Dog Escapes Yard To Play With Skunk He Befriended

A couple in Western Maryland could hardly believe their eyes when a neighbor told them their dog was playing with a skunk and had video to prove it.

Redditor jsgornall shared the adorable, yet surprising, clip along with some details of how Oliver, a Yorkshire Terrier/Jack Russell mix, came out smelling just fine.

“So….Was woke up this morning to my wife telling me that Oliver, our dog, got out and was playing with a skunk!!! I would’ve never believed it until I went out to check the hole he got out through and he was playing with the skunk AGAIN!! Luckily the neighbors got a video,” jsgornall wrote.

It’s amazing to see Oliver and the skunk playing a game of chase with one another! The skunk does not evince any of the body language that a scared skunk would, plus the skunk did not spray Oliver. “No spray at all! He tried to go back to play a couple time,” jsgornall said of Oliver. “Doesn’t seem like this is their first encounter,” he added in a comment on reddit.

Oliver continued to hang out by the fence looking for his skunk friend. The skunk also wanted to continue to play because “it followed him after we separated them! Wanted to play more I guess,” jsgornall revealed.

It seems like Oliver has a special way with skunks because jsgornall shared that his two other dogs have been sprayed when they met skunks a few years ago.

“It is sooo much different than the smell of one in the distance or one that got hit in the road,” he said of skunk spray. “One [of my other dogs] got it in the mouth! I leaned down to check her and began uncontrollably vomiting in the driveway. It was horrible, and the whole time my wife was doubled over laughing on the other side of the glass door.”

Note: Click on the image below to start playing the video if it doesn’t auto-play.

So….Was woke up this morning to my wife telling me that Oliver, our dog, got out and was playing with a skunk!!! I would’ve never believed it until I went out to check the hole he got out through and he was playing with the skunk AGAIN!! Luckily the neighbors got a video! from r/aww

For those concerned, jsgornall wants to reassure everyone that Oliver is up-to-date on all his vaccinations (including rabies). Oliver’s encounter is very unusual! If your dog ever does get sprayed, tips for de-skunking your dog can be found here.