Today I want to give you my skunk rinse recipe, and here's hoping you never have to use it!
If, heaven forbid, your dog or cat is ever sprayed by a skunk, you should have this recipe on hand. The sooner you apply the solution to your pet's fur, the sooner he'll get relief and smell better.
Skunk Rinse Recipe
Tomato juice isn't nearly as effective as this recipe, and it's easy to follow.
In a pail, mix:
• 1 quart hydrogen peroxide (the 3 percent hydrogen peroxide variety)
• ¼ cup baking soda
• 2 teaspoons Dawn dishwashing liquid
If you have a large breed dog, you may need to double, triple or even quadruple the mixture.
Wear dishwashing or other household gloves if you like during the whole de-skunking process.
Don't wet down your pet. Apply the mixture to your pet's dry coat from the collar back toward the tail. Don't pour it near the eyes because the hydrogen peroxide solution can burn them.
Lather the mixture into your pet's coat and skin. Rub the solution around for about five minutes or until the skunk smell starts to dissipate.
If the front of your pet is as stinky as the back, use a sponge to apply the solution to your pet's chin, cheeks, forehead and ears, being very careful not to go near the eyes. When you rinse the head area, tilt your pet's chin upward so the solution does not run down into the eyes, instead allow the water to run back off his neck.
Do a complete rinse once the smell starts to decrease, then repeat the entire process again.
You may need to repeat the lather and rinse process up to three times, but it's a very effective method for removing the skunk smell from your pet.
Make sure to completely rinse the solution off your pet. Your final rinse should be very thorough.
You can't prepare this solution ahead of time and store it -- it won't be effective when you need it. It must be made fresh, right before you apply it to your pet. So it pays to make sure you have all the ingredients ahead of time!
Good luck... and I hope you never have to use my skunk rinse recipe!
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Dr. Karen Becker is a proactive and integrative wellness veterinarian. You can visit her site at: MercolaHealthyPets.com.
Her goal is to help you create wellness in order to prevent illness in the lives of your pets. This proactive approach seeks to save you and your pet from unnecessary stress and suffering by identifying and removing health obstacles even before disease occurs. Unfortunately, most veterinarians in the United States are trained to be reactive. They wait for symptoms to occur, and often treat those symptoms without addressing the root cause.
By reading Dr. Becker's information, you'll learn how to make impactful, consistent lifestyle choices to improve your pet's quality of life.