Following a scare where her dog was poisoned by an oil diffuser, dog owner Marianne Whyte, from Christchurch, New Zealand has taken to social media to tell other pet owners to be wary of essential oil use around their pets.
She wrote on Facebook, “Saturday night I got home late and my dog didn’t recognize me. Being a nanny I thought I woke him up and he was having a night terror. Sunday, he was still acting weird. I realized that I had been running my new diffuser and decided to turn it off.”
Whyte then added, “Sunday afternoon, he was feeling better. Today at work, my dog sitter said that he wouldn’t come out from under the bed. It was very odd as he is a happy dog. I came from work early and again, he was very confused about who I was.”
Dog Poisoned by the DiffuserSaturday night I got home late and my dog didn't recognize me. Being a nanny I thought I…
Posted by Marianne Whyte on Saturday, November 16, 2019
It wasn’t until a concerned trip to the vet’s office when Marianne learned that the tea tree oil she was putting into the diffuser is actually toxic to dogs.
“Thankfully the test showed that his liver was ok but we weren’t out of the woods yet,” she continued. “He was given fluids under his skin to get the toxins out. The vet and the poison control are saying that they see these cases often now that the popularity of essential oil is growing.”
Whyte is now warning others to, “Please make sure that the essential oils you are burning are not toxic for your pets.”
If you have an essential oil diffuser and you notice your dog (or cat) acting strangely then it is important to get them to the vet immediately.
