Spring is here, which means warmer weather and more outdoor activities. But getting out and about means coming face to face with mother nature. Spring is also the time when many wild animals are mating, which means they are more active and often more territorial. Should you find yourself in close proximity to some of these wild animals, give them a wide berth. Skunks in particular should be left alone in the wild. Their notorious defense mechanism is not something you want to encounter. However, if you have already been sprayed by a skunk, chances are you are looking for ways to get rid of the smell from your clothes, your hair, generally your whole person and whatever other things you may have had on you at the time. Below are some of our best tips for getting skunk smell off of you and your property.

You

Stop us if you have heard this one before, but if you have been sprayed by a skunk the first thing you should reach for is a can of tomato juice, right? Wrong. This is one of the biggest myths out there. You are welcome to try it; we certainly cannot stop you. But all you will be doing is making a new perfume for yourself of skunk and tomato. That is not the most appealing smell in our opinion, but who are we to judge? However, if you really want to get rid of the skunk smell from your person, make a paste of dish soap, baking soda, and hydrogen peroxide. Apply the paste to the area that was sprayed and let it sit for several minutes. Shower and repeat until the smell is gone.

Your House

If you have been sprayed and need to follow the above steps to get the smell off of yourself, do your best to do them without going inside. Skunk smell is very potent and will disperse throughout your home if you go inside. Any soft fabrics you have, like curtains, sofa cushions, bed linens, will naturally absorb those smells and hold onto them. But if you have to go inside, open up the windows to let the house air out naturally. You can also boil some vinegar in a pot on the stove to neutralize the skunk smell.

Your Clothing

Probably the easiest part of the process, removing skunk smell from your clothes is fairly simple but somewhat time consuming. Running your clothing through several wash cycles in the laundry will get the smell out. You can hurry the process along by adding white distilled vinegar to your laundry. To really make sure the smell is gone, air drying your clothing outside will help to fully eliminate the skunk odor from the fabric.

Your Pet

In much the same way you got the smell off of yourself, you need hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and dish detergent to get the smell out of your pet’s fur. Mix the ingredients in a bucket with warm water, and scrub, scrub, scrub. Once you have a good lather all over your pet, let the mixture soak into their skin for a few minutes before rinsing and repeating as necessary.

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