Skunked

Last night after dinner I took Carley out for her pre-bedtime constitutional. About a week ago she had startled a skunk during this nightly ritual and chased it down the yard a good 15-20 feet before reacting to my shouts. Fortunately, she and I were both out of range when the startled skunk gathered its wits and blasted an unpleasant reminder why we don’t chase skunks. But the lesson was not learned by Carley, and last night ended far worse than the prologue. We were both skunked.

Last night I left Carley in the mudroom so that I could go out and look for critters. Ever since the previous skunk run-in I’ve been taking this precaution when bringing her out after dark. With either a headlamp or the flashlight app on my phone, I survey the immediate area beyond the deck, as well as her designated potty area, a hemlock mulched strip beneath evergreens. Once I confirm that the area is clear I open the mudroom door and bring her out.

Last night, however, the latch must not have fully engaged. And failing to fully close the door left our smart Labrador retriever only symbolically enclosed. As soon as I walked two or three steps across the deck to our side yard, Carley blasted past me.

I suspect she had already smelled the skunk and was impatient to protect me. She immediately began to bark and confronted the skunk which was huddled next to us behind the coiled hose. Suddenly she was nose-to-tail with the skunk before discovering who had the winning hand. I tried to pull her away from the skunk, but both of us got blasted point blank.

Carley’s entire face glistened with the pungent perfume, the stench immediately overpowering both of us. I was immediately struck with how different it smelled from I usually associate with skunk spray. It turns out that more intimate encounter with a skunk, such as we had just experienced, smells more like burning petroleum or tires. 

Fortunately, my superhuman bride took charge. She sent me in for tomato juice (actually V8 we all we had) while she grabbed dog shampoo. In short order all three of us plunged into Lake Champlain for a looong, dark of night, bathing session. On a warmer nights with a full moon my bride and I happily enjoy late night skinny-dip.

But this was different. Cold. Too close to midnight to be very alert. Wrestling with the dog who was decidedly unhappy by this point. And soon all three of us were wet, shivering, and smelling like skunk. Fun times!

By this point I had managed to do some quick research on my phone and discovered that the V8 we dumped all over her pretty much useless, and that we had likely spread stinky oil from her face to the rest of Carley’s body and both of our bodies.

Returning to the house, I headed in yo shower with Tecnu, gritty lava soap, and shampoo. Not once. Not twice. But three times. My hair smelled better. Most of my body smelled better. But my left hand and my ankles were still pretty pungent. I headed back down to check on Susan who was still working on Carley’s head and muzzle with hydrogen peroxide and baking soda. We’d both taken turns irrigating her eyes, and she seemed to be seeing fine. That was a relief.

But her head still smelled as if we hadn’t cleaned it at all. We decided that she needed to spend the night in the pantry. All towels and blankets were removed, and her temporary dog bed was a few old, worn-out beach towels.

Groggy and delirious I fell asleep reading about how to get skunk smell of a dog and how to get skunk smell of yourself while Susan showered and showered and showered.

How to De-skunk a Dog

There seems to be relatively wide consensus that this DIY skunk shampoo recipe works well for both dogs and people.

• 1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide solution (found at any pharmacy or supermarket)
• 1/4 cup of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of liquid dishwashing soap

Wearing rubber gloves, work the solution into your dog’s coat, washing them thoroughly. Don’t leave the solution on their fur for too long, since peroxide can bleach the fur. Then rinse completely. You might have to repeat the process more than once. (Source: American Kennel Club)

Apparently Dawn dish detergent works especially well, so Tony generously agreed to pick some up from the Willsborough Hardware store along with a bucket that’s now dedicated to skunk scent duty.

We spent some time this morning, trialing this recipe and process. Difficult to tell in the short term if it’s made much of a difference, but we’re planning to repeat the process over the coming days.

With hopes of accelerating the de-skunk process, we tag teamed the hydrogen peroxide + baking soda + Dawn elixir with a super targeted shampoo, Thornell Skunk-Off, that Susan picked up at the Adirondack Veterinary Hospital this morning. (And I forgot to mention that our amazing veterinarian for many years, Sue Russell, called back late last night to advise Susan on cleaning Carley’s eyes and monitoring her vision, etc.)

Yes, we are both abundantly aware of how fortunate we are. Thanks for catalyzing the reminder, Carley!

Takeaways from Getting Skunked

I have to be honest. Susan makes dog disasters less disastrous every single time. Part supermom, part veterinarian, part pet psychotherapist, and 100% unstoppable in the face of crisis, my bride always, ALWAYS rises to the occasion. And, being honest and transparent, I have to admit my own limitations when it comes to dog dramas. I depend on her each time we wind up in one of these situations, and every single time I am awed with her instincts and perseverance.

So the biggest takeaway is to acknowledge for the umpteenth (but never enough) time how lucky I am to share a life with this amazing woman. I can easily say that I never take her for granted, but the last 20 or so hours highlighted her outsized competence. Thank you, Susan SO much.

Another timely takeaway fell from Susan’s lips today while scrubbing Carley on Rosslyn’s beach.

“What if Carley had gotten skunked on one of our road trips?”

She pointed out that it would be disaster, and we should be prepared. She immediately concluded that from now on our road trips will include Skunk-Off shampoo.

And a final takeaway is that Carley’s after dark potty walks will henceforth be leashed. I’ve resisted this in the past, but the universe seems to be guiding our decision.