October 7th, 2007

De-Skunk Your Dog With 3 Common Household Ingredients

Cathy in All Posts, Backyard Living, Critters, DIY Garden / Backyard Projects

Since skunk traffic in the yard and garden seems to be at an all time high in the fall (so my nose tells me), I thought I’d do a short recap of this skunk smell removal recipe for dogs.

Skunk Smell Removal Recipe

1 quart hydrogen peroxide (3%)
1/4 cup baking soda
1 teaspoon dish detergent
Jug
Bathing Container
Warm Rinse Water
Old Towels

Combine ingredients in a jug or other easy-to-pour-from container.

Find an outdoor spot to do the bathing - a wash tub, a rubbermaid bin, the kid’s hard plastic swimming pool.

Place Fido in your makeshift tub, then start at the top and work your way down.

Working in sections for about 5 minutes at a time, pour some of the solution onto your dog. Make sure it soaks through the hair and onto the skin.

Work it in with your hands - rub and scrub.

Rinse that area with warm water and move onto the next area.

Take special care not to get any solution in your dog’s nose, mouth, ears or eyes.

When you’ve finished thoroughly bathing your pet with the skunk smell removal solution, do an all-over rinse.

Towel Fido dry.

Depending on the size of your dog you may need to mix up multiple batches. The solution does not keep, however, so try not to mix more than you need. This recipe does an excellent job of neutralizing the skunk smell, but because peroxide is very drying on the skin, I like to give my dog a second bath with regular dog shampoo a day or so after the neutralizing bath. The dog shampoo not only helps to remoisturize her skin, but it makes her smell even better!