Why?

"Why?"
It's a question that humankind has been asking
ever since the domestication of dogs.


Why do dogs tangle with ......

?

And why do they never learn their lesson?

I am sure that my dogs believe the bath that they must endure after a skunking
is far worse than the skunk spray.
They seem to wear skunk spray like a badge of honor.
It certainly is not a deterrent.
(But then, neither is the ensuing bath a deterrent.)

Well, you guessed it...
it's skunk season again here on the farm.
Could we actually get through a year without a skunking?
Not bloody likely.

Last evening at 9 PM I removed Annie's "good girl" collar
(don't ask me why I took the collar off first....but I won't do that again!)
and sent her out for her bedtime potty break along with Sam and Oakley.
Five minutes later I went to the door and called them.

Nothing.

Called. Called. Called.
And one thing you should know about me...
I am a human megaphone.
I seriously have never heard anyone who can call louder than I can.
(Maybe that's why I never made it on the cheering squad... I am way too loud!)
It's my special gift.

I called...and I could hear my voice echo through our little valley.
(I am sure everyone within 5 miles could hear me as well.)
Called.... to no avail.

By 10 PM Oakley had returned home (clean),
but no Sam or Annie.
So... we went to bed... knowing that they would awaken us when they arrived home.
And that was 1 AM.
Their stench came home before they did.

Believe me, de-skunking and bathing two dogs was the last thing I wanted to have to do
at 1 AM.
Necessity demanded it, however.
Hubbs and I grabbed the handy skunk kit and got to work.


I have to tell you... if you have dogs, you must bookmark this post.
I am telling you, this formula works.


Before you even begin the bathing process, use several handfuls of Tecnu lotion
and cover the entire area that was sprayed.
This stuff is magic.... it cuts the oil based skunk spray and makes washing so much easier.

Next, get naked and get in the shower with your dog (if he/she is big.)
(You're lucky if your dog is small enough to fit in your sink.)

Use a sponge or cloth soaked in your pre-prepared bucket of:
1 quart hydrogen peroxide
¼ cup baking soda
1 teaspoon dishwashing liquid
and really scrub this mixture into his fur.
Use all of the mixture.
Then rise it off in shower and bathe dog with whatever you normally use....
we use baby shampoo.
Rinse again.
Rinse self.
Dry dog and self.
Pour a glass of wine.

The above procedure is foolproof!

Needless to say....the "good dog" collars are back on both of them!


Maybe in his old age Oakley has learned better.
He was quite happy to not be included in the wee hours bathing session.


In the 10+ years that I have written this blog,
I believe I have written about this 20+ times!
Enough, now!

Comments

GeorgiaHoneyBee said…
Oh Noooooooooooo!!! So happy I've never seen a skunk around here. I am sure we have them, but I've never encountered one and neither has my dog! HOORAY! Glad it was a skunk encounter and not a bear encounter!
daisy g said…
This is valuable information, so don't worry about repeating it. Thankfully, we haven't run into this situation, as our son is allergic to anything with fur, so we don't have dogs. Can turtles gets skunked? ;0D
Colleen said…
Good way to start a day....NOT!!!!
The JR said…
We do have dogs, but they all have pens. There are skunks in Mississippi. Knocking on wood, never seen one in our area. Have seen/smelled plenty in other parts of the state.

I only have one skunk story and it's not about any of my dogs. It's on my blog about a friends dog. He was so Country. And, any story he told always had us rolling.

http://msredneck.blogspot.com/2008/12/lavender-potpourri-skunk-scented-dog.html

Bad doggies, you would think they would learn by now.

Portia said…
What do you mean by"good dog collar"? Does it some how make them behave? Thanks.
Bee Haven Bev said…
Portia....we have electric collars for our dogs....but we only use the "beep" function of them. They have learned that they need to come home when they hear the beep.
Rain said…
Thank you! I WILL bookmark this post! Our husky mix that we adopted in November 2015 had been sprayed and we tried a homemade remedy but it didn't work. We bathed her very often with "Skunk Off" but it took 6 months for the smell to really go away. I'm quite certain she won't learn her lesson either, but we keep her tied up during walks and when she's in the yard, she was homeless before us and who knows how many encounters she had!
Liz said…
Oh yes, skunks. An annual rite for our dogs as well as porcupines. I know skunk aroma stinks but wouldn't you think getting hurt by a porcupine again and again might be a reason to stay away from them. Bad encounters meant a vet visit. Moderate we could handle if one of us tackled the dog and the other one used pliers. Dogs....you gotta love them.
jaz@octoberfarm said…
oh boy...i guess they will never learn. good thing you have this recipe!
LOL.. oooh, do I dare say... that I've never had a dog skunked? YET!..
NanaDiana said…
Oh- I so remember those days on the farm. One time we had a hired hand (a city dude) and he walked right up to a skunk and squatted down by the hedgerow it ran in to. BIG mistake! He had to get his eyes 'washed out'- it was horrible.
My mother's recipe for the dog was always a baking soda and tomato juice 'bath'...lol It didn't do much! xo Diana
This N That said…
Not a fun thing to do for sure..I have the stuff except for Tecnu..Where does one get that??DId you really have a glass of wine? ;) I hope you have a reprieve for awhile..I try to keep Mollie away from the bushes..Especially at night..
Jessica said…
Yuck and at 1 am? What an awful time to bath stinky dogs! Thank you for the post though. I pinned it so I can get a kit together for our dogs. We moved to WV and I'm sure we have skunks here too. ;)
Unknown said…
I really like your blog!!! That post is so funny!! Love reading your interesting recipe! Have a great week:)
Jessi