Tea Tree Oil Scare

[beasleymom]

At the suggestion of one of my friends who is into organics and herbal remedies (and has used several with her own skin AND fur kids) I had rubbed a couple drops of tea tree oil on the back of Beasley's neck/behind his ears to help with some of his itchiness as we transition into the winter. Mister B. and I hunkered down to watch Dallas & Philly on MFB as we do every Monday night and everything seemed fine.

This morning we woke up and he could not move his rear legs and could not even get himself up from a down to a sit or even think about getting off the bed. He wouldn't even move for peanut butter or bits of chicken breast I'd baked last night. Beasley never turns down treats so I knew something was wrong.

Did a search on tea tree oil on the internet and found out that it CAN (and I'm not saying ALWAYS) be dangerous to cats and dogs - depends on how much they come into contact with, the strength of the oil, and the animal in general. I'm thinking, "Oh great, I've done something horrible to my baby". Luckily my vet is open early and took him in straight away. He was able to move some but would stumble around like he'd been out partying. Seemed somewhat disoriented but definately had no control over his back legs.

Other than his motor skills, the other neurologicals appear normal, temp is fine, heart rate is normal. He's on IV fluids right now to try and flush the toxins and they're gonna give him a good rinsing to get rid of anything on the surface that hasn't had a chance to absorb, although most of it already has.

We'll see how he progresses and hopefully there's no permanent damage. I feel so bad that I did this to him but trust me it was TOTALLY unintentional - I thought I was helping him.

I just wanted to post this because some of our babies are more sensitive to things (even the ones that are organic/natural/holistic) than others.

 

[magoo's_mama]

Hmm Magoo uses a tea tree oil dog shampoo and has never had any problems. I think I'll still switch his shampoo though. Thanks for the warning. I hope Beasley feels better soon!

 

[beasleymom]

I'm pretty sure this is just a 'Beasley' thing...he's allergic to a lot of things and I was using the straight oil. I'll would imagine as just one of the ingredients in a product like a shampoo (and especially one formulated specifically for dogs/animals) it would be far less hazzardous. I think a lot of it depends on your animal and if they've had exposure to it previously without incident. This was the first time I'd used it with Beasley.


BTW, your Magoo is SUCH a cutie!!!

 

[Lizzie]

I had no idea that T-Tree oil could be toxic to dogs until I read an article in the latest New Zealand Kennel Gazette - I can't remember exactly why it is, but when I get home (I'm at work at the moment!) I will look it up and post again.

 

[ROMMEL'S MOM]

Hope Beasley's feeling better. I use Tea tree oil for things for myself. Never thought since it's natural that it would hurt my baby. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[Lizzie]

In a letter to the editor in the October 2004 issue of the New Zealand Kennel Gazette a woman described how her dogs (bullmastiffs) couldn't use their legs, were shaking, disoriented, appeared to to high and not in control of their bodily functions. She did a search on the net and found the following:

"Tea Tree Oil Toxicity....
Tea Tree Oil contains 50-60% terpenes; toxicity is similar to other essentials oils such as eucalyptus oil. Toxicosis in humans has resulted from ingestion of 0.5 to 1 cc of tea tre oil per kilogram of body weight. Cats may be more sensitive to this toxicosis than dogs, but tea tree oil toxicosis has been reported in humans, rats, dogs and cats.

Most patients have clinical signs of central nervous system depression. Dogs and ctas with tea tree oil toxicosis will appear weak, obtruded, uncoordinated, ataxic, and usually have muscular tremors. Cats may exhibit signs of liver damage and could die as a result. Toxic components are fat soluble and rapidly absorbed via the skin and GI tract. There is no antidote. Treatment involes general detoxification, supportive care, bathing with mild detergents, using activated charcoal if ingested."

I am so glad that Beasley is fine now. I have to admit that I tossed out the bottle of tea tree oil that I have once I read this letter to the editor.

Liz

 

[beasleymom]

Lizzie,

Thanks so much for posting that info from the New Zealand Kennel Gazette. Beasley had ALL of those symptoms of toxicosis and I will never use the stuff again. He was so much improved after a day of TLC at the vet with his IV fluids, complete bath, etc. He's back to his normal silly self and I'm both relieved and grateful for this.

 

[TYS0NSM0MMA]

That happened to me too!

I thought something was wrong with Sable, I had used 2 drops diluted on her and the next morning the EXACT same thing, I rushed her to the vet and did blood work and everything and nothing came up. Thanks for clairifying what it was! I feel so bad, I had no idea, I used it on Tyson once and no problem but I will keep it for use on myself now only.

I feel better that I know what it was now.
Thank you ever so much for this post!

Colly

 

[lafsalot]

Common Herbs That Are Dangerous

Was freally surprised to hear about the adverse effects of tea tree oil. Did a search and found that these are also dangerous ~

Common herbs that are potentially dangerous for use in animals

Pennyroyal (very toxic to dogs and cats)

White Willow bark (salicylates may be toxic to cats)

Garlic (Heinz body anemia)

Tea Tree oil (VERY toxic to cats and small dogs)

Ma Huang (cats have idiosyncratic reactions)

Comfrey (cause liver damage)

Hops (in greyhounds

Contraindications for herb use

Pets with these conditions may have serious short- or long-term reactions to the indicated herbs, unless properly prescribed by your veterinarian. These are precisely the herbs that are used in treatment of some of these conditions—this is why it is important for a veterinarian to make the decision about whether the herb is appropriate for your pet.

Kidney disease: caution with dandelion, parsley

Heart disease: caution with motherwort, hawthorn, goldenseal, oregon grape, barberry

Autoimmune disease: caution with echinacea, reishi, maitake, astragalus

Liver disease: caution with dandelion

Thyroid disease: caution with kelp, bugleweed

Certain herbs should not be used if your pet is on the following medications, unless prescribed by your veterinarian:

Steroids: Prednisone, Medrol, Dexamethasone

Cardiac drugs: Digoxin, Enalapril, Norvasc, Lotensin, ateno etc

Diuretics: Furosemide, spironolactone, Diazide

Central Nervous system drugs: Elavil, Buspirone, clomipramine, phenobarbital

Hormones: diethylstilbestrol, thyroxine

Antibiotics: sulfa drugs

Diabetic/hypoglycemic drugs: Insulin, glipizide, acarbose

Aspirin

Chemotherapy agents

Anti-inflammatories: Etogesic, Rimadyl, phenylbutazone

Bronchodilators: Theodur/theophylline

And probably many more!

Herbs that may have interactions with certain drugs:

aloe, garlic, horsetail, cascara, ginger, kava, senna, ginseng, khella, black cohosh, lavender, licorice, buchu, ginkgo, mistletoe, bugleweed, goldenseal, pau d'arco, cats claw, gotu cola, red clover, dandelion, green tea, St John's wort, dang qui, hops, valerian, and many chinese herbal combinations

 

[ulbsterx]

dangerous herbs?

Lafsalot'
Where did you look up the info that you posted re: dangerous herbs? I would love to read that myself.
Thanks!