Air
Fresheners
Cinnamon and Cloves: Boil these spices for a fragrant smell.
For ease of cleaning, make a cheesecloth bag to contain these
spices, and boil the cheesecloth bag. An excellent alternative when
entertaining is to steep spiced tea or cider.
Essential oils are ideal for creating effective, all-natural
fresheners for the entire house. The air freshening qualities of
lavender, eucalyptus and tea tree cleanse and freshen homes that are
shut tight during colder winter months. Simply place one ounce of
water in an atomizer and add 12 drops of your favorite aroma.
Shake well and spray into the room to mask unpleasant odors and
introduce pleasant, enjoyable and healthy aromas. Make small batches
frequently to ensure freshness.
Try these two room sprays which feature tea tree oil. Mix the oils
in one ounce of water in a spray mist bottle. Shake well and spray
fragrance in the air or in a specific area such as a bathroom or pet
area.
Pet Blend
8 drops cedarwood oil
4 drops tea tree oil
Deodorizing Spray
6 drops bergamot oil
1 drop tea tree oil
5 drops lemon oil
Aloe Vera for
pet first aid
Aloe Vera, also called the medicine plant or the burn plant, has
long been recognized for its ability to sooth damaged skin. It makes
a good choice for pets because it provides temporary relief on
contact for hot spots, bites, clipper burns, and many other skin
irritations that our pets may occasionally experience. Aloe Vera is
also non-toxic, so we needn't worry about our pets ingesting it if
they lick their sores.
Which brings us to the second reason why aloe is a good choice: it
has a bitter taste. Thus, an application of Aloe Vera may discourage
your pet from licking at the irritated skin. Licking can slow
healing, so any easy ways to discourage licking are welcome.
Females in
Season
If your bitch is in season, and you are not planning to mate her,
you can give her liquid Chlorophyll (from the Health Shop).
Start with 5 mls and increase it daily to about 2 caps full daily
for a medium size dog. Some handlers have succeeded in masking the
oestrus odour by giving the female chlorophyll tablets at the first
sign of the heat cycle. It is believed to take the stress off any
male animals when the female oestrus odour is "masked".
Chlorophyll has been found to be non-toxic, soothing to body tissues
and safe for use by people of all ages and animals.
Blood
Sponge fresh blood stains quickly with a mixture of one tablespoon
of salt in two cups of cold water, then with an ammonia solution.
Wash in cooler water than usual. Old stains should be soaked in a
hydrogen peroxide or ammonia solution (one part to eight parts of
water), then wash in detergent with a few drops of ammonia added.
Carpet: For carpet or mattress, apply a thick paste of raw starch
and water, allow to dry, then brush off.
Burrs in Coat
Brushing out a burr is not always possible, but there is another
way, as opposed to just hacking it out in a chunk. It still cuts it
out, but in a less traumatic way for your dog's coat.
Take a sewing seam ripper, and pick the hairs around the burr until
it can be pulled out.
To prevent burrs from becoming encased again, a spritz with mink-oil
conditioner will keep his coat nice and slippery, and any burrs will
brush out easily. You can buy mink-oil conditioner from most
groomers.
Carpet Spills
and Stains:
For problem wet areas, blot up spill, sprinkle on Borax to cover
area, let dry and vacuum.
Cedar Chips
Cedar chips are a great repellent for fleas, ants, mice, ticks. Use
some around the outside of the house. Outside it helps keep
away ants, mice, and ticks.
In the garden use it repels Japanese beetles, and some other
insects. I use cedar chips around my roses bush. It wouldn't bloom
for years. I used some chips and the next spring my rose bush was
full of blooms!
Colloidal
Silver uses
Colloidal silver reportedly kills bacteria, viruses, fungus and
yeast and was used as an antibiotic as long ago as Roman times. Some
references also state that Colloidal Silver may stimulate the body’s
immune system or work in alliance with it. Colloidal Silver has
become popular once more as people, worried about the ever growing
use of antibiotics, seek an alternative.
Take a look at the many different and varied uses for Colloidal
Silver in everyday health and hygiene:
-
Spray pet
bedding and let dry
-
Dab on cuts,
grazes, rashes, sunburn and razor nicks
-
Mix a little
into your pet's drinking water, birdbaths and cut flower
vases
-
Help reduce
tooth decay, mouth sores and bad breath. Colloidal Silver is
said to work by eliminating bacteria deep in throat and on back
of tongue.
-
Add to human
and/or pet shampoos to gain disinfectant benefits
-
Add to
suspected drinking water when travelling or camping
-
Spray onto
burns for rapid healing without scarring.
-
Use to
sterilise any household items like toothbrushes or washing up
brushes
-
Spray on
rubbish to prevent decay odours
-
Use on kitchen
cloths and sponges to wipe down worktops and cutting
boards
-
Dab onto
acne
-
Spray in
shoes, between toes, on skin to give relief to skin itches,
athletes foot, fungi etc.
-
Add to bath
water, gargle and nasal spray.
-
Aids recovery
from colds, flu, pneumonia, respiratory infections and viruses
-
Eye and ear
infections, warts and some moles vanish (put on plaster and wear
overnight each night until gone)
-
Use with
cotton buds on fingernail, toenail, and ear fungi
-
Spray
refrigerator, freezer and food storage bin interiors
-
Use routinely
in laundry final rinse water and always before packing away
seasonal clothes
-
Spray plant
foliage to help prevent plant diseases like mould and rot
-
Wipe telephone
mouthpieces, pipe stems, headphones, hearing aids, eyeglass
frames, hairbrushes and combs
-
Excellent for
nappies and nappy rash.
-
Wipe around
toilet seats, bowls, tile floors, sinks, door knobs
-
Kills
persistent odours
-
Rinse
invalid's pillowcases, sheets, towels and bedclothes
Unlike
pharmaceutical antibiotics, Colloidal Silver is said to never allow
strain-resistant pathogens to evolve.
Disinfectant:
Homemade, Non-Toxic
Fill an empty spray bottle with a mixture of 1/2 cup white vinegar,
1/4 cup rubbing alcohol and remainder with water. After the dogs
finishing eating, pick up their bowls and water dish, and spray the
area with this mixture. The small amount of alcohol dissipates
quickly and the vinegar acts as a natural non-toxic disinfectant.
Wipe with paper towel. Area is clean and non-toxic.
Dry Skin
A simple way to treat dry skin is to add a complete oil to your
pet's diet. Corn, safflower, peanut, and sunflower are examples of
oils that contain all the essential fatty acids. Your cat can take
about one-half teaspoon with each meal. Dogs can be given one to
three teaspoons with each meal, depending on size. But remember that
more is not better since oils are quite fattening.
Ear Mites
An oil and vitamin E mixture can help to smother the little buggers
that have taken up residence in your pet's ears. Blend one-half
ounce of almond or olive oil and 400 I.U. of vitamin E (from a
capsule) in a dropper bottle and then warm the mixture to body
temperature by immersing it in hot water.
To administer the drops, hold your pet's ear flap up and put about
half a dropperful in the ear. Then massage the ear canal well enough
so that you hear a fluid sound. Once you've massaged the area for
about a minute, you can let your pet shake her head. After she's
finished, gently clean out just the opening of the ear with a cotton
swab to remove any extra oil or debris. You should apply the oil in
three treatments, once every other day during a six-day period. Make
sure to store the mixture at room temperature with the lid tightly
capped.
Ear Scratching
Keep dogs from scratching their ears - with a clean, soft cloth
dipped in diluted vinegar wipe around the area that is being
scratched.
Easy Clean Up
Try zippered plastic sandwich bags to clean up after your dog. Turn
inside out, pick up waste, turn outside out, zip shut and dispose.
Flea repellents
Try mixing some garlic into their food beginning early in the
season.
Make a simple lemon mixture by slicing a lemon into boiling water
and letting it stand for a day. Spray the liquid onto the coat two
or three times a week.
Avon Skin-So-Soft works well mixed with water and used as a spray.
Fleas and mange
Add a little vinegar to your pet's drinking water to fight fleas and
mange.
Fly Repellent
2 cups vinegar, 1 cup Avon Skin So Soft, 1 cup water, 1 tbsp.
Eucalyptus oil, 1 tbsp citronella oil - Put in a spray bottle and
spray dog's coat.
Healing oil
Anoint small cuts and abrasions on your pets with tea-tree oil -
they will leave the wound alone while it heals.
Hitting the
bottle
When puppies are feeling the heat of summer, freeze small bottles of
water and put them in the pet enclosure. The pups drape themselves
over the bottles and seem much relieved by the coolness.
Homemade
Topical Treatment
(use it when you go out once a day or if in the woods, more often).
Use a glycerine base and to it add, lemongrass oil, grape seed oil,
eucalyptus oil, citronella oil, and a capsule or two of Vit E for
preservation. All the ingredients can be obtained at the Health Food
Store locally. Works on fleas, ticks, chiggers and black flies.
Hot Spots
Hot spots can lead to serious illness in dogs. They can be caused by
allergies to chemicals, food, fleas and other substances, but fleas
seem to be a primary source. This recipe has proven effective for
many dogs suffering from Hot Spots.
3 capsules Sage
¼ teaspoon Epsom Salts
2 cups of Water
Combine all ingredients and bring this all to a boil.
Cool to room temperature and then strain out the powdered Sage.
Store in a 2-cup spray bottle or jar in the refrigerator to keep
fresh.
Spray or wipe on hot spots, insect bites, or any other skin
abrasions as many times a day as possible.
It heals in about 3 days, and you should begin to see some hair
regrowth in a little over a week.
Houseflies
1/ Sprinkle dry soap into garbage cans after they have been
washed and allowed to dry; it acts as a repellent.
2/ Place tansy near your kitchen door or where flies tend to
cluster. Other repellents include oil of cloves and mint
springs.
3/ Set a sponge in a saucer and soak it with oil of lavender
to repel flies.
4/ A pot of basil set on a window sill or table will help
reduce the number of flies in the room.
Insect bites
Mix water with cornstarch into a paste and apply. This is effective
in drawing out the poisons of most insect bites and is also an
effective remedy for diaper rash.
Mint Border
Something for spring! Mint herbs are very prolific and grow just
about anywhere. Separate mint herbs and plant them around dog
fences. Can be planted along edges of dog yards, as well. These not
only smell good when brushed, but also act as an insect repellent.
Mosquitos:
Plant to Keep Mosquitos Away!
The castor bean plant. Seeds available from any nursery. Plant in
pots within the house; replant outdoors. Decorative and they grow
like weeds!
Mosquitos Won't
Bite
Four parts glycerine, 4 parts alcohol, 1 part eucalyptus oil.
Puppy chewing
no more
Puppies don't like the smell of oil of cloves, so dab a little onto
legs of precious furniture you don't want chewed.
Tackling tar
Tar stuck on your dog's coat can be removed by rubbing eucalyptus
oil into it, leaving it for an hour, then thoroughly shampooing out.
Ticks &
Flea Natural Repellents
Tick Spritzer Blend:
2 drops of Lavender, Basil, Lemon, Eucalyptus
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vodka
1 cup of dried marjoram, eucalyptus, rosemary
1-2 cups of water
Flea Spritzer Blend:
2 drops of cedarwood, lemongrass, rose geranium
1 teaspoon AVC (apple cider vinegar)
1 teaspoon vodka
1 cup of dried peppermint, eucalyptus, bay leaf herbs
1-2 cups of water
Add the essential oils and vodka in a bottle, tighten the lid and
shake well. Once the mixture blended (should turn white), add apple
cider vinegar. If you have some herbs mentioned above you can make
an herbal tea to use in your spritzer.
Boil 2-4 cups of water and remove from heat. Add your dried herbs in
the water and let is simmer for 30 minutes. Once cool, drain and use
instead of plain water in your spritzer. If you are using an herbal
tea, this mixture must be kept in the refrigerator as the herbal
teas have the tendency to go bad faster.
Once you have your spritzer you can use this by gently spraying it
in to your dogs coat, legs, tummy and back. Rub it in well and apply
it as necessary. Do not use any of the essential oils on your dogs
face or around nose, ears and eyes. Respect the sensitive nose
he/she has and go easy when using aromatic substances such as
essential oils.
Water with a
twist
Keep your pet's drinking water fresh by tossing a few crushed mint
leaves into it.
