Fuckingskunks (and a PSA)

[osulori]

J and I had to bust out the deskunking materials again tonight. Yes, again...our beagle mix got skunked on Friday night and both dogs got it again tonight. Jesus H. We've sadly gotten to be pros at this, so we had both dogs bathed and back in the house within 40 mins (neither one had a direct hit, thank you god)...but still. Ugh. Looks like J or I are going to have to go all Call of Duty style with the flashlights to check out the backyard before we let the dogs out when its dark out


For those of you who aren't aware (we weren't until Georgie got skunked last summer), tomato products don't do squat to remove skunk smell from dogs. At best it'll cover up the smell for a bit but it doesn't do anything to remove the substance from their fur. The routine we've found that works best is:

1. if you can, corral the dog somewhere outside and go put on old clothes. That shit lingers and its gross. Get your dog on a leash-if they're not wearing a collar, make the leash like a slip lead and hold onto the end with the buckle. Mix the following solution in a bucket and grab some old washcloths-1/4c baking soda, 1-2 tsp liquid Dawn dish soap (or any kind that's a good degreaser), and 1 qt hydrogen peroxide.

2. Grab some paper towels and blot (don't rub) the dog all over to remove any excess yucky skunk substance. Rub them down really well with the washcloths dipped in the peroxide solution (but of course, be careful around their eyes). Rinse, rinse, rinse (we use our hose).

3. If the dog is still stinky, soak your washcloths really well in yellow listerine and scrub with that before rinsing again. Give your dog a good washing with their regular shampoo last to get the chemicals out and a good rubdown with a towel when they're done.

We skipped the listerine scrubbing and final shampoo tonight since neither dog took a direct hit, but the Listerine really helped to get the remnants of the stink out of Georgie last summer and on Friday night. Thankfully, our dogs seem to only get skunked in warm weather so hosing them down in the yard isn't a huge deal but we'd suck it up and do the same routine inside if we had to.

Omg. I am so over skunks.