Thursday, March 17, 2011

How to Deskunk a Dog

You will need:
gloves
tomato juice
Dawn dish washing liquid
Baking soda
Hydrogen peroxide

Put on some old clothes that you don't care about (just in case) and gloves. Pour tomato juice all over the dog. Let the juice dry on. I know it sounds horrible. Tomato juice neutralizes the skunk spray. The idea is to soak in tomato juice, but your dog will probably never go for sitting in a tub.

After an hour or so, in a 5 gallon bucket, mix baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, Dawn, and water. I didn't measure anything. I was generous with the baking soda, and had about an inch of hydrogen peroxide, and I just kept pouring the Dawn in because I figured the more suds the better. I picked Dawn as my soap because it's used to clean oil off wildlife and it is a degreaser. If you use a different soap, make sure it has a degreasing agent. I filled the bucket about half full of water because it hurts my crooked back to carry a full 5 gallon bucket.

Wash the dogs. Be warned- tomato juice is a little harder to wash off than you think. It tends to stick to fur in small clumps. Let the soapy water dry on the dog.

Come back in an hour and wash the dog again. Now rinse. You will probably have to repeat the whole process again. Charlene got to come back in the house last night. Sophie still smelled. I'm washing her again today because after yesterday's baths I was too tired and I thought she needed a break. Kevin and I feel badly about leaving her in the pen, but OMG she smells. It's not as bad as when she got sprayed, but I don't think we could be in an enclosed space with her. Part of the problem is she was prayed in the face and I didn't wash Sophie as well as I should because I didn't want to get soap in her eyes.

Also, Sophie couldn't come in the house because Halona wanted to attack her. Halona knows skunk smell equals VERY BAD and Sophie smells BAD. I don't need a vet bill on top of this mess.

One more thing, Sophie is a black dog. Hydrogen peroxide bleaches. I was worried I'd turn her yellow-gold, but her fur is still the same color. Yay! Apparently it takes a lot to bleach a black dog. It might have changed her color if I had poured undiluted hydrogen peroxide into her fur. Just remember you're working with chemicals.

I used the same solution of Dawn, baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, and water to mop the kitchen. That took care of the house. I was able to sleep normally last night.

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