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Dog Sprayed By Skunk? Here’s What To Do!

Amy Tokic
by Amy Tokic
Published:  April 27th, 2020

Gotta love that dog sprayed by skunk odor… well, maybe not so much! If it happens to your dog, forget the tomato juice and follow our tips to get that stink out!

Dogs are notorious for getting into things that they shouldn’t and for finding new ways of getting into trouble. Whether you live in the country or in a more urban area, there is always a risk for your dog coming across a skunk. Unfortunately, dogs do not understand what a skunk is capable of so you are left with a big smelly mess. So how do you de-skunk your dog if he gets sprayed? The solution may be easier than you think. Here’s what to do for a dog sprayed by skunk.

Related: Madra Mor Mud Treatment

What to Do After Your Dog Gets Sprayed

Before you make any attempt to de-skunk your dog there are a few basic things you should do. First, keep your dog outside – if you let your dog into the house you will end up cleaning more than just your dog. Skunk odor is incredibly stubborn and pervasive, so you don’t want to deal with the consequences of letting your dog inside before he’s been de-skunked. You also need to check your dog to make sure that he didn’t get sprayed in the eyes. Check your dog’s eyes – if they look red or irritated, immediately flush them with cool water. If the irritation persists, you may need to visit your veterinarian. If your dog’s eyes are okay, however, you can move on to de-skunking your dog.

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How to De-Skunk Your Dog

You’ve probably heard that the solution to de-skunking a dog involves tomato juice or ketchup. Not only is this method ineffective, but it is a big hassle as well. The real solution may be easier than you think – all you need is some hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and dish soap. To prepare the solution, combine 1 quart (4 cups) of 3% hydrogen peroxide with ¼ cup of baking soda and 1 teaspoon of mild dishwashing soap. Place your dog in the bathtub and, while wearing rubber gloves, pour the solution over your dog and work it into his skin and coat. As you clean your dog, make sure you don’t get any of the solution in his eyes and try to keep his nose, eyes, and ears dry.

After you’ve rubbed the mixture into your dog’s coat, you can let it sit for a few minutes but don’t leave it on for too long. Rinse your dog thoroughly with warm water to remove the solution then give him a traditional bath with pet shampoo. Lather and rinse your dog thoroughly until you can no longer smell either the skunk spray or the cleaning solution on him. Towel your dog dry to get rid of most of the moisture then place him in a warm room to air-dry or use a hair dryer on the cool setting. Once your dog is clean and dry you should remove any clothing that carries the skunk odor and throw it in the wash with regular laundry detergent plus a half cup of baking soda to neutralize the odor.

Additional Tips and Tricks for a Dog Sprayed by Skunk

If you don’t have any hydrogen peroxide or baking soda on hand, you can mix distilled white vinegar with water instead and use it to wash your dog. You can also choose to follow the traditional method of dousing the dog in tomato juice to cut through the oil of the skunk spray followed by several shampoo baths. Once you’ve gotten rid of the odor and dried your dog off, try to avoid letting him get wet for at least a few days. Water tends to reactivate the skunk odor so you might end up having to go through the de-skunking process all over again.

To keep your dog from getting skunked, take some basic precautions to ensure that skunks do not have a reason to visit your property. Keep your trash in sealed, inaccessible containers and be careful about letting your dog out when skunks are most likely to be hanging around, at dusk and dawn.

Best Professional Dog Skunk Odor Removers

While home remedies can help to an extent, the best way to tackle skunk stench is by using heavy-duty, professional solutions. But, when it’s your pet that’s been skunked- you can’t just go for the chemical-laden stuff and call it a day. You have to use pet-safe products that won’t do more harm than good. And having a reliable, efficient skunk odor remover on hand is particularly important if your pooch has a knack for getting into all kinds of smelly troubles. While it’s not easy finding odor removers that are non-toxic for dogs but yet work on skunk smell, there are formulas that manage it. Here are our choices on best dog de-skunking products on the market.

Nature’s Miracle Skunk Odor Remover

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Whether you need to obliterate skunk smell from your pet, carpets, furniture, or anything else, really, this potent odor remover is the go-to option. The fast-acting formula doesn’t cover up the stench with a fragrance, but rather uses bio enzymes that eliminate the smell altogether. Just apply the solution directly on the coat, let sit for five minutes and give your pooch a regular bath – and all traces of their stinky encounter will perish!

De-Skunk Odor Destroying Shampoo

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As any pet parent unfortunate enough to have experienced their pet being skunked knows, the foul stench of the skunk is carried in an oily substance. That’s why this de-skunking shampoo is so efficient – it contains the most powerful degreasers out there, so it successfully dissolves skunk spray. A little bit of scrub-a-dubbing in the bath and your pooch won’t be making you gag!

Bodhi Dog Pet Deskunk Odor Eliminator

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Yes, it’s possible to have a natural formula that is effective in odor removal- even skunk. This potent odor eliminator contains a proprietary blend of over 12 essential oils to successfully neutralize the skunk stench. Use it around the house and the yard, and directly on your pet without worrying about staining or toxicity. You don’t have to wash this spray out of your pooch’s fur- just spray and leave to air dry. To boot, your pooch will smell like ‘violet potpourri’ afterward!

Thornell Skunk-Off Pet Shampoo

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Preferred by veterinarians, this dog shampoo is a great way to instantly eliminate skunk smell from your dog’s coat. It neutralizes odor on contact, and all it takes is some rubbing and washing to completely remove all traces of the foul stench from your pooch. The fact that it is a potent odor remover doesn’t mean that this shampoo is harsh, though: the mild formula won’t dry out your dog’s skin or hair.

NonScents Skunk Odor Remover Head & Face Foam

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Fragrance-free yet extremely effective, this foam cleanser destroys odor-causing thiol compounds at the molecular level. Just apply foam at the areas sprayed by the skunk, wait for 10 minutes for it to start working and rinse. It even comes with free latex gloves so you can thoroughly rub the foam in without getting stinky yourself.

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Amy Tokic
Amy Tokic

Amy Tokic, Editor of PetGuide.com, is a passionate animal lover and proud pet parent of Oscar, a Shih Tzu/Chihuahua cross, and Zed, a Japanese Chin. Her love of animals began in kindergarten, when she brought her stuffed dog Snoopy into class with her every day. Now, she writes about her adventures in pet ownership and tirelessly researches products, news and health related issues she can share with other animal enthusiasts. In her free time, Amy loves perusing used book and record stores, obsessing over the latest pet products available and chasing squirrels with wild abandon (a habit attributed to spending too much time with her pooches).

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In a groundbreaking study, researchers have discovered striking similarities between the most common type of brain tumor in dogs and humans - meningioma. These findings were published in the scientific journal Acta Neuropathologica. Until now, scientists struggled to find reliable experimental models to understand the biology of and develop effective treatments for these tumors. But thanks to these newly discovered similarities, doctors will be able to use a classification system that identifies these aggressive tumors in humans and pooches.“The discovery that naturally occurring canine tumors closely resemble their human counterparts opens numerous avenues of exploring the biology of these challenging tumors,” said Dr. Akash Patel, an associate professor of neurosurgery at Baylor College of Medicine and principal investigator at the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute (Duncan NRI) at Texas Children’s Hospital. “It also provides opportunities for developing and studying novel treatments applicable to both humans and dogs,” he added.During the study, researchers analyzed 62 dog meningiomas from 27 breeds and found that the tumors were remarkably similar to the same kinds of tumors in humans. To this date, this is the largest study of the gene expression profiles of the canine meningioma. Others, including Dr. Jonathan Levine, a VMBS professor and the head of the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (VSCS), and Dr. Tiemo Klisch, assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine and Principal Investigator at Duncan NRI, were involved in the study along Dr. Patel. Meanwhile, assistant professor Dr. Beth Boudreau was a key collaborator. Previous work done by Levine, Boudreau, and others at VMBS, which found similarities between gliomas - the second most common type of brain tumors - in humans and dogs, was instrumental for Patel’s study. “We ended up agreeing to provide Patel with canine tumor samples we had worked years and years to achieve, to see if he could isolate the RNA, which is not always easy to do,” said Levine, in a statement. “He was able to produce this very robust data set that showed a similar pattern structure to human tumors. Our team also provided Dr. Patel with key clinical outcome data, including responses to certain treatments.”Now that the researchers have found a link between brain tumors in humans and dogs they hope to establish clinical trials to continue their research. Setting up this type of clinical trial can take several years of planning and requires funding.“We are really interested in creating wins for both human and animal medicine,” said Levine. “For example, we hope to give dog owners access to therapy that’s not available anywhere else in the world through clinical trials. At the same time, that information will also inform the next step of human trials.”As it happens, another group of researchers from the University of California, Davis, conducted a similar study with matching results about meningioma in humans and dogs. This study was also published in the scientific journal Acta Neuropathologica.Now, the two research groups plan to collaborate in the future and share their findings to develop treatment options for both human and canine brain tumors. “If we do one trial, we’d be able to enroll patients a lot more quickly, which would make it easier to get larger data sets resulting in stronger findings. So we have a lot of interest in doing a collaborative trial,” added Levine. “We really see the team out in California as potential partners.” Thanks to this groundbreaking research, scientists now have a better understanding of brain tumors and are one step closer to developing life-saving treatments for both humans and dogs. Join the PetGuide community. Get the latest pet news and product recommendations by subscribing to our newsletter here.

Study Reveals a Link Between Mental Health and an Attachment to Pets

We have all been told at one time or another that our pets are good for our mental health. But have you ever stopped to consider how your mental health could also impact the attachment bond you form with your pet? Could your attachment to your pet hurt your mental health?These questions and more were the inspiration behind a new study out of the University of Helsinki.Rather than focusing solely on the benefits of dogs and cats to our mental well-being, researchers went a step better. The goal was to better understand how the relationship we form with our pets could have an impact both on us as well as on the pets themselves. They also dug into how an owner’s attachment style could impact the care they provide and our pet’s behaviors.The research team collected information from approximately 2,500 pet owners and 3,300 pets to gather the necessary data. This included:Personality traits (of owners, dogs, and cats)Owner mental well-being ratingsUnwanted behavior traitsOther potential influences, like children in the householdAttachment stylesIn terms of the relationship, they looked specifically at two types of insecure attachment – anxious and avoidant. Anxious attachment refers to owners who desire to have their pets nearby and are concerned about the risk of losing their pets. On the other end of the spectrum, avoidant attachment refers to pet owners concerned about losing their personal autonomy and, as such, seeking a higher level of independence.The study found that cat owners with lower mental health ratings demonstrated anxious attachment to their feline friends. However, dog owners with similar mental health ratings were split between anxious attachment and avoidant attachment.Interestingly enough, there was a clear division between the attachment styles when categorizing the relationships based on a dog’s mental well-being and potentially “unwanted” or “problem” behaviors. Dogs who demonstrated aggression or ADHD-like behavior were more likely to have avoidantly attached owners, while dogs who demonstrated fear-related behaviors were often connected to anxiously attached owners.What does all this mean? By recognizing the connection, we can better understand how personality and attachment styles can influence one another.For example, if a dog owner demonstrates avoidant attachment, they may not provide the security a dog desires in a potentially threatening situation. As a result, the dog may develop aggression. However, it is also possible that a dog’s aggressive response may contribute to an owner’s need for space and independence from the behavior and its impact on their daily activities.“What made this project unique was that it involved dogs, cats, and owners alike,” explained Professor Hannes Lohi. “We need a deeper understanding of the connections between owners and pets and the associated factors so we can, for example, help people make better decisions when obtaining a pet. It’s important to acknowledge that obtaining a pet while experiencing poor mental well-being may not necessarily meet the expectations of improving it.”Not only is this a big step forward in helping people make educated decisions about pet ownership, but it could also provide valuable guidance for trainers and behaviorists when dealing with unwanted behaviors.

World’s Largest Cruise Ship Welcomes a Super Cute Dog as a Resident

“Icon of the Seas” might have been known as the largest cruise ship until this year, but now, everybody will know it as the ship with a permanent doggy resident – Rover, a cute Lab with (apparently) four sea legs!Ever since coming on board, Rover has been the focus of social media posts by the cruise ship’s crew members. Based on the posts, the adorable pooch boarded the ship while it was stationed in Ponce, Puerto Rico, just as it was about to finish its journey in Miami, Florida. And soon enough, Rover, who is a young  Labrador Retriever, became the ship’s very own mascot and likely everybody’s favorite resident.After all, Rover was so friendly and loveable that it took only one day for the crew to decide that he would become the permanent resident of the vessel – that takes some serious charm, ya know?“Meet Rover,” one Instagram post said, “the Resident Mascot of the Icon. He just came on board today. He’s a friendly Labrador who’s going to be the permanent resident of the World’s Largest Cruise Ship, Icon of the Seas.”The crew all quickly gathered around to ensure that Rover would be given the best possible care in his new role of “Chief Dog Officer”. Allison, one of the crew members is originally from Australia and has been a member of the crew for five years. She ensures that Rover receives plenty of treats and a ton of love. "As a crew member on Icon, Rover's job is to bring joy to her fellow crew and guests onboard. All the while, she gets to explore the Caribbean shores and beautiful ports," she said. Even though Rover had been on the ship for just a short time, he did not fail to capture everyone’s heart. He enjoyed walks on the “lido” deck and even visited the Captain in The Bridge - a privilege reserved only for the select few. And, in no time, many other crew members chimed in on social media welcoming the doggo onboard. "We are absolutely thrilled to introduce our newest team member, Rover, who has joined us as a permanent resident aboard the magnificent Icon of the Seas," said  @godwin_fernandes2000.So much so, that even Royal Caribbean, the company behind the Icon of the Seas, posted about Rover on their own official account! Now, Rover found his new forever home – in the unlikeliest of all places: a cruise ship. And if you want to follow the adventures of this sea-faring puppy, be sure to check out his Instagram account  @chiefdogrover where they’ll be documented!

Research Suggests Longer Nosed Dogs Live Longer

Yes, the flat-faced pooches we know and love have not only myriad health issues but also shorter lives.

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