It was bad enough when Lori Long’s dog, Chewie, ran into the house smelling of skunk four years ago.
But what happened the next day added insult to injury.
The Akron resident was sitting in her office, thinking the problem was behind her, when one of her co-workers approached.
“Lori, do you smell that?” her colleague said. “I smell skunk.”
Her heart sank.
Then the phone rang.
It was the school her daughter Kaela attended, calling to ask Long to pick the girl up.
‘‘I’m like, ‘OK, I can guess why,’ ” Long recalled.
What she didn’t realize is that the oils from the skunk’s spray had gotten onto their skin. They’d become so accustomed to the odor that they couldn’t smell it.
It took soaking in hydrogen peroxide to eliminate the odor on themselves and a couple weeks of leaving the windows open before the stink was gone from the house.
“But does Chewie learn?” she said. “No. Three months later, he does the same thing.”
At least Long knew better this time. Chewie stayed in the garage until she could get him cleaned up.
Skunk love
It’s an unfortunate truth that dogs and skunks are a malodorous mix. And this is the time of year when the two are most likely to encounter each other.
Mid-February through April is skunk mating season in Ohio, when boy skunks are traveling far and wide in search of girl skunks. It’s also a time when skunks of both sexes are especially defensive.
So not only is there more chance of a dog encountering a skunk this time of year, but there’s also a greater chance the skunk will react to the perceived threat by spraying, said Marne Titchenell, a wildlife specialist at Ohio State University.
Why dogs and not cats? Dogs are hunters by nature, and they’re just more likely to confront skunks, said Joseph Richter, a veterinarian at VCA Green Animal Hospital.
“Relative to most other animals, they’re getting too close,” he said.
Raising a stink
So what do you do when Fido winds up on the wrong end of a skunk encounter? Keep him out of the house if you can. Skunk spray is oily, and it will get on anything the dog touches.
Wash the dog as soon as you can. The longer you wait, the deeper those oils will penetrate into the fur and skin, and the harder they’ll be to remove.
Richter, Titchenell and other experts agree only one cleaner really works to remove the skunk odor from a pet: a mixture of hydrogen peroxide, baking soda and liquid soap. (See the accompanying article for the recipe.) It was developed by an Illinois chemist named Paul Krebaum, and it works because it chemically neutralizes the stinky compounds called thiols that make up skunk spray,
Especially if the dog was sprayed in the face, it’s a good idea to call a veterinarian, Richter said. The oils in the skunk spray can cause irritation, conjunctivitis or even corneal injuries, he said. The dog’s eyes may need to be washed with water or saline.
The spray can even be life-threatening if the dog can’t escape and has to keep breathing it, but that’s rare, Richter said.
Smelly problem
Unfortunately, you don’t always know a dog has been sprayed until he’s already in the house. And chances are by the time you shoo him out, he’s already brushed against the walls, jumped on the furniture and rolled around on the floor.
And now everything stinks.
On his Skunk Remedy Homepage (http://home.earthlink.net/~skunkremedy/home), Krebaum recommends cleaning the surfaces in your home with bleach and some liquid soap to cut the oil. Chlorine bleach will work, he says, but he prefers a nonchlorine bleach such as OxiClean.
Follow the label instructions, and test the product first in an inconspicuous place.
For a large area such as a deck, Krebaum suggests applying the solution with a hose-end sprayer. Don’t use a tank sprayer, he warns, because pressure can build up inside as the peroxide breaks down and cause the tank to explode.
And don’t use any type of bleach on the dog — or yourself, for that matter. It’s too harsh for living things, Krebaum says.
Deep-in stink
Getting the odor out of fibers may be more difficult than cleaning hard surfaces. You can try cleaning carpets, rugs and upholstery yourself, but chances are you’re going to need to have them cleaned and deodorized professionally, said Armen Arslanian, one of the owners of Arslanian Bros., a carpet and upholstery cleaning company in Warrensville Heights.
Arslanian should know. His own dog got trapped inside his fenced yard with a skunk several years ago.
“I had to clean everything,” he said.
For clothing or other fabric items that can be washed, you can try using a heavy-duty laundry detergent or borax if regular detergent isn’t enough, according to a fact sheet from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension (http://tinyurl.com/skunkout). Or wash the items with either ammonia or chlorine bleach — but never both, because the combination can produce a toxic gas.
As Long discovered, fresh air and time help, too. Items such as shoes that can’t be washed or dry cleaned can be left outdoors until the air carries away the odor, the fact sheet says.
Fido training
Of course, preventing a skunk encounter is better than cleaning up after one.
Richter recommends keeping dogs indoors at dusk and dawn this time of year, because that’s when skunks are most active.
You can also discourage skunks from coming to your yard by eliminating the two things they’re looking for, food and shelter, Titchenell said.
Don’t leave pet food outside, and keep garbage in a secured container, she said. Trap and remove small rodents such as mice or moles if you have a problem with them, because skunks like to eat them.
Skunks also like bees and birdseed, so consider removing bird feeders and beehives, too, Titchenell said.
She recommended also eliminating or blocking off areas where skunks might take shelter, such as rock, log or brush piles and openings under buildings, porches or decks.
It’s also a good idea to keep the ingredients for the skunk-cleaning solution on hand, so you can act fast if your dog gets sprayed, Richter said.
Unfortunately, there’s just no foolproof way to prevent it.
Mary Beth Breckenridge can be reached at 330-996-3756 or mbrecken@thebeaconjournal.com. You can also become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MBBreckABJ, follow her on Twitter @MBBreckABJ.