Prevent Skunk Attacks Before they Happen

Courtesy of Jennifer Bishop Jenkins, ICMG

(If it’s too late for prevention, skip to number 5)

1. Time of year matters:
Skunks don’t hibernate but they do sleep more in winter. Winter hits do happen but very rarely. As the weather starts to warm in the spring, they come out hungry in droves. They happen in waves throughout spring, summer and fall as they have babies. If you live in a warmer, more southern state, you may not see any seasonal differences. And even in northern states, they can attack in the cold dark of winter.

2. Time of day matters: 
Skunks are out most during the early morning around dawn, dusk as sunset approaches, and all night when its dark. Broad daylight hits do happen, but again, very rarely. So remember - DAWN and DUSK keep your dogs in.

3. Walking the dog on a leash matters:
Leash your dog for potty breaks. It’s more work but the trauma and hassle of a skunk hit is far more expensive and disruptive. It is worth this effort to prevent a skunk attack.

4. Make a plan with the whole family: 
Some of our saddest client phone calls I have gotten are from the families that the kids or someone else in the house just let the dog out on its own early in the morning or late at night, when they have been working so hard to keep the dog from getting skunked in an area like ours where they are so frequent.  

If it’s too late for prevention:

5. Don’t let the dog back in the house If the steps of prevention failed and the dog got out anyway, or if they hear or saw or smelled anything out of the ordinary – strange sounds, their dog pawing at themselves or a funny look on their dog’s desperate face, etc. – it is critically important that you do NOT let them inside the house. Skunk smell does not smell like the smell we are used to right away. It smells different. It smells strong and even odd but it does not at first smell like the skunk smell we know.

6. Confine the dog that has been hit by a skunk immediately in an outside area, a screened porch, in a garage or shed, even crate them if necessary. If you must bring them inside, leash them first, and confine them in a laundry area, an unfinished basement, an interior bathroom. Make sure they stay in a washable room. Don’t let them near porous fabric, furniture, carpeting, draperies, until well after they are treated.

7. DO NOT WASH the area of the hit. First, pat area with lots of DRY baking soda or corn starch. Skunk spray is a complex and pernicious OIL. Washing it will only help to spread the oil around the dog. Doing this as soon as possible after the skunk hit! This can make a significant difference in the size of this problem. Pat it on (wearing rubber gloves if possible), then knock it off – outside – after it absorbs. Then apply more, pat it in, knock it off. Repeat as needed to absorb as much of the oily skunk spray as possible. Usually the skunk oil is concentrated in one or two areas on the dog, depending on how much tussling the dog did with it. Push the dry, absorbent powder onto the direct wet area of the hit, pat it in, let it absorb, knock it off. Repeat. Get as much off the dog as possible. Quite often skunks will hit dogs in the face because the dog is attempting to sniff the creature. These sometimes have to go to a veterinarian because they can cause injury to sensitive eyes, noses, etc.

8. If you decide that you must wash at home only do so after the steps above, absorbing all you can with the dry baking soda or corn starch. To wash at home, the traditional mix is equal parts baking soda, hydrogen peroxide and dishwashing liquid. (Know that this first aid approach is not nearly as effective as my grooming shop’s microbubble machine, but I will get to that in a minute). If they can’t get to a microbubble machine, a home bath can help in a pinch. BUT be warned: You cannot use this mixture in delicate areas around the face, ears, eyes, nose, mouth, rectal, etc – it will damage sensitive skin. And sadly, dogs are quite often hit exactly on the muzzle/face area because they go at the skunk face-first. This home remedy mixture is not safe for faces. Also, be warned, the hydrogen peroxide can discolor the dog’s hair, for example, turning a darker dog orange. This might eventually grow out, but could take a long time. If they must use this mixture, be sure to stress the importance of RINSING IT OUT thoroughly. And then they should wash the dog again with a good dog shampoo and, most importantly, follow with a separate step conditioner! To protect their sensitive skin, if they have to apply that harsh mixture, they must wash it off and re-condition their dog’s sensitive coat and skin.

9. If you wash at home, dry the pet also. It is not enough to let their pet just towel dry, especially if the dog has longer hair. Skunk smell is most pungent when the dog’s hair is wet. Blowing them dry will reduce the remnant smell, Do not use a human hairdryer on high heat. This could burn the dog. Use a low setting.

(Better yet, don’t do number 8 or number 9, just call me! 860 630 0961. I may be able to come to you! See number 10 below!)

10. Try to get them in right away for a professional microbubble bath if possible.  The amazing microbubble machines are the most effective way to rid your dog of a skunk smell ever invented. They were invented for human medical applications, but are being used now in everything from pet and human bathing for extra clean skin, to delivering chemo-therapy drugs directly inside tumors. They clean using just air and water, but with microscopic bubbles that are negatively charged that grab onto things, and that are so small they can penetrate skin cells and inside follicles. The microbubbles go down INSIDE pores and follicles and grab onto the skunk oil molecules and float them out. No other kind of bath or treatment will get those extra little molecules of skunk oil out from where they hide inside pores and follicles.  

 
Jennifer Bishop Jenkins has been showing, breeding, and grooming dogs since the early 1980's, while being a career schoolteacher. Jennifer has been a Certified Master Groomer since 1985. In 2014 she opened Love Fur Dogs in Glencoe, Illinois and was soon after named "Best Groomer In Chicagoland" by the Chicago Tribune. Jennifer's broad background in education, science and history, and the wider world of dogs has given her a strong commitment to making sure each pet is groomed correctly for its natural coat type, often not the case in the unregulated grooming industry. Jennifer has trained hundreds to become groomers, and thousands through her seminars. Groomer Education is her passion and her mission.