We reconsider the Euler-Lagrange equation for the Skyrme model in the hedgehog ansatz and study the analytical properties of the solitonic solution. In view of the lack of a closed form solution to the problem, we work on approximate analytical solutions. We show that Pade approximants are well suited to continue analytically the asymptotic representation obtained in terms of a power series expansion near the origin, obtaining explicit approximate solutions for the Skyrme equations. We improve the approximations by applying the 2-point Pade approximant procedure whereby the exact behaviour at spatial infinity is incorporated. An even better convergence to the exact solution is obtained by introducing a modified form for the approximants. The new representations share the same analytical properties with the exact solution at both small and large values of the radial variable r.

15 pages, 5 figures. 1 Reference added