Peppermint Pups: Natural Ways to Keep Pests off Fido
February 04, 2011 • Health & Wellness •
By Carrie Boyko, All Things Dog Blog
Whether you’re looking to go sans top spot treatments for fleas and ticks, or simply want to keep the mosquitoes at bay, there are ways to combat the insect world, without adding poisonous toxins to your dog’s system. Besides saving Fido’s liver, you’ll also be helping to save the planet!
Interested in giving it a try? I speak from experience that these methods can work, having been going this route for 3 ½ years with my 3 dogs. We even managed to kill off a tick infestation brought home from a camping trip by using strictly peppermint oil solutions.
You may want to experiment with them to see what works best for you and your fido. Here’s a few ways to get started:
- Food grade DE (diatomaceous earth, found in natural food stores) is like shards of glass to a flea or tick. Sprinkle this fine, white, unscented powder onto your lighter colored dog’s coat just before going outside daily, and he’ll have a terrific way to fight off the insects that may try to invade his coat. One caveat—because this powder is white, it doesn’t do much for the appearance of a dark coat. I have found it better to use the essential oils (to be discussed below) on darker-colored dogs.
- If you like the idea of a powder, you may also enjoy adding another active ingredient that will give it an attractive scent—ground cloves. Mix this into your DE power before placing it into a sprinkle jar, and your Fido will smell like a pumpkin pie!
- Peppermint Oil mixed into water makes a wonderfully refreshing spray for your pup, as well as a great pest deterrent for windowsills and doorways—all those cracks and crevices where pests manage to squeeze inside. Rub this solution through your pup’s coat, taking care to avoid his eyes. Your friends at the dog park will want to know if Fido just ate a candy cane!
- Cedar oil sprays are available commercially, or can be made at home. I use NaturVet’s version that can be found on Amazon, as well as some pet supply shops. It smells wonderful and isn’t quite as strong a scent as the peppermint oil solutions.
- Citronella oil is also a great mosquito repellant, but avoid putting the oil directly on Fido’s fur, as it may burn his skin. The same goes for all essential oils. Dilute it into a spray, or sprinkle a little on his bandana as a barrier. Thanks to All Things Dog Blog’s Dr. Pat for that tip!
- You may be wondering about your yard and home. Won’t he still pick up some critters from areas that are not treated with pest control? Of course. But this, too, can be solved with natural products. I’ve switched over both my home and yard pest control to organic products that are largely natural oils and DE. These products are produced in various forms for different uses, and are not food grade, so you’ll still want Fido to stay off the grass until it is dry after a treatment. Beyond that, though, it’s safe for Fido and your kids to roll and play in your green yard. You’ll probably love the granular barrier your provider will likely place around your home; it’s also scented with the aromas of natural oils like peppermint, cloves and cedar. You can find a provider in your area with a simple Google search of “organic pest control” and “organic lawn treatment”.
Keeping the pests under control in your home and yard support the success of these natural solutions on your dog, making them much more likely to work as well as mine have. Got questions? I’ll be happy to share my experiences. Write me at LetsAdoptaDogPark@gmail.com. Happy tails!
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