year

Mass Audubon says porcupines do not shoot their quills: they raise them, may swing the tail, and give off a strong warning smell first. A dog that pushes in anyway gets barbed quills that can work deeper, which is why Cornell's vet college says to leave removal to a veterinarian.

Why this time of year

MassWildlife says porcupines are active year-round and live mainly in the western and central parts of the state. Cornell says they are mostly active at night or around dawn and dusk, and that most dogs do not learn from experience, so repeat quillings are common.

How to notice it

  1. On a wooded walk, especially at dawn, dusk, or after dark, keep the dog leashed and close. Cornell says free-roaming dogs are the ones most often quilled.
  2. If you meet a porcupine, leave it alone and lead the dog away. Mass Audubon says it warns first with a strong smell, then raises its quills and swings its tail.
  3. If your dog does get quilled, keep it calm and still, stop it pawing at its face, do not cut the quills, and go straight to a veterinarian.

Try this with kids: What does a porcupine do before its quills come up? (It makes a strong smell.) If we ever smell that, we lead the dog the other way.

Safety

  • Cornell's vet college: do not try to remove quills yourself. It can be painful, break the quills, or push them deeper, and quills can migrate deeper into the body.
  • Cornell and MassWildlife: never cut the quills. MassWildlife says cutting makes it easier for a quill to migrate into the body.

Sources

  • massaudubon.orgMass Audubon, Porcupines: 'Porcupines do not shoot their quills at predators who get too close'; quills are 'specially modified hairs that are barbed and hollow'; they raise quills, may swing the tail, and first release a pungent odor; 'During the winter, they eat primarily evergreen needles and the inner bark of trees'; 'cut hemlock twigs on the snow'; 'This love of salt often leads them to roadsides where salt has been spread'; active year-round, mostly at night. read 2026-11-10
  • vet.cornell.eduCornell College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center, updated 2025-10-27: 'Do not attempt to remove the quills yourself, as it can be painful, cause the quills to break, or push deeper into the skin'; 'Quills can migrate under the skin and move deeper within the body'; 'Take your dog to a veterinarian immediately'; 'Keep your dog calm and still'; 'Keep dogs leashed or supervised, especially at dawn, dusk, or nighttime'; 'Porcupines are mostly active at night or during dawn and dusk.' read 2026-11-10
  • web.archive.orgMassWildlife (state primary, Wayback copy 2025-09-10): 'Porcupines reside mainly in the western and central parts of the state and occasionally observed in Middlesex County. They are rarely seen in the eastern and southeastern parts of the state'; 'Porcupines are active year-round.'; 'Do not cut the end off of quills'. read 2026-11-10

Checked against these sources on November 10, 2026.

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