Just another Tea Tree Oil thread

[kinnip]

As speckledhen pointed out, undiluted it has the potential to harm them. Last year someone posted that they killed a couple of hens with tea tree oil, trying to treat for leg mites. It does work quite well for leg mites, BTW, but not full strength. I'll keep it in mind next time I have a boo boo in the house.

 

[JeninMN]

how do you dilute it so it is safe? I'd love to try it, especially on my dogs ears..

 

[farmerlor]

I don't know, the first few times I used it, it was a last resort and I didn't know any better so I didn't dilute it. In the past couple of years it's a standard treatment for my flock, never diluted it once. This time with the awful gaping hole it was also a last resort. That chicken was going to die. I didn't dilute it and poured almost an entire dram of the stuff into her body cavity. Now, I probably wouldn't eat her eggs for a day or two but she's just as happy as she can be today. And of course I know that anecdotal evidence counts for naught but for me, on my farm, it's tea tree oil.
To dilute any essential oil you can make a tincture with it by adding 70-90% alcohol (i.e. one drop of alcohol to 9 drops vodka would be 90% alcohol) or you can put it in a benign carrier oil like vegetable oil, coconut oil, almond oil, etc.... you can even shake it into some water but as you know, they'll separate pretty quickly.

 

[NancyDz]

Quote:
I keep some in a small spray bottle, shake it up before using I put about 10 drops in 8 ounces of water. I've also used 10 drops in a tablespoon of olive oil and rubbed it in their ears when i had a rescue dog with ear mites. in a pinch i've used a wet paper towel with a couple of drops of tea tree oil on it and just wiped out the ear. One of my dogs used to get ear infections and hasnt had any since. Also their ears smell nice and fresh...

Nancy

 

[speckledhen]

If I had a hen who was going to die and it was a last ditch effort to save her, then certainly, I'd try something unorthodox. When there is nothing to lose by trying, no problem doing something like that. Some birds may be more sensitive than others to aromatics and the like, but there are cases where tea tree oil has been fatal to birds. Just wanted to make sure everyone knew that. I've used olive oil with several (2-3)drops of tea tree to several tablespoons of the olive oil.

 

[kinnip]

Quote:
What she said, except they don't get my olive oil. I usually use mineral oil, canola, vaseline or Bag Balm.

 

[NancyDz]

Quote:
In what context was the tea tree oil used? what were they treating? And how did they know it was the tea tree oil that caused the death?

Thanks

Nancy

 

[speckledhen]

I have since lost the reference, but I think dlhunicorn (Diana) was the one who had the article on that.


Oh, it doesn't have to be olive oil, LOL. I use that because it is the most nutritious (if they are ingesting it) and improves circulation, but you can use plain veg oil instead.

 

[Year of the Rooster]

Quote:
Melaleuca IS Tea Tree Oil. It is the tree that Tea Tree Oil comes from.

 

[speckledhen]

Here is one article about Tea tree oil toxicity. It's definitely poisonous to ingest and since birds groom themselves, they can ingest it, depending on where it is applied.
http://www.exoticbird.com/gillian/teatree.html

Then, there is this warning from the article listed after:

( Note to Bird Owners: *Tea Tree Essential has caused paralysis in birds when the dosage administered was too high. As safe doses have not been established, it's best not to use this essential oil around your birds. )

http://www.avianweb.com/birdproofingyourhome.html​