Calming Dogs
Answered by: Kerry Hackett
Question from: Kathleen Coleman
Posted on: March 14, 2006

I am looking for some herbs that might be helpful in calming dogs. I am mostly interested in something that I can put by their beds that they can smell that might help them relax a bit more. Since I have labs it would also help if it wasn’t toxic since labs are known to eat everything.

In this case, my first choice would be to use Bach Flower Essences. Put 2 drops each of Cherry Plum, Chestnut Bud, Heather, Impatiens and Vervain in 50 ml of spring water in a clean dropper bottle. Of the diluted mix, add one dropperful to the dog’s food twice a day, assuming that is how often they are fed. In addition, the use of a good, homemade diet goes a long way to calming animals generally. Please see this website (www.richters.com) for the posting "Aging Dog with Arthritis for recipe resources. I should also add that I do not advocate the use of essential oils (often placed near a person’s or animal’s bed) for exactly the reasons you state: almost anything placed on or near an animal will usually be eaten by that animal; all essential oils are toxic if ingested.

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