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Skunked!

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A Visitor to Judy Lilien's Yard

 

Has Your Dog Been Skunked?

Talk to almost anyone who owns a dog and you’ll find that sometime during the course of that dog’s life it’s been sprayed by a skunk. Skunks are nocturnal animals.  They tend to go on the prowl in the late evening to early morning hours.  The best way to avoid exposure is to keep your dog indoors or walk them on a leash during this time of the day. 

Various “skunk solutions” have been used, from tomato juice (which sometimes turns light colored dogs a pale pink color), to Massengil Douche to ammonia and water to vinegar and water to commercially produced Skunk Shampoo.

This “recipe”, prepared by a chemist in Lisle, Illinois, and published in the April 1997 issue of the Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine Your Dog newsletter, is the BEST skunk remedy we’ve found:

	Ingredients
	1-quart 3-percent hydrogen peroxide
	¼ cup baking soda
	1-teaspoon liquid dish soap

Mix all of the above ingredients together.  Work the solution into the dog’s (or cat’s) coat; rinse with water.  AVOID their eyes since this will sting.

NOTE:  This mixture should be used immediately after preparation. It cannot be pre-mixed and stored in anticipation of this unfortunate incident.   Additionally, don’t overuse the peroxide – it could bleach your dogs’ coat. 

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