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Pe-ew! Your dog has been nailed by a skunk! Now what
do you do? Never fear - read on for some better smelling days ahead.
While the skunk spray is not a medical emergency for you or your pet,
it does have one very nasty side effect - the smell. It is very
aggravating for your pet if it gets in his or her eyes and if it was a
direct hit in the face could even cause temporary blindness in your
trusted friend. To top that off, you may think it stinks when you stand
a couple hundred feet away from your dog, but just imagine the onslaught
his keen sense of smell has when he is wearing it himself.
Did you know that skunks can spray the stink 10 to 15 feet away?
Hunting dogs seem to be the ones who are on the receiving end the most
simply because they are more likely to meet up with a skunk when they
are tramping through the woods. Urban dogs aren't exempt though since
skunks love to nibble on cat food and have even been know to enter
houses through pet doors.
Tips for Treatment
- Keep your dog out of the house! If at all possible, keep your
dog out of the house to clean him - you don't want to have to
deodorize your entire home. Wear gloves and old clothes or else you
will get the stink on you. Make sure that you check your dogs
eyes. If you find they are red and watering, a good flushing out
with sterile saline contact lens solution will help ease his or her
discomfort. Gentle running water (5 to 10 minutes) from the garden
hose will work if you don't have the saline.
- Comb the fur. A simple bath won't be enough here. Matted fur
turns to cement when water hits it, so to avoid cutting out large
patches of hair make sure you give a good combing.
- Keep your dog still. You will definitely need both hands for
this project, so it may be wise to tether your dog by the faucet
while you work.
- Use a good odor cleaner. Most normal pet shampoos will not get
rid of the skunk odor. You will need to use a product specially
formulated to get the skunk smell out of pet hair (you can usually
find them at pet supply stores). If you do not have a skunk
shampoo, try the item that most groomers recommend - Massengill
brand douche. Mix approximately 2 ounces of Massengill with a
gallon of water for small to medium sized dogs and double the recipe
for larger dogs. Pour the mixture over you dog and allow it to
thoroughly soak into the fur. Allow it to sit for 15 minutes and
then rinse clean with plain water. Follow this with your regular
pet shampoo. Skunk musk is pretty strong stuff - you may find that
you will have to repeat the treatment for effective results.
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