What's that smell?
Yes, it is skunk season again.
One of our readers, 2Dogs4Now -- who has had some rather extensive, personal experience with the task of
deskunking, both dogs and just recently her husband, we're told -- wanted to share with everyone the formula that has worked best in their household. (Click on the link for other great de-skunking tips -- and forget the tomato juice, by the way.)
This is the same one I found to be most helpful when there were skunks either passing through or hanging out in my backyard a few summers ago:
# 1 quart (or liter) of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide, H2O2.
Use fresh (unopened) hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Hydrogen peroxide eventually turns into water (H2O).# 1/4 cup (50 ml.) of Baking Soda
# 1 teaspoon (5 ml.) of Liquid Soap
Simply apply and let stand on the dog for about 10 minutes if possible. Follow with a full shampoo and the smell should be eliminated completely. DO NOT USE ON FACE OR AROUND EYES, use a douche if you need to treat the face. I use a sponge or old cloth to make sure that I get every spot on belly and legs as well as dunking the feet in the solution and taking off the collar to immerse in the solution.
And yes, it works on husbands, too.
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About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.
It works wonders on husbands! The only complaint I have is that it also worked on his favorite work shirt and that is something I've tried to throw away more than a few times. Now it will likely be propelled higher on his fashion scale since he fought varmints in it.
The skunk was in a Hav-a-Heart trap we put out trying to capture a ferret (we think it might be a pet let loose). We got out a big sheet and walked towards it trying to fool the skunk but it still let fly with the stank, this time on the both of us but we jumped way back. We turned Pepe le Peu loose and I hope he lets the ferret know that we are looking for him. Of course if he tells the ferret how fast we ran from an angry skunk, we'll likely hear things giggling in the bushes everytime we walk outside.
We've already made arrangements IF we manage to capture the ferret before the owls, hawks and four legged predators get to it. Wish us luck, or root for the ferret.
Never a dull day around here, according to the dogs at least.
I've used that recipe and agree that it does work really well. One thing you might want to put in the original blog is that your not suppose to store the solution. You are suppose to mix it up when you need it.