SKUNK ENCOUNTER
Anyone who has had their dog skunked
knows how overpowering this smell is.
Trying to remove
the odor from your dog, and all he touches and rubs on, feels overwhelming and
futile. Our sense of smell is far less acute then our pet's and this smell is
overbearing and unbearable to us. Just think how your dog must feel?
Unfortunately
for our pets the most common spot to be sprayed is the face. Flushing
your dog’s eye is a start. Often your dog’s eyes will be burning, red and
irritated.
Next, prepare yourself for the huge
challenge of removing the skunk odor.
Treatment
Most of us have
heard of bathing our dogs in tomato juice, not realizing that the juice needs
to dry on the dog to help neutralize the odor. Prepare yourself for a bigger
chore than you might have expected - for you will to be bathing your dog
two, three or even four times to get results.
Even then, you
still may smell skunk for it may take time to wear off. Some dogs will still smell
of skunk weeks after the encounter: especially if they get there coats wet.
Other methods:
your veterinarian has products like Skunk off; or, he may be able
to give you advice on some home remedies. In my research the following was the
most common home remedy mixture:
(First, always have mineral oil in your first
aid kit. A drop of this in your dog’s eyes will protect them from any soap or
other products you are using to bath your dog.)
1.
Mix 4 cups 3% hydrogen peroxide with 4 tablespoons of baking soda and 1
teaspoon
of
dishwashing detergent.
2.
Put Cotton balls in dog’s ear canals so the mixture doesn’t get in his ears.
3. Wear rubber gloves.
4. Apply the solution,
starting on your dogs head and work backwards. Do not let the
solution get into your dog’s eyes.
5. Rub the solution into its coat.
6. Rinse well.
7. Repeat
Source:
“Close Encounters of the Wild Kind” by Jeff
Grognet DVM, B. Sc (Agr)
Dogs in Canada , June 2007
