Balms, oils & cold remedies · cat safety
Are essential oils safe for cats?
Severe
No — essential oils are dangerous for cats. Tea tree, eucalyptus, wintergreen, cinnamon, peppermint and similar oils soak through the skin and are licked off the fur, causing drooling, wobbliness, tremors and even liver failure. Never put an oil on a cat, and keep diffusers out of its room.
Why severe: Cats can't break down many oil compounds; on the skin, licked off fur or settling from a diffuser, oils cause tremors and even liver failure (Merck).
- Name
- Essential oilsalso Tea tree oil, Eucalyptus (nilgiri) oil, Wintergreen (gandhapura) oil, Cinnamon (dalchini) oil, Peppermint oil, Diffuser and aromatherapy oils
- Hindi
- एसेंशियल ऑयल
What counts
Concentrated (100%) oils on the skin or swallowed are the main danger; diffusers that spray droplets settle oil on fur, and 'natural' flea sprays made with oils have harmed cats even when used as labelled.
What's in it
Phenols and terpenes (such as the compounds in tea tree oil, eucalyptol, and methyl salicylate in wintergreen). Cats lack enough glucuronyl transferase to clear them (Merck).
Brands it hides in
- Diffusers and room-freshener oils
- Tea tree oil and tea-tree skin or anti-lice products
- Nilgiri (eucalyptus) oil for steam inhalation
- 'Natural' or 'herbal' flea and tick sprays with neem, citronella or eucalyptus
- Strong-smelling Ayurvedic massage oils
Symptoms to watch for
- Drooling, vomiting
- Wobbliness, weak back legs
- Tremors
- Low body temperature
- Breathing difficulty (from diffusers)
- Liver failure, seizures
Within minutes to hours (Merck); with tea tree oil, 2–12 hours, lasting up to 3 days (ASPCA series of 443 dogs and cats).
What to do — now
Go to a vet now if oil was put on your cat or licked.
- Don't make your cat vomit — oils can go into the lungs (Merck).
- If oil is on the fur, ask your vet whether to wash it off with mild dish soap and lukewarm water — then go.
- Take the bottle.
- If a diffuser was running, switch it off and get your cat into fresh air.
Where Indian cats meet it
Diffusers, Ayurvedic massage oils, nilgiri oil for colds and 'herbal' flea sprays. In an ASPCA series, 36 of 39 cats treated with plant-oil flea products had side effects — most of them used exactly as the label said.
Myth or fact
Myth“Natural oils are safe home remedies for cats”
Fact'Natural' isn't safe: plant-oil flea products harmed cats even when used as labelled (Genovese et al. 2012), and concentrated oils 'should never be directly applied to pets' (Merck).
Cat-safe swap: Ask your vet for a cat-safe flea treatment, and air the house instead of running a diffuser.
Sources
- Merck Veterinary Manual: Toxicoses from essential oils
- Khan et al. 2014, JAVMA: concentrated tea tree oil toxicosis, 443 dogs and cats (PubMed)
- Genovese et al. 2012, JVECC: essential-oil 'natural' flea products in dogs and cats (PubMed)
Facts last checked
General information for cat parents, not a diagnosis or a treatment plan. The facts come from ASPCA, Pet Poison Helpline, International Cat Care, the Merck Veterinary Manual and the other sources listed on every page — and we say so when the evidence comes from dogs or people. If your cat may have eaten something harmful, call your vet.