As a dog owner and the Greater Vancouver resident, you sure know that skanks are common in both urban and rural areas and, if scared, will spray your pooch with that nasty, hard to get rid off discharge. Thus, a responsible pet owner needs to know how to bath a dog after a such incident. The major concern is contaminating your residence when taking in a smelly pet.

I still remember how long my friends’ house have been stinking after their dog had run inside while carrying on its coat that horrible stench. While deodorising your residence is not my favourite topic, de-skanking your furry family member is what I have to do once in a while. Here we basically have two options: buying the “Wahl De-skunk Shampoo” from a local Walmart or making the de-skunking rinse from the commonly available ingredients.

As a word of caution, I’d advise you to strictly follow the recipe in order not to damage the dog’s skin and coat as it can be quite drying to both. The bathing should be followed with a high-quality moisturizing conditioner for pets. And here comes a simple yet effective pet hair rinse recipe:

1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide solution

1/4 cup of baking soda.

1 teaspoon of liquid dishwashing soap

Obviously, thinking of volume, bear in mind the size of your dog and the fact you will have to repeat this bathing few times. However, the peroxide is not stable to keep long time.

!!!!! Avoid getting this solution into your pet’s eyes or mouth, use a pet cone to prevent licking it off their haircoat.

Tips:

Where to wash your dog: a laundry sink, shower basin or a bath tub will work. Remove everything that can absorb the dirty water and stench. Change into something you can get rid after.

Do not pre-wash your dog with water! Wash thoroughly with solution and let sit, just like using any human medicated shampoo, about 5 minutes. Use lots of running water to get rid of shampoo itself after all.