Non edible recipe for when your dog gets skunked

[Meadowlark]

When I was a kid, we had Samoyeds. They're great dogs , loyal, protective, and incredibly intelligent IF you understand how their minds work. Being that they're the ''husky'' types they need to learn early who is alpha. That age is, ideally, 8 to 10 weeks of age.



It's why Samoyeds have such a reputation for being ''untrainable'. They're trainable-really. But if you don't establish yourself as alpha, they'll take that role on themselves and ignore you.


Anyway, one of our Samoyeds would get skunked on a regular basis. She hated the idea of a skunk intruding on Her Turf. It got so she'd immediately head for the basement for the inevitable bath after being sprayed.

Back then, the only way you could get most of the skunk stink out of a dogs' fur was to use tomato juice. Lots of it.

And guess what you get when you wash a snow white Samoyed with tomato juice? Yes. A Pink dog.


Anyway, I learned a better recipe years ago and it works much better than tomato juice.


1 quart 3% hydrogen peroxide.


1/4 to 1/2 cup of baking soda


1 tsp of a mild dishwashing liquid.


Mix well, then shampoo the dog with the mix, taking care to not get it into her eyes or ears.


Rinse well with warm water. Repeat if necessary.


Best of all, it doesn't turn your dog pink.

[jerrybob]

Yep....your formula is one of the best for skunk smell on a dog....been there....done that......we have found that Dawn dish soap is the best to use. Dawn also works well on dogs when they roll in elk poop and pee......which our current rescue boy has done many times over the years.......ya gotta love a good smellin dog!

[John in Santa Cruz]

Yeah, tomato juice really doesn't work. We've had a few skunk hounds over the years, and got in the habit of keeping peroxide and baking soda on hand.... We always have Dawn. The baking soda reacts with the peroxide and causes it to release free oxygen radicals, these neutralize the Thiol compound in the skunk spray. The detergent just helps it wet the dog fur.

[Meadowlark]

You're right about the Dawn, Jerrybob. It is the Go TO when we biologists are trying to save birds and animals that find themselves in an oil slick. :-(


As for removing manure..well, yes. I've yet to meet a dog that doesn't love rolling in a nice steamy pile of horse manure.

[jerrybob]

Dawn is actually remarkable.......you can use it for so many things.....weed killer.....make your own ice packs.....stain remover on concrete.....dishes and my favorite......to remove 150 yr old grease from an old wagon hub and axle.....thank goodness the ole wheelwrights had that stuff! LOL!

[Kenny Strong]

A chemistry professor at, Utah State University did analysis of the chemistry of skunk spray. His research revealed that other chemicals, when combined with, the skunk spray changed the chemistry of the spray to a different compound that did not smell like the skunk we hate.
The product he developed, is called Neutrolium Alpha and can be bought from the Utah state extension service. I don't know if it is sold at retail stores
I have used it to wash my dogs and it is instant success


Later Kenny

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Meadowlark

As for removing manure..well, yes. I've yet to meet a dog that doesn't love rolling in a nice steamy pile of horse manure.

we had a basset hound, whom would escape the instant we finished washing her, run out into the cow pasture across our driveway and find several nice fresh cow patties to roll in. she was incorrigible. also a sneak thief, would steal bagels, cookies, all sorts of things. got home, turned our back for a second, and she'd hopped up on a chair, then onto the table and was nosing into the bag of fresh onion bagels we'd brought home.

[Meadowlark]

That's one agile basset!!

[John in Santa Cruz]

She was a runt basset. definitely 100% basset, ears long enough to trip on, super short legs, etc, but she was quite small, and surprisingly agile.

[Bill in Pittsburgh]

I realize this thread is about anti skunk recipes but wanted to comment on Samoyeds. I have seen very few that have been trained obedient to what I would consider for any dog I owned.
Exceptions to the rule always exist. A friend that I grew up with had a Samoyed when he was in his late teens and early twenties. It was one of 3 or 4 best trained dogs I have ever had contact with. Additionally it was a Velcro dog more inclined to behave like a Sheltie rather than an Alaskan breed.

[Meadowlark]

That's what I mean, Bill in PIttsburg. I obedience trained our Samoyeds while still a teenager. They were just puppies when I started training them. They were very quick to catch on, they got to the point where I didn't need to leash them, although I usually did, when I walked them through our neighborhood.


They were more cat than dog in many ways. For instance, house training them was a breeze. All it took was one or two times rushing them outside for them to say, oh, got it. I don't do my business in the house.


In fact, the only way we knew our eldest Samoyed was ailing was when she made a mess in the house. It was the first time in thirteen years that she'd messed in the house. She was so humiliated, we got home and couldn't find her and finally found her hiding in the basement. She was so ashamed. My mom took her to the vet the next day and found she was in advanced stages of mammary cancer. :-( And yes, had her put down. :-(



But as I said in my Original post, if you don't establish who is alpha when they're still very young, you'll be beaten at the post.

They listened to me and my mother, we both were alpha to them but they totally ignored my father and my kid brother, as he was just a little kid.

It's sad, because they are wonderful dogs. And beautiful, when kept up. We groomed them daily, because they shed..and shed.


People look at them and say, oh they pull sleds, right?
No. They're herd dogs. Ours would herd anything that moved. Leaves. Horses. Bugs. And kids...our neighbors liked it when their little kids came to our house to play because they could always tell where they were. Our Samoyeds would keep the kids all nicely grouped. ;-).


By the way, Samoyeds aren't "Alaskan". They are a Laplander breed, bred to herd Reindeer. They're from Northern Finland and Siberia.





So when someone tells me they are thinking of getting a samoyed, I warn them. They're heart breakers. You're better off with a different breed.

[Donna D.]

Yeah, don't get a Samoyed if you're an Escape trailer owner. If you think you've heard about pet fur and sail switch problems, you ain't heard nothing yet! 40 years ago I had a great dog. Half Samoyed and half Australian Sheepdog. Furry beast!

[jerrybob]

Can't imagine life without a dog.......gotta have a dog. We've dome rescues for 20 years.....had some great pups....labs...aussie shepards.....cattle dog.....right now our old boy (we think about 13) is a cross between a black lab and a Karelian Bear dog......he quite the character.....loves camping and goes lots of places with us......great pup!

[Rich and Rei]

Have always had rescue dogs.
Usually adult or mature so sometimes difficult to train.
Our latest is Molly, a terrier mix.
She loves to find any kind of poo to roll in.
The worst is goose poo.
Glad to read the baking soda, peroxide and Dawn mixture.
Going to try it because I am sure she will be looking for fresh poo soon.

[jerrybob]

Originally Posted by Rich and Rei

Have always had rescue dogs.
Usually adult or mature so sometimes difficult to train.
Our latest is Molly, a terrier mix.
She loves to find any kind of poo to roll in.
The worst is goose poo.
Glad to read the baking soda, peroxide and Dawn mixture.
Going to try it because I am sure she will be looking for fresh poo soon.

Thanks for your dog rescue efforts......great way to find some great pups. Can't speak to goose poo.....but that formula works great for deer...bear and elk......I speak from experience. Thanks again.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Rich and Rei

Have always had rescue dogs.
Usually adult or mature so sometimes difficult to train.
Our latest is Molly, a terrier mix.
She loves to find any kind of poo to roll in.
The worst is goose poo.
Glad to read the baking soda, peroxide and Dawn mixture.
Going to try it because I am sure she will be looking for fresh poo soon.

the peroxide mixture is for skunk spray.

[Dennis mn]

We, also have had rescue dogs, the big issue we have had is that when you get an adult dog, you often get issues. Our last dog was seven, or so when my son brought her home. She had leash aggression, she was totally mellow when free, but put her on a leash, and she transformed. Our current dog suffers from separation anxiety and anxiety attacks. We cannot leave her alone for more than a few minutes. She totally destroys things if she thinks she has been left alone. Fortunately, she loves to travel, and stay in the Scamp.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Dennis mn

We, also have had rescue dogs, the big issue we have had is that when you get an adult dog, you often get issues. Our last dog was seven, or so when my son brought her home. She had leash aggression, she was totally mellow when free, but put her on a leash, and she transformed. Our current dog suffers from separation anxiety and anxiety attacks. We cannot leave her alone for more than a few minutes. She totally destroys things if she thinks she has been left alone. Fortunately, she loves to travel, and stay in the Scamp.

yeah, we had a few of those. our last dog was a purebred yellow lab raised from a little puppy, and she was the biggest sweetheart we ever had, an 80 lb lap puppy...



(after a day at the beach)

[Meadowlark]

Dogs are like that. I'm sure the 80 lb lab thinks she's still an 8 pound puppy.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Meadowlark

Dogs are like that. I'm sure the 80 lb lab thinks she's still an 8 pound puppy.

a-yup...


(in my daughter's arms, the day she came home)