Skunked!

In the wee hours of the morning yesterday, we were awoken by a smell. That is right, a smell so strong and so bad that it WOKE US UP. It was unmistakably skunky, but so strong that we had to be worried that maybe there was some kind of gas or chemical leak causing it - or (heaven forbid!) a skunk actually in our garage or something. We confirmed that the smell outside was at least as bad as the smell inside, and decided that there must be a skunk in the yard. So I went back to sleep with eyes watering and a headache brewing from the horrible smell. It wasn't any better when I woke up the girls for breakfast, and that is when I noticed Percy scratching at the patio door. His normally white front was streaked with yellow lines - by the looks of things he must have been sitting on that skunk when it sprayed him. And he wanted IN! I don't know, if he smelled that bad from the other side of the door, his chances of getting inside were pretty slim.

He eventually gave up and ran off somewhere for most of the day, I scoured the internet for getting skunk smell off of a cat. And apparantly, there aren't a lot of cats getting sprayed by skunks, because all the instructions and magic potions assume you're washing a dog. I have to think that a dog would probably be a more willing participant than a cat. What's all this about "leave on for five minutes" and "if smell persists, repeat several times..."

This is a cat. There are no 'repeats' when washing a cat. It needs to be a one-shot deal. Because after the first time you wrestle him into the tub, he KNOWS what's up and there is no way on earth he's going to allow it to happen a second time. And there is no 'leave on for five minutes'. Who exactly is going to hold a skunky wet angry writhing cat for five minutes? Certainly not ME!

Tonight, Percy finally returned home, bringing the smell with him. I had a rubbermaid tub full of warm water and baking soda/peroxide mixture and a bottle of "Skunk off" waiting in the garage for him. And DH went running for his mom's house, so he was no help whatsoever. I would have thought he'd stay just to make fun of me wrestling a stinky wet cat, but whatever. I can do this better without an audience.

Oblivious Percy wondering "Hey, what's with this pink tubful of water?"

It was wet, and disgusting and the smell was unbelievable. But we got the job done. I rubbed Percy down with the baking soda mixture BEFORE I put him in the tub, and he actually allowed it for the full five minutes. Being put into the tub was a whole other story, though. He completely lost his mind. I felt sorry for him but since the alternative was to shoot him and bury him in a deep hole far, far away - I was determined to hold him down long enough to get most of the smell off of him. Then I wrapped him up in a towel like a baby and we both worked at getting him dry enough to hang out in the garage overnight. There is nothing as pathetic as a wet cat.

Pathetic Percy vowing not to be friends with me anymore

Today, he's looking a lot fluffier and his white parts are whiter than they've been in years. He still smells a little bit skunky but it will have to do. Unfortunately our other cat Casey decided to hang out on the porch swing with skunky Percy all day yesterday - which is odd because usually they can't stand the sight of eachother. So Casey stinks too and he's going to need a bath when he gets home. He's not as fluffy or as stubborn as Percy is, so hopefully the worst is over.