3 Skunk Spray Types

Type 1

This skunk spray is the most common of the three. It is the most familiar to most people and is recognizable usually during the late spring and summer months. It is undeniably a “skunk” smell. It is not, by most people’s opinions, the worst smell. By example and comparison, the smell of rotting fish or animal, is far worse and vastly more objectionable than the smell of summer skunk spray. Some of my clients have quietly admitted to me that they do not mind the smell and some occasionally have admitted they like it.

Type 2

Type 2 skunk spray mostly occurs during mating season which normally commences right after the first relatively warm day in January or early February. This is an objectionable smell and quite offensive. Type 2 Skunk Spray possesses a concentrated smell reminiscent of rotting garlic and rotting cabbage or sauerkraut. It is much more concentrated and can induce vomiting and nausea in many people. 

When a dog, which has been sprayed by Type 2 Skunk Spray enters a house, the odor at first is delayed and not recognized. Frequently, people say that they could not at first identify the odor as skunk spray until it decompressed and became more aerated. The odor is thick, pervasive and will spread through a house rapidly.  

It is our opinion that Type 2 Skunk Spray occurs because the animal is coming out of dormancy and its oils have started to anaerobically ferment in their bodies. This fermentation seems to concentrate the chemical components of the skunk oil and the odors are much more pronounced.

Skunkmasters has mastered the techniques of mitigating, managing and neutralizing Type 2 Skunk Spray.

Type 3

Type 3 Skunk Spray builds upon Type 2. It is vastly more concentrated than Type 2 and when sprayed upon a dog or against the foundation of a house, as it frequently is during mating season, the homeowners at first cannot identify this odor. Once they do, their first reaction is often to call the local gas company or the fire department because the odor is like a natural gas leak, a burning tire or an electrical fire. 

This type of Skunk Spray is clearly the worst experience a homeowner can have. Some have had to abandon their homes for weeks and months. Others try to cover it up in vain. These skunk spray attacks do not respond to traditional air fresheners or deodorizers. 

In fact, our constant experience is that all forms of masks and deodorizers simply prolong the skunk odor. When a dog is hit by a Type 3 skunk spray, Skunkmasters can neutralize the odor on the dog’s body very quickly. Similarly, if there is Type 3 skunk Spray in a house, we can mitigate and neutralize it safely and effectively within 30 minutes.