Dog got "skunked"

[MattW]

Apparently early this morning, the dog had a run-in with a skunk. My mom and I have spent the last 6-7 hours trying to get the smell off the dog and out of the house, but it's still lingering quite a bit. I think my mom and dad tried rubbing tomato juice on him, along with some other solution, we tried dog shampoo, my mom tried some kind of vinegar stuff, and we've shampooed him about two more times after that.

 

Seems like he must've gotten sprayed on the face, which is a bit harder to wash, given that we don't want anything to get in his eyes or ears.

 

Even with the dog outside, too (he was in the house, put in the basement, just after getting sprayed), the house stinks pretty badly... Even smells bad in my room (which he hasn't even been in since getting sprayed).

 

Any tips for getting rid of the smell? I feel kinda bad for him, because he hates closed off from us and the house, but... he still kinda stinks.

[mhowe]

Use an italian dressing --- the oil and vinegar will cut down. The rest -- it kinda has to wear off.

 

The good news -- the smell isn't bothering the dog. Being closed off from you guys is what he is upset about -- he thinks your cologne stinks and he still plays with you!

 

A vet might have a better product. Be careful about using human shampoo on dogs ---can cause skin to dry out. They have different Ph than humans.

[BrianH46]

use hydrogen peroxide, link removed

[ParisPaulette]

Oooh, I've been there. Two things that worked on my animals--bathing them with tomato juice then a good animal shampoo and conditioner to make sure their skin didn't dry out. I never heard of the Italian dressing one, that's a good idea too.

 

 

Another thing that works weirdly enough, is hairspray. Good old plain rotgut cheap-o hairspray. That one you use on yourself and/or the carpets and furniture--not the dog though. It cuts the smell fast. A friend used it on her dog and it worked, but I was and still am too freaked by the idea of an animal getting it in their eyes or worse, licking it off their fur to feel comfortable using it directly on them. I did use it on myself after waking up one morning to discover the cat, who loved to sleep cuddled up in my long hair, had been doused by a skunk sometime during the night. He had access to going inside and out through a window we kept partially cracked open. I had a cold at the time, so didn't smell him while I was fast asleep. That changed though when I woke up the next morning. Talk about cleaning out your sinuses fast! He got a good soaking in tomato juice by my mother and sister while I used enough hairspray to keep ten news anchors happy with their hairstyles. Afterwards I showered, shampooed my hair as usual then styled it with more hairspray and went to school an hour later. No one was the wiser although I did get chided for wearing too much hairspray by my friends.

[mhowe]

Inside the house, go get a bag of charcoal for cookouts. Place in open containers in affected rooms.

[lavenderdove]

This stuff works miracles... it was horrible until i used it. you can get it at most pet stores:

 

link removed

 

the problem is skunk odor is an oil, so once it soaks in, it stays, and can stay for a really long time.

 

You might want to get some tearless baby shampoo to wash your dog's face because that is safe around his eyes.

 

And if the dog has rolled on the carpet or gotten on the furniture, it would help to shampoo them with a carpet shampooer with pet odor detergent or somethign with Febreze in it.

 

Skunk odor just hangs around a LONG time which is why it is so effective as a survival strategy for the skunk. My dog got it so bad if i got near him my eyes watered! If the dog has rolled in the carpet or on your bed or furniture, sadly it will probably take a week or two for the final lingering odor to go away.

 

The good news is that once a dog has been skunked once, it usually avoids skunks like the plague and it won't happen again... it's as horrible for the dog as it is for you to smell that.

[MattW]

Thanks for all the input, everyone. Tried a few other things, but it's still lingering. Ah well, guess we just have to wait for it to clear up on its own, at this point.

 

The good news is that once a dog has been skunked once, it usually avoids skunks like the plague and it won't happen again... it's as horrible for the dog as it is for you to smell that.

 

Haha, I would hope so, but this dog is kind of a goof, and he doesn't seem to learn his lesson. He frequently chases and bites bugs, even though they occasionally sting him, but he keeps doing it anyway.