Outdoors - Dogs never learn

   Last week, my column was about the fortuitous timing of seeing a skunk before the dogs spotted him. We were able to lock the dogs on the porch and he was scared off by their barking. That very evening, our luck ran out.

   It was near bedtime and Jag, the terrier, was snugly tucked into bed in the garage. Billie, the poodle, decided one more trip outside was necessary before he was ready to settle in for the night. His routine is to check the perimeter of the yard, chase off any deer or rabbits that are sneaking up on us, and come back to let us know he wants back in. When we heard his single “woof”, my wife went to the door but did not open it. She could smell the pungent aroma of skunk through the closed door. She turned to me and exclaimed, “we have a problem!” I opened the door to be greeted by a very happy and very smelly dog. He and I went around the house and went into the garage.

   My wife is always prepared for any emergency. She had the ingredients on hand for the skunk neutralizing wash. It is a combination of hydrogen peroxide, dishwashing liquid, and baking soda. She mixed up her magic potion while I ran the hose into the garage from outside. I started washing the stinky dog with ice cold water and the soap mixture. From experience, I have learned, when a dog gets sprayed by a skunk, most of the spray is on the face and front legs. Billie was not so happy to have a cold bath in the garage when he was planning to come in and go to bed. I concentrated my efforts on his face and though he smelled so bad, it was hard to be certain, the smell seemed to diminish. By this time, the dog and I were both freezing cold. I moved the process to the shower and repeated the wash. Billie was not enjoying his shower any more than I was but at least the water was warm. A couple more soaping, scrubbing, and rinsing seemed to cut the smell to where I could no longer detect the aroma. As my wife was drying him, she could still smell skunk, but it was at least tolerable and not likely to spread to his bed or innocent bystanders. We loaded the washing machine with wet towels and my clothes and turned it on before collapsing into bed. I really was not planning on a couple hours of dog grooming at bedtime.

   The next morning, as soon as it was light outside, I went out to see if I could find a skunk’s body. Depending on how the encounter from the night before unfolded, there could be a dead skunk, wounded and angry skunk, or best-case scenario, no skunk at all. I was hoping the skunk sprayed Billie in self defense before the dog had a chance to get ahold of it. I knew if there was a skunk body, both dogs would celebrate by rolling on it and our problems would be doubled.

   I checked all around the yard and near the house where a skunk might be. To my relief, the skunk must have sprayed and left. I let the dogs out and the first thing Billie did was go to the spot of the previous night’s encounter. Jag was there to help him smell the area, as both dogs were ready to take on a skunk. Dogs never learn to leave a skunk alone.