Skunk Dream

I seldom remember my dreams, but last night I dreamt that Gambol brought home a skunk after his late-night pee break.  Actually, that was more of a nightmare than a dream.
We saw a skunk in the lower walnut grove the first week of March, and we've been smelling skunk every day, especially in our orchard.  We thought perhaps it was fox though since the smell was so pervasive, and we can't tell the difference between fox and skunk.
Tonight on our 6:00 pm walk we went up behind the house and smelled it again. Buddy and Remington were on leash because of their forest infraction* yesterday.  Gambol went up to a furry mass but had no interest in rolling in it. Surprise! Paul identified it as our skunk.  Gambol was easily called off it, and we went on our merry way with no treasures or gifts. The carcass is directly uphill from the orchard.

* Buddy and Remington were off leash on the lower path and took off to the neighbor's clear cut westerly, below our property.  Buddy doesn't run as fast as he used to so Paul caught up with him quickly.  Remington, who has never done this before, AND who has had a wonderful recall up to now, was way off across the ravine.  His ears must have dropped off en route because he had no interest in hear us call or turning around.  So unlike him in the meadow at least, but spring must have plugged his ears and opened his nostrils.

Update: Paul put a bucket weighed down with rocks on the carcass so that perhaps the bugs will clean it off so the kids can geocache it this summer.

Don't need it today, but I want it handy if we ever do...

The de-skunking recipe is simple: One quart of hydrogen peroxide, 1/4 cup baking soda, 1 teaspoon liquid dish soap.

just in case

We haven't had to use this yet, but we'll have the recipe when we do.

Yield: 1 deodorized dog

• 1 (16 ounce) bottle hydrogen peroxide
• 1/4 cup baking soda  
• 1 dash shampoo or 1 dash liquid dish soap (Dawn)

(If your dog has been sprayed in the face, try any over-the-counter douche.)
Let the mixture stand for 10 minutes or so before rinsing off.
Rinse the dog with lukewarm tap water. Don't wash the mixture into your dog's eyes (use a washcloth to cover the eyes if you're rinsing the head).
After bathing, check your dog's eyes. If they are red and watering, your dog may have taken a direct hit in the face. Skunk spray won't blind the dog, but it's very painful. Contact a vet.

How it works:
First a quote from Dr. Caceci of Texas A&M University:
Forget what you have heard about tomato juice--it doesn't work. Skunk spray is mainly composed of low molecular weight thiol compounds. ("Thiols" are compounds with the "-SH radical" attached to a carbon atom.) In industrial applications, alkaline hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is used for scrubbing similar compounds from waste gas streams.
Hydrogen peroxide and baking soda, when combined, become a "chemical engine" for churning out oxygen. That's why it has to be used immediately after mixing. The soap breaks up the oils in the skunk spray, allowing the other ingredients to do their work.