When I let the dogs out the other night for the final time, I smelled the faint odor of a skunk. Since our yard is well-fenced, I wasn’t too worried about the skunk being able to spray Rhiannon and Gael, but it did remind me of a time when our first dog, Ginger, encountered a skunk.

We didn’t see it happen, but we smelled it when we let her in from outside. It must have been a glancing blow, because the smell wasn’t awful, but it was there. I sponged Ginger off with vinegar and that was the first and last time I ever had to deal with a skunky dog.

The old remedy used to be tomato juice, but I’ve heard that that just leaves you with a pink, smelly dog. I’m sure it helps some, but it also seems like it would be very messy. I can’t imagine how much tomato juice I would have needed to use on Ginger, who was a large dog. And then, I’d have had a juice-stained bathtub and very icky towels. I don’t remember where I heard about using vinegar, but it was certainly easy to use and cleaner. Of course, Ginger was not saturated with skunk oil, but had received only a light misting.

Since then, although I’ve never had to use it, I’ve learned of a much better mixture for eliminating skunk odor. Mix 16 ounces of hydrogen peroxide with two tablespoons of baking soda and one teaspoon of dishwashing liquid. You may need to wash your dog more than once, but this will eliminate the odor. Obviously, you may also need to mix a larger batch, depending on the size of your dog. I don’t imagine that 16 ounces will go very far on a great dane.

If you’re going camping, it might be a good idea to take these ingredients along, but you must take them separately, and not mix them together until you need them. This mixture builds up gases that can explode in a closed container.

If your dog is hit with skunk spray, he may run into your house and try to rid himself of the smell by rolling on your carpet, or rubbing against your furniture. Take care of your dog first. Then, when he’s relatively clean, you can think about the “eau de skunk” that has now permeated your home.

Anti Icky Poo seems to be the best product for removing skunk smell from carpets and upholstery. This product is not for your dog, but for carpet, drapes and furniture. One woman on my dog writers’ e-list can’t say enough good things about Anti Icky Poo and says that, unfortunately, she knows all about dogs meeting skunks.

Thinking about removing odors from dog fur made me think about other things that might get into your dog’s coat. Our dogs mostly stay in our yard, so there’s not much chance of them getting into anything sticky or gooey, but I did find some good advice on how to remove foreign substances from your dog’s coat without hacking away with a pair of scissors.

Most food will wash out with a bit of warm water and soap, but for gum, that just won’t work. If your dog gets gum in his fur, rub the area with peanut butter or vegetable oil and then work the gum out with your fingers. Or, you can freeze the sticky spot with ice cubes. If you decide to use the ice cubes, make sure you don’t hold the ice directly on your dog’s skin. Both peanut butter and ice will also help remove both road tar and tree sap.

There are two other products that can work to remove sticky stuff from fur, but they need to be used with care. One is hair spray. Soak the foreign material with hair spray, but be very careful not to get the spray in your dog’s eyes. Also, wash it all off once you’ve removed the gunk.

You can also use nail polish remover. Don’t apply the polish remover directly, but instead use a cotton ball or a bit of cloth to apply it to the mess. Wash the area thoroughly so that the remover doesn’t irritate your dog’s skin. Again, be careful the solution doesn’t get into your dog’s eyes.

We all hope our dogs’ coats will remain odor and goo free, but if not, maybe these remedies will help to get them back to normal without too much stress.