Essential oils are used by millions of people every day, all across the globe. There are more than 90 “commonly used” oils, such as peppermint, lavender, tea tree, and sandalwood. Some of these oils are diluted and applied topically to your skin, while the majority are used through aromatherapy. Essential oils are commonly used to boost energy, battle anxiety and depression, and have even been stated to boost immunity and relieve stress. Sounds good right? Well, it turns out that essential oils can be dangerous for our pets! More and more stories have begun to surface about essential oils being harmful to pets. How do you know what is safe for your pet? Let’s break it down together.
Tea Tree Oil
One of the most common essential oils is tea tree oil. Unfortunately, tea tree oil is also one of the leading offenders when it comes to dogs reacting poorly to essential oils. Pet owners have been storied to have used tea tree oil to help their dog or cat with fleas. The oil being absorbed through the skin often causes a handful of dangerous side effects. After applying tea tree oil to their dogs, owners reported seeing signs of depression, paralysis of rear legs, vomiting, hypothermia, and irritated skin. These are serious issues and you MUST contact your vet as soon as you see your dog showing any of these signs.
European Pennyroyal
Another common oil, Pennyroyal, is extremely toxic for your dogs. It has been commonly used for decades as an insect repellant, and people have unsuspectingly used it on their dogs. Pennyroyal, when ingested by dogs, causes liver failure and is extremely fatal. If your dog comes in contact with Pennyroyal, get them in the car and to the vet immediately.
Every Dog Is Different!
There are many more essential oils used daily around the world, and the tricky thing is not all dogs react to these oils the same way. For example, some dogs are calmed tremendously by lavender, while others become anxious and overwhelmed by the sensation. It can differ by your dog’s breed, size, or age.
Their Nose Knows
As we all know, our dogs have much stronger noses than we do. Usually this is beneficial to them, but in the case of essential oils, it may cause problems. If you’ve used essential oils before then you know how just a few drops can make a huge difference. When using oils through aroma, if just two or three drops can have an impact on you, imagine how it could affect your pet. Dogs are said to have noses 40 times stronger than ours, meaning if you put two drops of oil into a diffuser, your dog smells it as 80 drops of oil. Start small, and build from there. Make sure your pet reacts positively to a certain essential oil before wafting the aroma all throughout your home.
We hope this was informative and helpful to start off the new year! As always, please use caution with your pets. We hate to see tragic stories like these, but felt the need to spread the word!
Sincerely,
The Lilly Brush Team
