How to Get Rid of Skunk Odor

To go along with my introduction to Sam, I thought I would also share a skunk odor tamer recipe! Several people recommended the traditional tomato juice, but after some internet research it seems that this recipe works better:

Skunk Musk Tamer
In a pitcher, mix:
1/4 cup baking soda
Several squirts of Dawn dishwashing liquid
and lastly, a couple cups of vinegar

Only add the vinegar when you are ready to put it on the dog. In fact, this mixture cannot be made ahead of time because of the baking soda and vinegar. It will explode!

With the dog in the tub, pour all over the dog and scrub in. We left it sit for a while and rinsed. We had to repeat this the next day.

Do be careful about how often you bathe the dog with this. After two application, Sam's skin really started to dry out. I would use it to get the oils out, then try a commercial skunk scent remover. The commercial stuff was actually easier on the skin.


I am not sure how long he had been sprayed, but I am certain it was not nearly as bad as it could have been! So I cannot attest to how well this works on a fresh, directly sprayed dog.

I call it a skunk spray tamer, because it does just that. While it doesn't remove the smell 100%, it does get rid of the oils. By getting rid of the oils, it prevents everything the dog (and you) touches from smelling like skunk.

There will still be a residual smell lingering and since I have my mother's super nose, we also bought "Skunk Kleen"and this helped immensely! I was able to find this at my local pet shop. After one application, it no longer hurt my nose to pet Sam!

Good luck!

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