It’s something that most people do not give a second thought until it happens to them. The skunk spraying a pet dog or cat is almost a right of passage in the Muskoka region.
But once that unmistakable pungent blast hits the nostrils lots of people starting running around like the Keystone Cops, trying to find solutions online, figuring out where to put your furry friend and what to do to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Dr. Shallen Langley is a veterinarian at Bracebridge Animal Hospital and she has some handy tips when a skunk has done its worst to your pet.
The most important thing is to not let the animal back into the house or car. Skunk oil transfers very easily to other surfaces which could result in a lasting odour:
While the peak time for an encounter with a skunk is in the spring, there are still plenty around for your pet to get into a smelly showdown:
Dr. Langley also advises that if your pet got a fairly direct hit to the face, there can be both eye and lung complications:
Dr. Langley says prevention is the best approach, and that means giving a potential offender a chance to get out of your yard as you put your dog out for a bathroom break.
If you don’t have the ingredients for a “do-it-yourself” cleanser, there are plenty of effective off the shelf products to help get the job done. As for the old standby of tomato juice, it has little to no effect on removing skunk odours:
All in all, it is going to be a tough few days if a family pet is sprayed by a skunk, but with plenty of information and warm nights for a smelly dog to sleep outside, most people should get through it just fine.