Creating a Clean & Green Home

This is a topic that is often overlooked by animal owners, yet it’s so important for the health of your furry, feathered and scaled friends, just as it is for your human family. How “clean & green” is your home?

Did you know that over the last 50 years, between 70,000 to 100,000 different chemicals have been introduced to our world, in our cleaning and personal care products? In fact, according to a report in The Guardian, the average woman is exposed to 168 different synthetic chemicals each day just from their cosmetics, perfumes and personal care products. This doesn’t even count the chemicals found in our food, water, air and cleaning products.

These chemicals absorb through the skin of both people and animals, and build up in our body. This is called “Bioaccumulation”. In fact, the chemicals affect animals even more than people, because their nose and paws remain close to surfaces where harmful chemical cleaners have been used.

Technically our body should be able to process and eliminate these chemicals, but the reality is that we’re being bombarded with far more chemicals on a daily basis than our body can have any hope of dealing with. Many of these chemicals are hormone disrupters, carcinogens, and brain and nervous system toxins…and many have the capacity to mutate our DNA.

So even if you and your animals are not experiencing some of the symptoms of toxic overload such as skin irritations, allergies, asthma, mood swings, depression, breathing disorders, skin and eye irritation, migraines and more, it still makes absolute common sense to ditch the chemicals and choose clean and green solutions instead. The fewer chemicals your body needs to do battle with, the happier and healthier you and your body are going to be.

Give yourself the best gift ever, and switch to all-natural plant & mineral based cleaners and personal care products, like the ones available through Young Living. Here are the top 3 products to start with, for you and your dog:

1. Thieves Household Cleaner

Clean your home and surfaces with Young Living’s Thieves Household Cleaner. Made from 100% plant and mineral based ingredients, this can be used to clean up puppy “accidents”, and it’s safe to use neat or diluted on most carpets (just make sure you patch test first).

For everyday cleaning, just add 1.5 caps (15ml) of Thieves Household Cleaner to a 500ml spray bottle, and fill with water. This can be used on floors, benchtops, toilets, etc….and because it’s a concentrate, it often works out cheaper than the leading brands of cleaning solutions that you’ll find in your local supermarket, so it’s kind on your budget too. You can even use the Thieves Household Cleaner as a healthy pet wash. Wet your dog’s fur, and massage 1 to 3 caps of Thieves Household Cleaner into their fur, then rinse off.

2. Animal Scents Shampoo

Although Thieves Household Cleaner can be used as a pet wash, Young Living have produced a beautiful dedicated pet shampoo, as part of their all-natural Animal Scents line.

Wash your dog with Animal Scents Shampoo. It’s so easy! Just massage a small amount into your dog’s coat, lather and rinse off. This is a concentrate so you don’t need much! Experiment with how little you can use, and still get an amazing and healthy clean for your favourite canine.

3. Thieves Laundry Soap

Use Young Living all natural Thieves Laundry Soap to wash and sanitise doggie bedding, blankets and coats. They’ll come out clean, and smell amazing. And it’s super economical tool. One bottle does 64 heavily soiled or 192 lightly soiled loads of washing.

Now let’s take a look a some of the many other ways you can keep your dog in peak health using Young Living’s essential oils and oil-infused products.

Clean Teeth

One of the easiest ways to keep your dog’s teeth clean is with Young Living’s Animal Scents Dental Pet Chews. But if you want to step it up a notch from there, you also have the Thieves Mouthwash (heavily diluted, of course!). Check this out:

My dogs love the Animal Scents Dental Pet Chews. It’s nice to finally find a pet chew that contains 100% healthy ingredients, such as Spearmint oil which is wonderful for their oral hygiene. The ridges on the pet chews are great for getting in amongst their teeth too! They are a lovely size and a hard consistency, so it occupies my dogs for ages. – Susan. M.

Two years ago, “Elmo” was getting tartar build-up on his teeth, and the Vet suggested having his teeth cleaned. Instead, I started applying Young Living’s Thieves Mouthwash inside his mouth using a finger puppet. His treat is a little piece of cheese at the end. At first I heavily diluted the mouthwash with water, and slowly built it up to equal parts mouthwash and water. It made a big difference in a matter of weeks. At Elmo’s recent Vet check, they said his teeth look great! Now I just say “Teeth cleaning!” and he runs to the bathroom.
– Fiona M.

Clean Ears

The Thieves Wipes are brilliant for keeping the inside of the ear clean, especially the ear canal where goop accumulates. They’re oil-infused and safe to use. – Susan M.

I put 2 drops of Purification oil into my hand, and rub it around the outside of my Beagle’s ears, where they join his head. This keeps his ears looking clean and healthy! – Ashe M.

Restful Sleep

Essential oils are amazing at calming both us and our animals. Some essential oils like Lavender, Cedarwood, Sandalwood, Valerian, Vetiver, Peace & Calming, Valor, Stress Away and Pet Care are also great oils to use for promoting deep and restful sleep. This applies to our dogs just as much as it applies to our human family.

I have a 15 year old dog that experiences the occasional ‘senior moments’. These have included waking up in the middle of the night and wanting to go outside. When I let her outside she walks around for a bit, stands for a bit, comes back inside, then goes back outside again. It really messes with my sleep. I started putting a drop of Pet Care at the base of her skull each night before bed and she started sleeping through the night. Nights are much better for us now! – Fazette C.

Our 13 year old rescue greyhound “Sammie” tends to wander and be unsettled at night. We put 3 drops each of Lavender and Purification oil in the diffuser, and we don’t hear a peep from him all night. He gets a great sleep, and so do we! – Jen G.

Cooling

Does your dog huff and puff during the warmer months? Add 3 to 5 drops of Peppermint oil to your dog’s splash pool during summer. It adds a wonderful cooling effect. Even elderly dogs benefit greatly and become more active!

Healthy Skin Spray

Follow this 4 step process to encourage a glowing and healthy skin and coat on your dog.

1. Take your dog off dried biscuits and tinned food, and instead feed them a balanced 100% raw food diet.
2. Avoid using any commercial shampoos or cleaning solutions on your dog’s skin, rugs, blankets, etc, as these generally contain chemicals that can irritate your dog’s skin. Instead, wash your dog’s bedding, blankets and rugs with Thieves Household Cleaner, and wash your dog with the Animal Scents Shampoo or Thieves Household Cleaner.
3. Add 1 or 2 Young Living Sulfurzyme capsules into their food each day, for healthy skin and fur. These capsules can be given whole, or opened and the contents mixed through their food.
4. In a 120ml bottle, add 20 drops each of Lavender, Cedarwood and Copaiba oil. Top up with water, and spritz your dog’s belly and coat each day. Spray some onto your palms and massage their ear flaps as well.

Outdoor Adventures

In a 120ml spray bottle, put 6 drops each of Lavender and Purification oil, then top up with water. Spray onto your dog’s coat before they head out into nature or around other dogs. Their coat will look shiny and healthy, and they will enjoy the great outdoors, annoyance-free.

When your dog plays outside with other dogs and there is some rowdy behaviour, you can turn to this 3 step process to bring your dog back into balance: Start by rubbing some Animal Scents Puriclean on the area to cleanse away any dirt and grass. Follow this up with Pet Fresh (this oil blend is called Infectaway in the US market). And a few days later switch to using Pet Renew (which is called MendWell in the US market).

Canine Raindrop Technique

To keep your dog in peak condition both physically and emotionally, make sure you incorporate regular Raindrop Technique sessions into their life. 

Raindrop Technique is an amazing essential oil modality created by the founder of Young Living, D. Gary Young. Hundreds of thousands of people around the world have experienced and fallen in love with this modality…..and it’s proven so amazing in supporting both physical and emotional wellbeing that many people now offer it to their canine companions as well.

Read more about Raindrop Technique for humans:

Click here to read about Raindrop Technique – Part 1

Click here to read about Raindrop Technique – Part 2

Click here to read about Raindrop Technique – Part 3

Click here to read about Raindrop Technique – Part 4

And if you’d like to read about an amazing experience I had with Canine Raindrop Technique, click here.

Raindrop Technique involves dripping 9 different Young Living essential oils up the spine like drops of rain, and massaging them in using a variety of techniques including Tibetan reflexology and Western Massage. It also involves a “Valor Balance” which is very centring and grounding for both humans and animals, and Tibetan reflexology on the rear legs, from the ankle hock to the paw.

The Tibetan reflexology stimulates energy meridians in the body (in a similar way to acupressure and Western reflexology). The massage steps relax the muscles along the spine, improving flexibility and blood flow, whilst the essential oils are energizing and uplifting.

If you have learned Raindrop Technique for humans, it can be easily adapted to dogs (just use fewer drops of each oil, and have V6 on hand to calm down any warmth that may be created by the “hotter” oils like Oregano, Thyme and Basil).

If you’d like to learn the full version of Raindrop Technique for dogs, check with the person who introduced you to Young Living for their recommendations. I love the Canine Raindrop Technique course that was developed by my sister Susan Marshall. It’s available online and also in person, so regardless of where you live in the world, you can attend. Visit www.animalraindrop.com and register your interest.

The biggest transformation I’ve seen with dogs and essential oils is with Raindrop Technique. I recently performed this technique on a 6 year old Pug called “Lucy”. The owners reported that she was always very unsettled whenever they left the house. She would scratch at the door and her breathing was very laboured from the emotions. The owners reported a marked change in her immediately following her Raindrop Technique. She was calm and relaxed when they went out and just generally seemed more grounded and stronger within herself. They were amazed! This technique is a game changer for any dog! – Susan M.

Doggy Raindrop – a simplified version

The name “Doggy Raindrop” refers to a very simplified version of Canine Raindrop Technique, which is perfect for anyone who’s not trained in Canine Raindrop. Because the oils are heavily diluted, it’s also perfect for everyday use. Depending on the size and sensitivity of your dog, add 2 to 6 drops of each of the Raindrop Technique Kit oils into a tablespoon of Young Living’s V6 oil. Drizzle half or all of this mix up your dog’s spine, and massage it in.

I give “Snugly” our older dog a regular Doggy Raindrop to keep her supple and moving freely. She was a rescue dog and never liked being touched or fussed over, but once I get my Raindrop oils, she happily stands for some pampering. – Fazette C.

“Jess” our 12 year old Border Collie x Kelpie only knows one speed – flat out. After spending the day dashing around the farm, she loves having a Doggy Raindrop. She smiles with her whole body, and doesn’t want it to stop. – Elaine D.

Great health requires the right nutrition

If you were to choose just 3 products to support your dog’s nutritional needs, it would be these ones:

1. NingXia Red
This delicious, mineral-rich superjuice combines pureed Ningxia Wolfberries (a type of Goji berry) with other high antioxidant fruit juices. Offer your dog 1 to 4 tablespoons of NingXia Red each day, depending on its size and needs. This will support energy and all-round nutrition. It can be offered neat, or diluted in some water.

Many years ago I was working wtih a dog that was having some emotional challenges, and I felt that it needed some NingXia Red for additional physical support. I’d never given NingXia Red to a dog before, so I put about a tablespoon in its water bowl, and turned away to get some water, with the intention of topping up its bowl with water. But when I came back, it had already lapped up all the NingXia Red! I gave it a little more, and it licked it up, so I gave it some more. It absolutely loved it, and I ended up giving it 4 tablespoons that day (60ml). It became a favourite part of its daily routine from then on! – Artemis

Our Cavoodle “Elmo” gets a tablespoon of NingXia Red every day…and NingXia Red ice blocks on hot days!!! He loves it so much that if ever I forget, he’ll hang around me until I remember. I also give him a Sulfurzyme and BLM capsule in his food each day, and I massage Frankincense, Copaiba and Valor oil into his hips and down his spine and front legs. This whole combination has put an incredible spring in his step!!! – Fiona M.

Click here to read about Lucas the Superdog, and his experience with NingXia Red

2. Sulfurzyme
This is a supplement I take every single day! It contains natural MSM combined with ground Ningxia Wolfberries to provide all the essential co-factors so that the MSM can be optimally absorbed. The Australian & New Zealand version of this Young Living supplement differs from the US/EU version, in that it also contains Copaiba oil to soothe, uplift and balance. Depending on your dog’s size and nutritional needs, give 1 to 6 capsules a day to support healthy skin, fur and nails. Capsules can be given whole, or opened and mixed into food.

Our 10 year old Border Collie “Lucy” loves to be active. Now that we’re sprinkling a Sulfurzyme capsule onto her food each day, she moves like a dog half her age and her coat looks absolutely amazing! – Kylie B.

3. BLM
BLM contains glucosamine sulphate, type II collagen and MSM, providing essential nutrients for your dog’s peak fitness and health. Give 1 to 3 capsules a day. 

Here’s how to order…

If you already have a wholesale account with Young Living, order through the shopping cart on your virtual office, or via phone or live chat with your local Young Living office.