Toxic to pets?

Dr. Marie replied:

Well this is an interesting question!

Here is what I know about the ingredients that you listed:

Borax - if some was ingested it could cause some mild stomach upset. Large amounts of borax can be toxic to the kidneys but 1 tbsp dissolved in water is not going to be toxic.

White vinegar - On its own, vinegar can be mildly caustic meaning that it could cause some irritation in the mouth or intestines, but again, dissolved in water, this is safe.

Dr. Bronner's Magic liquid soap - The website lists the following ingredients: "Water, Saponified Organic Coconut*, Organic Palm* and Organic Olive* Oils (w/Retained Glycerin), Organic Hemp Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Essential Oils**, Citric Acid, Vitamin E". Some essential oils can be quite caustic for dogs (see below). Some types of industrial glycerin used for making soaps can contain toxic substances (see this article for more info.)

peppermint essential oil - Small amounts are safe for pets but large amounts can cause intestinal upset.

lavender essential oil - Undiluted this can be fairly harmful to the intestinal tract and mouth. Again, diluted it is *probably* safe.

tea tree essential oil - If tea tree oil is ingested it can be very toxic to pets. If it comes in contact with the skin it can burn the skin. With that being said, 1 drop of it is likely to do any harm.

This is probably not a recipe that I would use in my house with pets. With that being said, most likely, once the product has dried it is probably perfectly safe.

I am definitely not an expert in cleaning solutions so I can't really recommend a green floor cleaning product for you. :) I do know that there are some commercial green products out there. If they are toxic to pets then they would likely say so on the label.

I hope that helps!

Dr. Marie


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