What to Use to Bathe a Dog Sprayed by a Skunk

If a skunk has sprayed your dog, you'll need to give your pet several baths during the next few hours. The key to cleaning the smell of skunk from your dog is to begin bathing the dog immediately. If the skunk̵7;s spray dries in your dog̵7;s fur, the smell can linger for up to two years. There are both products and home remedies in which you can bathe your dog to de-skunk him. Some dog guardians find success with home remedies and others will swear by certain products. You may want to try more than one.

  1. Bathing

    • The first step to de-skunking your dog is to give the dog a good bath with regular dog shampoo. Work up a good lather and rinse well. This is done first to ensure that the spray doesn̵7;t dry on your dog and to remove the oily skunk spray from your dog before applying the de-skunking products.

    Products

    • Several products on the market claim to work at removing the smell from a dog that has been sprayed by a skunk. You can find these products at pet stores or your veterinarian̵7;s office. You may want to ask your veterinarian for a recommendation about which product will be best for your dog.

    Tomato Juice

    • An old home remedy is to bathe the skunked dog in tomato juice. The coat of the dog is saturated in the tomato juice and the juice is allowed to dry on the dog before it is rinsed. The dog is then bathed in regular dog shampoo. If your pet has light-colored fur, the tomato juice can turn your dog's coat red.

    Peroxide

    • One of the most common methods, and the method that is often recommended by veterinarians, involves the use of hydrogen peroxide. A combination of 1 quart 3 percent hydrogen peroxide, a quarter cup baking soda and a teaspoon of dish detergent was created by chemist Paul Krebaum for bathing a dog sprayed by a skunk. The mixture is combined in a large bowl and then thoroughly massaged into the dog̵7;s fur. The mixture is then rinsed from the dog̵7;s fur. If you have a large dog, you may need to double the recipe. This combination may temporarily bleach the coats of dark-colored dogs.

    Follow-Up

    • After using the de-skunk product or remedy, you should brush your dog thoroughly to remove any loose hair and to brush out the undercoat. You may also want to trim hair in the area of your dog̵7;s body where the skunk spray hit her directly. You may even consider an overall haircut, depending upon the length of your pet̵7;s fur. You may need to bathe your dog again and again over the next few days to try to remove as much of the smell as possible. You will also want to get your dog a new collar. Even if the spray didn't directly hit the old collar, it will have absorbed some of the odor and cause the smell to linger.