Essential oils are naturally occurring aromatic compounds that come from different parts of plants. Essential oils need more research in pets, they can be both useful and harmful.
You want to make sure that you educate yourself on how essential oils can affect your pets before using them. You want to use oils from companies that are reputable and are of high quality. Make sure that you use the oils on yourself before you use them on your pets. Start out very slowly and use sparingly at first, and monitor their response. Keep in mind that some pets may be more sensitive than others and that cats can be more sensitive than dogs in general (birds are very sensitive to oils).
Always dilute the essential oils before use and watch for potential side effects, the amount and route of exposure will make a difference in any case. Highly concentrated oils may cause skin irritation if applied directly to the skin. Essential oils absorbed across skin may cause systemic effects depending on the type of oil and its concentration.
Things to look out for include:
- Wobbliness/Unsteadiness on the feet
- Muscle weakness or tremors
- Changes in behavior
- Lethargy
- Respiratory changes or difficulty
- Vomiting or diarrhea if they ingest the oils
- Redness of the skin where they were exposed (if topical)
- Low body temperature
Other cautions include:
- Never burn essential oils (It releases toxic components and particulates)
- Their noses are so much more sensitive than ours so what may seem like a small amount to us may be very strong to them
- If you are diffusing the oils you will want to ensure that it is in a place where your pet cannot knock it over, as well as keep it in an open space so that your pet can exit the room desired. Diffusing several drops over a few hours makes the place overpowering and can be too much for your pet
