Are Essential Oils Safe for Dogs?

In recent years, essential oils have become more and more popular, so it’s no surprise some dog owners want to know how they might incorporate them into their dog’s routine. Essential oils are often advertised as “natural” treatment options or even alternatives to traditional medicine, addressing everything from anxiety to skin conditions. But, as most savvy consumers have come to learn, “natural” doesn’t always equal “safe.” So, while there are ways to use essential oils safely with your dog, it’s important to also understand what risks exist.

Can Essential Oils Help Dogs?

Essential oils are highly concentrated liquids containing chemical compounds that are distilled from plants. Preliminary research suggests that these potent oils may have some health benefits for dogs as well as humans, and many holistic veterinarians incorporate essential oils into their practices.

Though a large body of scientific evidence does not yet exist about whether or not essential oils are effective at treating a number of illnesses in dogs, many owners are willing to try using oils to help with a wide range of conditions, from anxiety and skin problems to flea and tick prevention.

It’s important to note that while there can be safe uses for essential oils in formulations specifically for dogs, owners of cats and other pets (like birds or rodents) will want to consult with their vet before using any essential oils or essential oil products around their pets.

Safely Using Essential Oils for Dogs

Essential oils are potent, and when not used properly they can pose risks—both to people and pets. If you’ve ever used essential oils for yourself, you may already know that there are general rules and guidelines on how, where, when, and why to use them more safely. One of the most important guidelines is that essential oils should be diluted, usually by adding them to a neutral carrier oil or another commercially available formulation, like a shampoo or spray.

Applying undiluted essential oils topically can be irritating to the skin—yours and your dog’s. This is counterproductive for treating skin conditions and can just add to your dog’s discomfort instead of help. So, it’s always best to use expertly formulated, dog-specific products that incorporate essential oils at the right amount instead of using an essential oil directly without supervision from a veterinarian or professional aromatherapist.

In the form of an essential oil, the chemical compounds from plants can be rapidly absorbed into the system, whether by mouth or through the skin, and metabolized by the liver. As a result, using undiluted essential oils can be especially problematic for puppies and young dogs, small dogs, dogs with liver disease, or senior dogs.

Improper use of essential oils with dogs can cause behavior changes, adverse central nervous system effects, or respiratory problems—all of which can be serious. Some essential oils are not safe for dogs if ingested or applied to the skin at full strength, even if some of them can be used if diluted in a commercially formulated product, or in other contexts (like scent work) where they aren’t ingested or applied. This includes oil of cinnamon, citrus, pennyroyal, peppermint, pine, sweet birch, tea tree (melaleuca), wintergreen, and ylang ylang.

Even if an oil isn’t outright toxic, like lavender or chamomile, if your dog can reach an undiluted essential oil that’s been applied to their skin and licks it off, it can cause gastrointestinal upset. Always be sure that any essential oils or essential oil-containing products in your house are secured in a way that your dog (or other pets, or kids) can’t access them. If your dog does ingest any full-strength essential oils, contact your veterinarian or pet poison control immediately.

Considerations When Using Essential Oils With Dogs

It’s no secret that a dog’s nose is far more powerful than a person’s, so what smells potent to you is a whole lot more potent to your pup. This is a key consideration if you opt to use an essential oil diffuser in your home, for example. You may want to reserve it for a room where your dog doesn’t sleep or spend the majority of their time, and skip oils or blends that are considered unsafe.

You can consider other applications of essential oils that don’t involve ingestion or skin application, like applying a drop or two to a dog’s bandana or to a blanket. Lavender oil used this way can be calming or relaxing for some dogs. For enrichment activities, sweet birch, clove bud, aniseed, and cypress essential oils are all used as target odors for AKC Scent Work, applied to cotton swabs that are secured in containers for a dog to sniff out and find.

You may be considering using “natural” flea and tick preventatives as an alternative to flea pills, flea and tick topicals, or flea and tick yard treatments, but according to veterinarians, these can also be problematic. Some adverse reactions were reported when owners followed instructions for applying topical products to their dog’s skin, although most cases of toxicity likely resulted from products being used incorrectly. Since there is a lack of data supporting the effectiveness of these products, owners who use them as their main form of flea and tick prevention could be putting their dogs at risk for flea and tick-borne diseases, so look for products that don’t use unsafe oils, and talk to your veterinarian about the best way to incorporate essential oil-based flea and tick control into your dog’s overall prevention plan.