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Essential Oils

Here I will go over the basics of essential oils for your pet. From the initial introduction to your pet to how to apply to topically.

Essential oils are concentrated compounds extracted from aromatic plants to capture that plant’s scent, flavor and natural benefits. You’ll find these highly potent compounds in a plant’s seeds, flowers, bark, roots, leaves, stems, rinds, fruit and resin. Essential oils have many benefits depending on the scent you choose. For example, Lavender oil includes elements that make it effective for soothing skin irritations, and promoting a restful environment for sleep. Meanwhile, when taken internally, Frankincense oil is known to support immune, nervous, and digestive systems, and aids in healthy cellular function.

There are three primary ways that essential oils can interact with your body: aromatically through the olfactory nerves, topically through the skin and internally through ingestion. Not every oil is suited for skin contact without diluting the oil first, and only certain oils are safe for ingestion. Always check the label instructions to see which method is best with the specific oil you’re using.

You love to share essential oils with your family, so it makes sense that you want to share them with your pets as well! Before you begin using essential oils for pets, you need to know a few important things:

It is important to note that animals cannot tell us if something is working or not, so it is our duty to exercise due caution and approach using oils on animals safely and responsibly.
Please note that these are general recommendations for use. If your veterinarian suggests other usage, defer to your veterinarian. If your pet is pregnant, nursing, or has a medical condition, consult a veterinarian prior to use.
Do not use essential oils on and around cats or dogs under 8 weeks old because they are developing at fast rates; it is easy to mess up the proper dilution for each breed.
Animals are generally more sensitive to essential oils than humans are. It’s best to heavily dilute essential oils and use them in moderation.
Every animal is different, so carefully observe how your animal responds to essential oils. Use common sense and good judgment as you try different methods.
Be especially careful to not get essential oils in an animal’s eyes.
If diffusing, always allow access to areas where they can avoid the diffused oil.
With all animals, avoid using high-phenol oils—such as Oregano, Wintergreen, Clove, Mountain Savory, and Thyme.

How to introduce essential oils to your pet.

Intuitively we all know what is best for our being at any particular time. Sometimes it just takes a bit to listen to ourselves and trust our intuition. This also applies to our pets. Dogs are highly intuitive and energetic beings. They are very tuned in to their human families and instinctually want to create a calm and productive family/pack/herd.

Dogs have an incredible sense of smell. They have 300 million olfactory receptor cells vs. humans 5 million The interesting thing about dogs is not only can they smell physical issues in humans ( cancer, seizures, diabetes) They can also smell emotions. Each emotion has a different scent; fear, sadness anger. So when you come home from your day they know exactly how you feel. I mention that because essential oils as you know can help change emotions or allow a release that will facilitate that change. So it is important that you allow your pup to pick his oils as he or she knows better than an anyone, what will help them balance out.

Choice and permission are really important as we want the oils to make your pup feel better and not trapped or overwhelmed. Dogs have great memories so if they have a bad experience it will be a lot harder to get them back on board.

Your pets may need some time to adjust to the new scents and sensations of essential oils. Use these tips to introduce your pets to essential oils in an easy and comfortable way, and your pets may come to love the oils as much as you do

Wear essential oils throughout the day, so your pets will be exposed to the aroma as you hold them, play, or cuddle on the couch. See what kind of reaction you get.
Diffuse essential oils in spaces where your pets like to relax. Keep in mind that dogs tend to stay in a room with their owner even if something is bothering them. Closely watch for signs of irritation—such as whining, sniffing, nervousness, and excessive scratching—while diffusing around them. Be sure your pet can get up and leave if they want.
Apply an essential oil to your hands and let your pets smell them, so they can explore the scent on their own terms.
If your pets are jittery or resistant to essential oils, try applying an oil to yourself and staying near the pets for several minutes, so they can get used to the aroma.
Open the lids a bit and let them sniff each one individually, no more than three at a time so they don’t get overwhelmed, See which ones they are drawn to. Usually if your pet likes them they will come closer and get a stronger whiff and they may even try to lick the bottle which may or may not taste good so up to you.

How to apply essential oils to your pet

So before we start let me just say this every person and every pet is different. For instance some people can eat an entire bag of peanuts no problem some people just smell peanuts and go into anaphylactic shock.

You know your pet the best. Some dogs love oils, some not so much, so take your pet into account and use this info accordingly. If you haven’t used oils on your pets before start really slowly and pay attention to details and their reactions. Less is always more so start really slow and you can always build up to a higher tolerance. The oils are amazing and also very powerful which is a good thing unless you over do it. Think one glass of wine vs one whole bottle or one square of chocolate vs the entire bar.

First introduce the oils. Once your pets are used to essential oils, they’ll better handle topical application. When you have established which oils they like that day, then there are a few ways you can apply. So keep these tips in mind as you experiment with using essential oils on your pets:

For easy and comfortable application, rub oils between your own hands until they are no longer shiny and then apply by stroking the animal. We recommend applying to the back for dogs
For easier application in large or hard-to-reach areas, you can create a spray. This allows for good dilution & it will absorb but not be oily or sticky. Add a few drops of the oil to a spray bottle. For example, let’s say we are going to make a flea prevention spray; In a 4 or 8oz spray bottle put 2 drops lavender, 2 drops purification, 2 drops peppermint, 2 drops citronella and add water. This is one of many flea prevention recipes. Then you can spray on your hands and rub into your dogs fur. Most dogs don’t love being sprayed, which is why I suggest putting it on your hands. If your dog doesn’t mind being sprayed than just spray on and rub it in. Same if you have an anxious pup, see which calming oil they like and you can spray it on their favorite bed or blanket and of course you can spray it on your hands and pet them start at the top of their head and pet down either side of the spine that allows the oils to get in and also pulls that energy down and out of their head.
For applying with a carrier oil I have attached dilution ratios below, so refer to that or one that you may prefer. I am always erring on the side of caution so it may differ from others. It is important to know that diluting the oils does not make them less effective or powerful it just slows down the absorption time so it creates less of a heat/red response on the skin.
Your animal’s size affects the amount of oil you should use and how much you should dilute for topical application.
For cats, small dogs, and other smaller animals, use a carrier oil to dilute the essential oil before application. We suggest a 9:1 ratio of carrier oil to essential oil.
For medium sized dogs dilute 4:1 carrier oil to essential oil.
If you’re using essential oils on medium-sized animals—like large dogs—dilute 3:1 carrier oil to essential oil.
If your pup does have a reaction always add more carrier oil to soothe never add water. Coconut oil is great to use for skin irritations and hot spots. It has antimicrobial, antibacterial, and antifungal properties.
Certain oils can be applied “neat” just the oil but if you are just starting to use these on your pup I would dilute until you figure out his or her tolerance.

How can essential oils help your pet?

• Mental well being
• helps with anxiety, everyday stress, helps to calms your pet

• Physical Issues from sore muscles to strains and sprains

• Eases tummy issues and digestion problems

• Great for any Senior Issues

• Flea Prevention

• Eases all types of skin sensitivities

• Helps in recovery after physical or traumatic events

• Great for Animal athletes ie dock divers and agility dogs

• Use for overall balance and well being for your pet