Ask The Old Farmer's Almanac: What can I use on a dog that's been sprayed by a skunk?
Apr. 28, Monday — Last Quarter Moon. Businessman Oskar Schindler born, 1908. Charles de Gaulle, president of France, resigned, 1969.
Apr. 29, Tuesday — Moon at ascending node. Theta Xi, first professional fraternity, founded, Troy, New York, 1864. Actor Daniel Day-Lewis born, 1957.
Apr. 30, Wednesday — For the first time in its record-keeping history, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, experienced the month of April without a thunderstorm, 1989.
May 1, Thursday — Ascension. May Day. Conjunction of Uranus and the Moon. Gwendolyn Brooks became first African-American to win a Pulitzer Prize, 1950.
May 2, Friday — St. Philip. St. James. Artist Leonardo da Vinci died, 1519. The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial was dedicated, Washington, D.C., 1997.
May 3, Saturday — Invention of the Holy Cross. Saturn stationary. Nearly a foot of rain fell within eight hours in New Orleans, Louisiana, 1978.
May 4, Sunday — Actress Audrey Hepburn born, 1929. Love Bug computer virus caused billions of dollars in damages, 2000. He who gains time gains all things.
Tomato juice and vinegar
Q: Does the tomato juice remedy really work on a dog that has been sprayed by a skunk? If so, why?
— H. S., Norfolk, Va.
A: We haven't found anything that works 100 per cent, but tomato juice baths are definitely a top contender because of their price and effectiveness. Plus, you're more likely to find tomato juice in your cupboard than a commercial pet bath, unless you have become used to these springtime romps by Fido. During the cleaning process, wear rubber gloves, and use a basin to catch as much of the runoff as you can. It's best if you bathe the dog outside so that the odor doesn't spread to your home. Also, treat your dog as soon as possible — the longer you wait, the harder it will be to eliminate the odor. First, set the dog in the basin, wet its coat with warm water, and apply the tomato juice. (It's okay to dilute the tomato juice with water before you apply it.) Let the juice soak into the coat for a few minutes, and then rinse it off. You may have to repeat the bath one or more times for maximum benefit. If you have dog shampoo on hand, you may also want to give your dog a regular bath after this treatment. Even then, some residue smell is apt to remain for a few days.
If you don't have tomato juice handy, try bathing the pet with diluted vinegar, using either the white or apple-cider variety. Apple-cider vinegar is also a handy home remedy for dogs with itchy skin. Try rubbing a little on the itchy spot with a cotton ball. However, do not apply vinegar if the skin is broken, and avoid getting any vinegar in your dog's eyes.
As for why these remedies work, we assume that it's the acidity that helps to neutralize the skunk smell, which is essentially an oily musk scent. The tomato juice or vinegar cuts through the oiliness and helps to break it down, so that it can be rinsed away in the warm water.
Painting with sour milk
Q: How did the old-timers make paint before you could get it at the hardware store?
— M. H., Bascom, Fla.
A: Sour milk was one way. Slaked (hydrated) lime can be mixed with sour milk in the proper quantities so that the two neutralize each other, and then a colouring agent from any richly pigmented earth or clay can be added. If you wanted to try it yourself, we'd recommend the aid of some modern-day litmus paper, to test for neutrality. (Otherwise, it's trial and error, or old-fashioned know-how.) If the litmus paper turns red, add more slaked lime; if it turns blue, add more sour milk.
If you've ever seen the clay cliffs at Aquinnah on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, you know that clays can come in beautiful earth tones from purplish-red to grayish-blue. Any strongly coloured earth such as this can be boiled down in many rinses of water (bring to a boil several times), strained, and then pulverized to form a powdered pigment to add to the paint.
Accidental sunflowers
Q: Some of the sunflower seeds that we feed our birds during the winter take root in the spring and start to grow in our lawn. If I were to let them grow, would they survive transplanting?
— A. B., Sandy Hook, N.J.
A: Probably. However, for best results, you may want to wait until they're six to eight inches tall and then move them with a ball of soil around them. You will have to reseed those patches of lawn, but hey, what's a little less lawn when it comes to flowering plants?
If you can't keep your lawn mower away that long, you could try moving some earlier starts, but the longer you wait (until they're about eight inches tall), the better luck you might have. Be sure to give the transplants full sun in their new location, and, give them a good two feet between plants, especially if they're one of the large varieties. Sunflowers grown for bird food generally have heavy flower heads that can grow up to a foot across. The birds and squirrels will want to clean them out, just as they do your feeders, of course, but the flowers are richly coloured and rewarding to grow if you've got the space. The flower petals are edible as well, and they make a colorful addition to summer salads.
The Old Farmer's Almanac Weekly Riddle
Q: What do you call spiders that just got married?
A: Newlywebs.
Send your questions to: Ask The Old Farmer's Almanac, P.O. Box 520, Dublin, NH 03444. Visit our "Question of the Day" section at Almanac.com for more advice.
More Leisure
Search Articles
More CE Network Sites & Partners:
