Skunk Odor Removal Recipe

(Recipe from Chemical & Engineering News, ).

Skunk Odor Removal Recipe

Tomato juice does not work to neutralize or deodorize skunk spray. Bathing an animal in tomato juice seems to work because after lengthy exposure to strong odors, the human nose quits smelling the odor (olfactory fatigue). When this happens while bathing a pet in tomato juice, the odor of tomato juice can easily be detected. A person suffering olfactory fatigue to skunk spray will swear that the skunk odor is gone and was neutralized by the tomato juice. Another person arriving at this point will quickly tell you that the skunk smell is still present.

Wash the pet outside so the skunk spray does not contaminate your house. Bathe pets that have been sprayed in a mixture of 1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide (from drug store), 1/4 cup of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and a teaspoon of liquid detergent. (This recipe will wash a small dog the size of a Jack Russell terrier. Make multiple batches for bigger pets.) Make sure the solution soaks through the hair onto the skin. Rinse the animal thoroughly with water after 5 minutes of scrubbing. Repeat if necessary. The hydrogen peroxide mixture must be used immediately after mixing and will not work if it is stored for any length of time. DO NOT STORE IN A CLOSED CONTAINER - it releases oxygen gas so it could break the container. This mixture may bleach the pet's hair. (Paul Krebaum's R

Wash colorfast inanimate objects (buildings, decks, etc) that have been sprayed with one cup of liquid laundry bleach per gallon of water. CAUTION - THIS MAY BLEACH THE BUILDINGS, DECKS, ETC. Try it on a small area if bleaching may be a problem. The bleach must come in contact with the spot where the secretion was sprayed. Repeated applications may be necessary for large amounts of the skunk spray. DO NOT USE BLEACH ON HUMANS, PETS OR CLOTHING.

The Yard: Spray that has drifted over a large area can be neutralized by mixing 1 gallon of clear vinegar and 1 cup of non-foaming cleanser (such as liquid dishwasher soap) in a backpack garden sprayer. Spray down the area with the skunk smell; it will be neutralized on contact.

If a skunk has sprayed undernesth a house, place a plastic tarp in the crawl space and put 25 pounds of charcoal on the tarp. The odor in the air will be soaked up by the charcoal. Be sure to ventilate the living space within the house. (These last two odor solutions were provided by Pete Bromley, Fisheries & Wildlife Coordinator, and NCSU Dept of Zoology.)