When Skunks Attack!

Yesterday one of my friends had her two dogs attacked by a skunk and, as always, the skunk used the same battle plan that they have for centuries. And why shouldn’t they? It has shown to be effective all of my life and I am sure long before that as well.

I don’t know if you have ever seen a dog get hit by a skunk or not but if you have seen it once you will always immediately recognize it when you see it again. Imagine a dog who chases cats but does not see the invisible wall. That is how fast the dog stops pursuit after the spray. And that is when your dogs problems truly do become yours.

After it happens you have to get the dog home. If you are lucky it happened while you were walking around the block. If not so lucky, well then the dog has to ride home in your vehicle. If you don’t have a pickup with a kennel in the back I can promise you that by the time you get home you will have decided your dog is and idiot and you hope all the skunks for miles around just drop dead. Just hope that you can keep your eyes open and not gag too much. This is your first problem.

Your next problem when be when you get home. Now you have to let the stinky dog into your house. You can go to a dog wash if they have one in your area but this is not a good way to make friends. Once in the house you have to run a bath for your dog and get him into it. Now what do you do? On to your next problem.

I have never seen a dog shampoo that is worth a darn for getting rid of skunk smell. Tomato juice seems to be a urban legend that was started by companies that make tomato juice because it does no better than shampoo.

This spring a skunk hit our dogs two different times. The first time they did I found this recipe. If you are reading this write it down. Someday you, or someone you know, will be glad you did if your dog goes to battle with a skunk and loses. It would seem they always do.

Skunk Odor Killing Recipe
1-quart hydrogen peroxide
One quarter cup baking soda
1-2 teaspoons dish soap (Dawn is best)
1-2 bottle of woman's douche

1. Mix the solution together and rub down your dog with the solution being careful to avoid mouth, nose, eyes and ears.

2. This is where the douche comes in. Use it on, or around, the mouth, nose, eyes and ears. Also use the douche as a rinse if you happen to any of the peroxide solution on any of the sensitive areas.

3. Let the peroxide mixture sit on your dog for 5-10 minutes and then rinse it off.

4. Follow this up with a wash using your normal dog shampoo.

Now this is IMPORTANT: Do not cover the peroxide solution because when you make it you are in essence making a bomb, albeit not much of one but you don't want it going off none the less. Someone could get hurt. The mixture is quite harmless unless you try to contain it so after you mix it up use it then throw the rest of it away.

This recipe is not a panacea but it is the best thing I have found to remove skunk odor. If you live in an area that has a lot of skunks, or even if you don’t, you should keep the items in the recipe on hand. You never know…