Air Fresheners and Pets

Let’s start at the beginning. The air freshener is a fairly new concept. Discovered in the late 1940s as a way of masking unpleasant odours, a pressurised spray in its day was quite revolutionary. In the 50s and 60s there was an explosion in the  use of his product mainly used to eliminate odours and for some to just create a nice acceptable aroma

This continued until the 80s, when we became aware of the potential destruction of the ozone layer by the use of chemicals used as a propellant in aerosols.

This led to what we have available to us today, candles, beads, oils, gels, plug-ins, fan air fresheners, diffusers, sprays, mist dispensers, and gravity drip, to mention just a few.

We use these things in our homes, particularly in the bathroom, in our cars, they are in offices and hotels. In fact, they are everywhere.

But how safe are they, particularly for our pets?

Well, it appears that we are in danger of causing damage to the health of not only ourselves as adults but also babies, infants and our pets.

We must be aware that where these products are concerned extreme care must be exercised in our choice of air fresheners. Some are highly toxic, and others reasonably safe.

Research shows that both cats and dogs can be adversely affected by plug-in air fresheners. It can be even worse for our pets than it is for us. Unfortunately, our animal beds are, in fact, much closer to the plug-in, as the majority of sockets are at ground level. Our animals are even more sensitive to smells than we are. Symptoms are coughing, sneezing, respiratory irritation, diarrhoea and vomiting. And of course, we should consider what long-term damage we are doing to our animal’s internal organs, particularly to the lungs, liver and kidneys.

There has been much research into what constitutes a safe product, and one of the concerns raised is the toxicity of some essential oils. The are some considered safe and some not so safe.

Reasonably Safe (according to some experts)

Lavender, Chamomile, Ginger, Rosemary, Bergamot, Frankincense, and Myrrh.

Not So Safe (according to some experts)

Pennyroyal, Wintergreen, Cinnamon, Clove, Citrus, Ylang-ylang, Juniper, Anise, Tea tree, Sweet birch, Thyme, Eucalyptus, Pine, Peppermint.

How about candles, you may ask?

Some candles are dog friendly if kept out of reach.

The safest will be candles made from natural products

Coconut wax, soy wax, beeswax and vegetable oil and the wick is cotton

The following ingredients are not so good.

Conventional candles are often made from paraffin, and when burned, they release carcinogens.

Some wicks have some lead in them which is an air pollutant.

Present in the soot of candles is benzene and toluene, both toxic.

Well, by now, you have got the point. Whatever you are using in the air freshener department, you need to check and double-check that the one that you have chosen is pet friendly. We must read labels and, when in doubt, ask the appropriate expert. There are suitable products, but they need finding. We must not be swayed by advertising that includes the words “natural”, “green” or “essential oil.” Yes, it might be genuine but is it?

Sadly “greenwashing” has become an industry all by itself, and we need to be careful when we see healthy, natural products being offered at bargain prices.

Finally, I suppose what we should all be doing is resorting to the use of only natural products like fresh flowers. Lavender is a prime example.