BTD ... "Bear the Dog" and the Skunk in Tales of the Jointed Track

I am about to get home, from a night rotation at the NOC. It's my "Friday", so to speak, I am my three days off. It's a Tuesday to Thursday this time. My cell rings, its the wife, panicked, "Bear got sprayed by a skunk, in the back yard. I heard him yelp, and opened the back door. He ran inside, and now the house smells. I have an open house with my Company associates on Friday". I told her get him back in the back yard, I'd deal with it when I got home. The skunk left the yard.

How did the skunk get in a fenced yard? Easy via the "Hole of Despair". That was a sunken part of the yard by the driveway, when the pool was dug. There was a 6 in deep gap, spanning 4 inches, enough for a skunk to squeeze through. Bear peeked out there sad faced when we left, and was there when we pulled in. Hence the name.

The Chief dispatcher, who I worked with in Schaumberg, IL with the Santa Fe, and now in Ft Worth. He hunted with a female black Lab, Sadie. She'd been sprayed several times, and he had a remedy. I called Dave, and said sorry to bother you, but Bear just got tabbed by a skunk. There was a hearty laugh. He said get a piece of paper and write this down.

The Skunk Remedy Recipe:

In a plastic bucket, mix well the following ingredients:

1 quart of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide

1/4 cup of baking soda

1 to 2 teaspoons liquid soap

for very large pets one quart of tepid tap water may be added to enable complete coverage.

He said wet the dog down well, and rub this in good, keep away from his eyes. let it soak for 5 minutes, try a little on the muzzle, have him fetch a ball, keep him busy. Rinse the ball each toss. Smell around, the odor will neutralize. Give him a good rinse off. When the coat runs clean, with the rinse, take that ball and throw it in the pool, that will take care of it. Any residue, the filters and the sun will take care of it.

Yeah it worked, there was a slight odor near the muzzle. A subtle reminder of don't mess with skunks.

The house aired out quite well, and no one was the wiser. But is was a hot two days.