Skunk Bucket!

Yep.

The Victim

A very necessary item on this island if you own a dog.
And said dog likes to play with young skunks, who know no better.
At 6 a.m. as in this morning. :)

This emergency item includes the following:
1 empty bulk detergent bucket
several bottles of hydrogen peroxide
a large box of baking soda
paper towels
Stop & Shop plastic grocery bags
the most important item DAWN Liquid soap detergent
a fresh loaf of bread (yes, you read that right)
*bonus item:  Skunk Off spray from the vets/Amazon.com

The Culprit

Things I have learned at 6 a.m. in the morning:

1. The internet is a beautiful thing for research
2. Skunk spray is actually an oil and needs to be wiped off with paper towels first, before any other procedure, including chasing the dog through the house to catch her and tie her outside

3. Commit to memory the following recipe:
Skunk Odor Antidote
1 Qt 3% hydrogen peroxide
1/4 cup baking soda
1 tsp. liquid soap DAWN 


(Wet down the dog with a hose, mix the ingredients together in a container, and then slowly pour the mixture over the dog while rubbing it into the fur. After the dog has been bathed in this solution rinse it down with the hose and the dog will be odor free. Our rescue dog weighs about 65 lbs so we do double recipe, but if you have a small to medium size animal, the recipe as listed should do just fine. Also, keep care to avoid the inside eyes, ears and mouth, and note that hydrogen peroxide does bleach things out, including some dog furs. Skunk Off can be used after, as a "chaser" of some sorts, following bottle directions.)

4. DAWN liquid detergent is most important as it handily cuts the skunk oil, just-like-that.
An aside: When we lived in Cincinnati where Proctor & Gamble is headquartered (DAWN Liquid dish detergent is their product) a DAWN truck was kept at the ready and sent out for any highway wrecks or spills where oil was involved, and it works like a charm.

5. Keep a SKUNK BUCKET handy at all times - time is of the essence
6. Skunk Off spray works inside the house for lingering odors in the air
7. What's the fresh loaf of bread for? Well, since most dogs get sprayed mainly in the face, And most dogs are barking at the skunk while getting sprayed in the face, most dogs will get skunk spray/oil in the mouth. Feeding the dog bread over the next few days helps eliminate "skunk breath" lol.

They say that this island has no more or less a population of skunks than the mainland. (They have even taken to studying our skunks (NY Times article here) and (MV Times article here) in particular.)




But I beg to differ on that.
Woof.



Have a fresh and clean-smelling one. :)