Pets’ encounters with skunks are never very nice for the pets
or their
owners. And as intolerable as a thorough skunk spraying can be,
a University
of Georgia veterinarian says that may not be the worst of it.

“Skunks account for many rabies cases in Georgia,” said Jim
Strickland, an Extension
Service
veterinarian with the UGA College of
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Of the 597 Georgia rabies cases reported in 1995 and 1996,
the Georgia
Division of Public Health reports that 60 cases, or 10 percent,
were skunks.
That’s a distant second to raccoons (415) in the number of cases
reported.

Strickland said outdoor pets, especially dogs, often tangle
with skunks.
“Skunks appear to be fairly easy prey,” he said.

The appearance is deceiving. “They have a unique way of
defending themselves,”
he said. “But it surely is effective.”

Skunks have glands that manufacture a substance loaded with
thiols,
the compounds responsible for the odors that come from rotting
flesh and
fecal matter. Their potent spray is literally the essence of
putrification.
It’s an eye-watering, breathtaking concoction that seems to defy
any attempt
to get rid of it.

People with skunk-sprayed pets have tried every kind of soap
and lots
of home remedies. None works very well, Strickland said. Tomato
juice,
a favorite, is often better at turning a pet pink than making it
not stink.

But there’s good news.

Strickland said Lisle, Ill., chemist Paul Krebaum’s formula
may be the
best hope yet for deskunking a putrid pet.

Mix 1 quart of 3 percent hydrogen peroxide, one-fourth cup of
baking
soda and 1 teaspoon of liquid dish detergent. Douse the pet with
the solution
immediately, since the chemical reaction lasts only a short
time. Rinse
the pet well with water. Don’t let the solution soak for more
than a few
minutes.

The solution will treat a small dog. For larger dogs, you may
need to
double or triple the ingredients.

The solution, which gives off oxygen that then changes the
skunk-spray
chemicals into odorless compounds, can’t be stored. So just mix
it and
use it as needed.

“This solution may enable you to stand getting close enough
to your
pet to see if it has any bite wounds,” Strickland said. “If it
does, be
sure you have your veterinarian check it out. Bite wounds are
usually highly
contaminated and predisposed to abscesses.”

The threat of rabies from infected skunks is by far the more
serious
problem, he said. And a thoroughly sprayed dog may be a good
sign that
the skunk it encountered was normal.

Animals infected with rabies often don’t behave normally, he
said. So
they might not use their traditional defense mechanism.

Rabid skunks can be in a stage in which they have no
symptoms, though.
So rabies should be a concern anytime a pet mixes it up with a
skunk.

If your pet has been bitten and hasn’t been vaccinated for
rabies, most
veterinarians now recommend having it vaccinated immediately.

“If we don’t have a positive diagnosis of rabies (in the
animal that
bit the pet), we don’t usually recommend euthanasia,” Strickland
said.

Not having to put a pet to sleep after a suspicious bite
doesn’t mean
the worry is over. You can’t be perfectly sure the pet won’t
develop rabies
until the six-month incubation period is over.

“There’s only one way to be certain you don’t have to worry
about your
pet getting rabies from a skunk or any other wild animal,”
Strickland said.
“Have your dog or cat vaccinated every year by a licensed
veterinarian.”
Georgia law requires all dogs and cats to have rabies shots. A
three-year
vaccine is available, he said. But since Georgia has a constant
presence
of rabies, he recommends sticking with annual vaccinations.