This Fourth of July, why not use essential oils to keep your dog calm, safe, and healthy. Â
Every year, dogs everywhere get the shakes, cower under beds and behind furniture, and many get out and run away because they are so scared of the loud sounds from the fireworks.Sound familiar?
The good news is, you can use essential oils to help keep your dog calm.Essential Oils are a natural option to calm and soothe.You won’t need to run to the vet to get a prescription medication to calm your dog.There aren’t side effects and essential oils don’t take a long time to wear off.Your dog won’t be knocked out and groggy.Just like us humans like to calm down with a lavender bath, the same tactic can help your dog be calm.
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There are many essential oils that are safe and calming for dogs.It’s important to know about how to safely use essential oils on your dog, so please be sure to read the section on essential oil safety for dogs.They are more sensitive than humans and we don’t want to hurt our fur babies.Having said that, essential oils are very safe for dogs when used correctly.
Essential oil safety for dogs.
It’s important to know about a few safety considerations to keep in mind when using essential oils on dogs.
Always dilute essential oil when using essential oils topically on dogs.I’ve got a dilution chart just for dogs that you can refer to.The smaller the dog, the more you will need to dilute an essential oil.Bigger dogs need less dilution.Just like humans!
Observe your dog’s behavior when using essential oils on him or her for the first time.
DO NOT use essential oils near your dog’s eyes, ears, nose, or genitals
Diffusers are absolutely safe to use around dogs.You want to be sure not to lock them in a room with a diffuser running.They should be allowed to leave the room in case the oil in the air is bothering them.They have an intuition and will know if it is bothering them and will try to leave.
Do not use topically on your dog if you are using another topical medication or dermal patch.
Only use Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade essential oils.NEVER use a fragrance only oil because these can do more harm than good.Generally speaking, inexpensive essential oils from your superstore are not safe to use, even though they make all kinds of claims stating otherwise.I’m not going to go into great detail here, but there has been extensive testing done on these, and even though they claim to be pure, they are synthetic and not true essential oils.You wouldn’t slather perfume all over your dog and hope it calms them, would you?Using these so -called essential oils is no different.This is why I only use doTERRA.
Essential Oil Dilution for Dogs
Dogs under 20 lbs – 1 drop to 1 Tbsp/15ml
Dogs over 20 lbs – 1 drop to 1 tsp / 5ml
Dogs over 75 lbs – 1 drop to 1/2 tsp
*Mix your oil and store in an empty mason jar or reuse an empty oil bottle
How to Use Essential Oils on your Dog
The main thing to do here, is let your dog choose the essential oils he or she prefers.
You can do this by holding the bottle of essential oil out to them, with the cap on and watch his or her behaviour.
If they turn away, wipe their face, or even run away, that’s not the one for them.Dogs can smell the essential oil even with the cap closed.
Once your dog has chosen an essential oil, you can use the oil on your dog in the following ways:
Add a drop of diluted essential oil to your hands and pet your dog along their spine.
After petting your dog, hold your hand out and they may like it so much they lick it off your hands.This is fine – as long as you are using a doTERRA essential oil that is safe for internal use.(The label will have supplement facts on it.If no supplement facts are on the label, it’s not safe to use internally).
Diffuse the essential oil your dog has chosen throughout the day.
You can add a drop to your dogs collar, blanket, or pillow.I have frequently added a drop of Lavender to my dog’s collar and it mellows her anxiety instantly.
Calming Essential Oils Safe for Dogs
There are several essential oils you can let your dog choose from.Here are a few suggestions:
Dawn Goehring is the founder of Desert Naturals where she writes educational articles on essential oils, DIY’s on natural beauty products, homemade cleaners, and provides related essential oil accessories like planners, trackers, tshirts, and custom designed essential oil storage. She has been featured in articles on Porch.com, Redfin.com, MommyOnPurpose and more.
Dawn has earned an aromatherapist degree and has earned a doTERRA essential oil specialist certification which is a fancy way of saying she has learned a lot about the chemistry of essential oils and how they work in the body.