7 of 14

Write now Article Tools

Your dog got sprayed by a skunk? Whew and Pwhew!

I hate to disagree with a couple of other writers on this subject, but tomato juice does work to cut the odor of skunk. I speak from experience, the trick is to cover your dog with the tomato juice first, before you do anything else! Outside preferably, and it's easier for your to breath too. Gently work the tomato juice into their coat. Then bath them with regular dog shampoo, this make take several shampoos to remove most of the odor. Use a wash cloth soaked in the tomato juice to gently wash around their eyes and on their face. We use to have a German Shorthaired Pointer that was a skunk "magnet". And we have had domesticated skunks as pets, quite an experience, but that's another story.

Please do not using a dish soap on a dog skin is not good for their skin and can trigger "hot spots" as well as some dogs are allergic to the ingredients found in many commercial dish soaps.

You can rinse with a solution of:
1 quart of hydrogen peroxide 2%
1/2 cup baking soda
1 tablespoon of concentrated lemon juice
and then rinse again with plain water.

Do gently wash the dogs face and around their eyes and ears with a very wet wash cloth to avoid irritating the area further. Flushing their eyes with warm water also helps remove any traces of the spray. If the dog's eyes appear to be especially irritated or they "dig" at their eyes after bathing, contact your veterinarian immediately for help or suggestions. You may need to take your dog in for treatment. Some breeds are more sensitive than others and skunk spray can be quite caustic.

You also need to consider how to keep your dog from these kind of "close" encounters in the first place. Normally skunks are nocturnal and rather shy creatures. They only spray if they feel threatened. If you have skunks in and around your yard, you need to take care to control your dog either with a fenced in area or on a lead. Skunks do carry rabies, so please make sure you keep your dog's shots up to date.

Normally skunks only hang around an area if there is a good source of food. So you also might consider applying some type of grub killer to your lawn. If you have Japanese beetles, you have grubs, one of the favorite parts of a skunk's diet. If you remove the food source you will likely have fewer visits from your local skunk population.

Learn more about this author, doccat5.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about How to remove skunk odor from your dog?
We want to hear your view. Write now!