Posted by Larry Hoover on July 3, 2004, at 9:28:39
In reply to Re: Tree Oil?, posted by shadows721 on July 2, 2004, at 22:37:33
> Yes, that's it tea tree oil. My friend said that I could use it on my Persian's ring worm. I don't know about that. Is it poisonous?
It is irritating to the digestive tract, but not poisonous (in humans), in small amounts. You can safely use it to treat mouth infections, or gargle with a diluted tea tree oil solution, for example. Your cat will lick it off, but it will still help the ringworm. I really don't know if it's toxic to cats, though. It's not very often that a substance is toxic to one mammal, and not to others, but I suppose it's possible. (Okay, that spurred me to use these keywords in google "tea tree feline", and here's what I got...)
The first hit was a pro-feline tea tree oil product. http://dynamite.mystateusa.com/Tea_Tree_oil_(Feline).htm
Just below was another one saying it is toxic to cats:
http://www.messybeast.com/teatree.htmI can't advise you which is true. The second reference gives a lot of scientific detail, though.
Lar
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:361832
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20040613/msgs/362770.html