Top 5 Essential Oils To Soothe Your Dog’s Skin

Essential oils can be safe for your dog’s skin as a natural home remedy for wounds or to soothe your dog’s irritated skin.

It’s going to happen at some point.  Your dog could be running around outside and comes in and you notice blood.

Or maybe you have a dog that’s prone to itchy, red, hotspots.

These are all frustrating problems, and many times the conventional drugs only treat the symptom and not the actual cause of the problem.

But you can use natural remedies, like essential oils, to help resolve these problems to keep vet visits down and reduce the risk of side effects from occurring.

Having a first aid kit at home for when things like this happen is important.

In this short video, I’m going to cover what my top 5 essential oils are to have in your first aid kit and how to safely use them with your pets.

 When should you take your pet to the vet:

Now here’s my disclaimer.

If you’re ever questioning whether you need to go to the ER, just do it.

It’s always better to be safe than sorry.

But here’s when you must take your pet to the vet:

• Any injury that fully penetrates the skin (like a bite wound – or those dang paw pad lacerations that happen on lawn edging)
• Any injury where the skin around the wound is red and puffy or involves a large portion of the body

How to Safely Use Essential Oils in Your Pets

Essential oils are naturally occurring, volatile aromatic compounds that come from the seeds, bark, stems, flowers and roots of plants.

They are very concentrated, which is why more is not better when using essential oils.

Did you know it takes approximately 8000 rose flowers to produce one 5ml bottle of rose oil?

Because essential oils are very concentrated, this is one of the many reasons why pets can get sick if essential oils are used inappropriately.

Learn more about how to use essential oils safely in your pets.

Top 5 Essentials Oils Safe For Dog’s Skin

Here are my top 5 essential oils that you need to have in your first aid kit for dogs:

• Helichrysum

This is one of my favorite oils, because it can literally be used in every condition.

It can help with blood clotting since it acts as an anti-coagulant but also helpful when there’s bruising.

By helping wounds heal faster and acting as a topical anesthetic, this essential oil is very powerful.

When you’re needing a natural pain remedy, like if you pet hurts itself or cuts themselves, helichrysum is often adequate used alone, but when used with copaiba and myrrh, their synergism together increases the effectiveness.

Another great way to use this oil is if you have a dog or cat that was recently in a trauma like a hit by car and has lung contusions.  You can diffuse this oil in an open room, and it will help their lungs heal.

• Melissa

Although this can be an expensive essential oil, the power that can come from a small amount of this oil is extraordinary.

It has a very high vibrational energy and is most likely the highest anti-viral substance available.  So if you have a kitty that is battling chronic herpes/upper respiratory infections or a dog with kennel cough, you need this oil.

You may also know this oil as Lemon Balm.  It can be used for a lot of conditions ranging from depression to anxiety to seizures to use for hives, as a replacement for anti-histamines.

And it’s super safe for both dogs and cats.

• Frankincense

Now if you were to pick one oil to have in your dog’s first aid kit, Frankincense should be there.

Frankincense is one of the most important and well used oils in the animal world.

It’s incredibly safe, well tolerated, versatile and effective.

This powerful essential oil is considered a life force oil and is used extensively in critical cases.

If you have puppies and kittens, this is an oil that you should start using in their lives right now.

But here’s the really neat thing with Frankincense, it also appears to magnify and enhance the effects of the other essential oils when used together.

This oil is incredibly safe, and can be used in dogs and cats neat, diluted, orally or diffused.

There are different species of frankincense that will affect the pets in different ways.  The more common form is Frankincense carteri but other forms can be used for deeper spiritual healing if needed.

• Copaiba

Next is copaiba which is another must-have.

It barely has any scent or flavor, which is really helpful if your trying to treat a finicky cat or a dog with a poor appetite.

Copaiba is one of the best anti-inflammatory oils, and my own patients have seen drastic improvements to their pain levels and have even replaced their NSAID pain drugs.

The part that I really like about using essential oils is that it doesn’t have to be one or the other.  You can use these alongside the conventional drugs.  And many times, you can get your pet off of the drug.

This incredible oil also magnifies the effects of the other oils that it’s used with.

Here’s a great pain relieving essential oil recipe that I recommend and is safe for your pets:

• 5 drops myrrh
• 5 drops helichrysum
• 5 drops copaiba
• Combined with 2 mls of carrier oil

You can apply this mixture directly to inflammation (like a bruise) or next to an incision site to aid healing and reduce the pain.

• Lavender

And finally, the incredible lavender oil.

This essential oil is one of the most adulterated and synthetically created essential oils on the market today, which is why many ask is lavender essential oil safe for dogs.

Unfortunately, very few brands are medical grade and would not be safe to use in animals due to the chemicals and adulterants that are used.  This is why I stick with a few brands since I know, trust and love them for my pet patients, like Rocky Mountain Oils, AnimalEO, Plant Therapy, and Young Living.

To learn more about essential oils and their safety for dogs and cats, click here.

When used appropriately, lavender is incredibly mild and can be used extensively for its antibacterial properties to reduce infection in wounds or for skin infections.

Lavender oil can be one of the best natural remedies for a dog hotspot home treatment to naturally soothe inflamed skin and avoid antibiotics.

Natural Home Remedy Treatments To Soothe Dog’s Skin

If you’re wondering what’s the easiest way to start, I really like the blends from Young Living for wound care.

• Animal Scents Ointment is a must-have in your first aid kit.

By combining the essential oils of Palmarosa, Geranium, Patchouli, Idaho Balsam Fir, Melaleuca, Myrrh and rosewood makes it a very powerful and healing blend.

You can also mix additional oils into this ointment for whatever purpose you’re using it form.  1 drop or more or the additional essential oil per tablespoon of ointment can be added and mixed in.

Fractionated coconut oil can also be used when you want to dilute further and apply to larger areas on your dog’s red, allergy skin or as a home remedy for wounds on dogs.

This is an awesome ointment to use if you have dogs that get those irritating fly bites to their ears in summertime.

• You can use the blend Young Living Purification mixed in and apply to the outer flaps of the ears to repel biting insects and also heal any scabs or wounds at the same time.

• Another amazing pre-made essential oil blend that is safe for dog’s skin is ClaraDerm from Young Living.

ClaraDerm is a soothing spray containing coconut oil, myrrh, tea tree, lavender, frankincense, roman chamomile and helichrysum.

It’s an amazing formula to help treat yeast infections, especially with vulvar infections (so conditions like vaginitis), around irritated anal glands, on itchy paw pads and anywhere else there are secondary skin irritations and infections.

If an areas needs to be dry, this formula is not recommended because of the coconut oil (for example with hot spots).

But if your dog has dry and itchy skin, then this a great pre-made formula to use on the skin twice a day.

• Lavaderm is another product that I’ve personally used on myself whenever I’ve gotten a burn from cooking oils or sunburn, and wow it’s incredible.

Acting as a cooling mist, it combines the healing benefits of lavender, helichrysum, and aloe vera into an amazing spray.

This blend works because it calms irritated skin and promotes tissue regeneration.

It is also great for use on burns or minor irritations and wounds.

How to Use Natural Remedies to Clean Your Dog’s Skin

And finally, you need something to clean the area or wounds first before applying these incredible essential oils. I love the Young Living Thieves blend, specifically Thieves cleaner.

Thieves cleaner can be diluted and used to wash any wounds.

If you prefer to use just a gentle cleaner, then using dilute castile soap is a great, safe option.

After cleaning the wound or irritated skin, then apply a wound healing ointment like Animal Scents ointment.

You can also use 5 drops of lavender and 5 drops of helichrysum in a 1 tablespoon of manuka honey for a good antibacterial and anti-inflammatory wound ointment.

If you'd like to learn more about how to use essential oils safely for your dog and cat, make sure to get our in-depth essential oil online course!

CLICK HERE FOR THE ESSENTIAL OIL COURSE FOR PETS!

In conclusion, essential oils are a very powerful healing tool when used appropriately.

Do not just go to the store and buy whatever essential oils are sitting there.

You need to ensure that the oils are not adulterated or synthetic and that you’re using the right dosages.

More is not better with essential oils.

This is why we see so many cases in which essential oils are toxic.

Essential oils are not toxic – they were used inappropriately which led to the problem.

With any of the above suggestions, I always recommend working with someone who can help guide you. Always test a small area first to make sure your pet tolerates it, or diffuse the essential oils in a water diffuser in an open room.

Essential oil brands for your pets we love and trust include:

• Young Living
• Rocky Mountain Oils
• AnimalEO
• Plant Therapy

Remember, you have the power to help your pet live a long and vibrant life – being here is the first step and I commend you for taking time to learn more to better your pet’s lives.

Together we can make the change that’s needed to help your fur family thrive naturally. 

*Disclaimer: This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice of your own veterinarian or doctor. Dr. Katie Woodley cannot answer specific questions about your pet’s medical issues or make medical recommendations for your pet without first establishing a veterinarian-client-patient relationship. Links in the description are typically affiliate links that let you help support the channel at no extra cost.