Is the smell of peppermint oil harmful to cats?

Cats are especially sensitive to many essential oils and even just a couple of licks can be harmful. Many essential oils, such as eucalyptus oil, tea tree oil, cinnamon, citrus, pennyroyal, peppermint, pine, sweet birch, wintergreen, and ylang ylang are toxic to pets.

Is peppermint oil safe around cats?

Many liquid potpourri products and essential oils, including oil of cinnamon, citrus, pennyroyal, peppermint, pine, sweet birch, tea tree (melaleuca), wintergreen, and ylang ylang, are poisonous to cats. Both ingestion and skin exposure can be toxic.

Why is peppermint oil bad for cats?

Essential oils can pose a toxic risk to household pets, especially to cats. They are rapidly absorbed both orally and across the skin, and are then metabolized in the liver. Cats lack an essential enzyme in their liver and as such have difficulty metabolizing and eliminating certain toxins like essential oils.

How toxic is peppermint to cats?

A few forms of mint, such as the pennyroyal, can cause very severe effects within the body including liver failure. Cats with existing liver, intestine or bowel disease are at a heightened risk of developing complications after ingesting mint. Contact with mint may cause skin irritation in hypersensitive cats.

What essential oils are safe around cats?

A few common essential oils that are SAFE to use for your cat include lavender, copaiba, helichrysum, and frankincense. If you diffuse oils in your home, it should not cause a problem for your cat, as oil used in a diffuser is highly diluted (versus direct topical application or dietary supplementation).

Is it safe to diffuse oils around cats?

“Diffused oils are very dangerous, as the oils are inhaled,” Bailey said. “Not only are these oil droplets dangerous themselves, but the inhalation of these oils can cause a foreign body pneumonia in cats.” Symptoms of respiratory irritation include a watery nose and eyes, drooling, vomiting, and difficulty breathing.

What essential oils are cat safe?

What happens if you inhale too much peppermint oil?

There are calcium and sodium channels in cell membranes throughout our bodies, and that is why we can see systemic toxicity after swallowing or inhaling concentrated amounts of menthol. Serious effects include seizures, coma, and death. Menthol can cause eye and skin irritation.

Can I use a diffuser around my cat?

Keep diffusers out of rooms where cats or other animals groom themselves. Diffusers and warmers put essential oils into the air, which can then land on a cat’s fur. Keep essential oils off cats’ fur and skin. Use diffusers and warmers in rooms without cats for short periods of time, and you should be OK.