I learned a few new things this morning before my first cup of coffee:
There is a skunk in our apartment complex.
Mi perro fue rociado por una mofeta is how you say 'My dog got sprayed by a skunk' in Spanish.
Dishwashing detergent is the weapon of choice for bathing a skunked dog, mixed with hydrogen peroxide, and baking soda. https://www.humanesociety.org/resources/de-skunking-your-dog
It turns out it’s very hard to find a quart of hydrogen peroxide in Playa Del Coco, Costa Rica.
If your dog does get sprayed, don’t take them into your bathroom to wash them. It makes everything much worse.
Vinegar is your weapon of choice for the inside smells.
Febreeze Linen & Sky scent is helpful too
This morning, like every morning, I got up, got dressed, started coffee and grabbed the dogs for their morning constitutional. Since this is a quick walk just in our complex I don’t usually put Vera on a leash. The two dogs run down the stairs, find the closest bushes, do their business and run back up to get breakfast.
This morning Vera went around the corner, I heard a skuffle sound from the bushes and I called her. She came back to me quickly but something was not right. She's was shaking her head, licking her nose and white foam had starting dripping from her mouth.
We used to live on over 70 acres in Texas and the dogs had regular run-ins with snakes so that was my first thought.
Oh, no, what sort of crazy Costa Rican reptile has bitten my dog? I lean over to investigate and it hits me. It's a painful, thick, oily smell that burns the lining of my nose. She found a skunk.
All I can think is, she has got to be in pain and in a desperate attempt to help her I stop thinking clearly, grab dishwashing soap, and throw her in our shower. We have the kind of shower head that has a long hose attached so I can hose her off quickly.
After I get her face washed and wiped and see that she's ok I realize I've made a tragic, first-time-getting-skunked mistake. I brought her in the house.
To say our bathroom, bedroom, living room, kitchen, guest room smelled bad would be a tragic understatement.
Now Don's eyes are watering, he's gaging and has ended up dry heaving by the swimming pool. This has drawn the neighbors out of their condos to find out why there's a large American man by the pool with a cup of coffee making horrible retching noises.
One of our neighbors has dogs and has done this before. She grabbed a hose with a sprayer and gave it to Don.
"Here, use this outside. Don't take the dog inside!"
"Thanks," he said, "but too late, she's already been inside."
"Well, she'll need more washing so use this and do the other baths outside."
Don gave me the hose and I headed out for bath #2.
Between a quick Google search and help from FaceBook friends we found a sure-fire recipe for de-stinking the dog; dish detergent, baking powder and hydrogen peroxide. Easy-peasy lemon squeezy, right?
Nope, we need a quart of hydrogen peroxide. They only sell these little bottles that hold maybe 1/2 a cup. And even finding those is like trying to find a needle in a hay stack. In fact, we are no longer using that saying anymore. Now when we can't find something we say, it's like trying to find hydrogen peroxide in Playa Del Coco.
So, I've bathed the dog 3 times now, the last time in the magic sauce that is supposed to neutralize the stench. She's exhausted and frustrated, I'm exhausted and frustrated, and I think Don is terrified of the smell and may not come home for days.
I can shoot pictures, I can record video, but I really can't capture the smell so we'll just leave it at god-awful and move on.
It's been 4.5 hours and I have gone nose blind to it. I have all of the windows and doors open in the condo. I've mopped all of the floors 3 times, sprayed the walls, beds, doors, cabinets, chairs, and couch with vinegar and Fabreeze. I think it's better but I can't tell.
Everything that was in the bathroom or in our bedroom at the time of the ill-conceived shower has been washed with detergent and baking powder and is drying in the sun.
I just did the sniff test on Vera and she's much better but I can still smell it on her face, a little.
I still haven't seen Don. He's spent the morning racing around town on a hydrogen peroxide hunt and then mumbled something about an appointment with an insurance guy and finding a new place to live.
What a fun, adventurous day! This will be a funny story...in a few days, or a week or two, when the dog and condo stop stinking.
Sometimes you get to learn things the hard way and that's ok. Some lessons are just stinkier than others.
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