What is hydrogen peroxide?
Hydrogen peroxide, also known as H2O2 is a combination of hydrogen and water. It is a colourless solution that liberates oxygen when applied to affected areas. The released oxygen gas causes foaming which helps to clean the area and remove the dead skin. Due to this, hydrogen peroxide is widely used as a mild antiseptic to treat skin infections, burns, cuts, and scrapes. It is also used to rinse the mouth to relieve mucus and mouth irritation caused by cold sores, canker, and gingivitis. Hydrogen peroxide comes in various strength such as 3 % (for household use), 6-10 % (for cosmetics and hair bleaching), 35% (food-grade) and 90% (for industrial use).
Can hydrogen peroxide be used for dogs?
Hydrogen peroxide is commonly used as a topical antiseptic to clean skin infections and wound in pets including dogs. However, due to harsh nature hydrogen peroxide is not recommended to clean deep wounds and serious burns in dogs. It is also used orally as an emergency home-administered emetic to induce vomiting in dogs. Once administrated, hydrogen peroxide causes gastrointestinal irritation that induces vomiting within 10-15 minutes. However, it is advisable to use hydrogen peroxide under proper care and according to veterinarian suggestions.
Can hydrogen peroxide hurt a dog?
The recommended concentration ofhydrogen peroxide solution used for vomiting is 3% solution. The recommended dose of this solution is 1 teaspoon/5 pounds bodyweight of your dog with a maximum dose of 3 tablespoons (>45 pounds body weight). A higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide is toxic and can also hurt your dog. Therefore, it is necessary to administer the proper concentration of hydrogen peroxide to your dog. Besides this, hydrogen peroxide is also extremely irritating in nature and therefore repetitive use of it can impede the healing of your pet wound. If you use hydrogen peroxide to clean the wound, avoid repetitive use unless specifically instructed to do so by your veterinarian.
Can you use hydrogen peroxide on dog’s ears?
Hydrogen peroxide is extremely irritative and toxic for sensitive skin. Ears and surrounding tissues in dogs are very sensitive and therefore prolonged repetitive use of hydrogen peroxide can cause permanent ear damage.
Can hydrogen peroxide make dogs throw up?
Yes, hydrogen peroxide can be used as emergency home-administered emetic to induce vomiting to your dog. Hydrogen peroxide causes gastrointestinal irritation and therefore induces vomiting. For this purpose, a 3% solution of hydrogen peroxide is used i.e. water (97%) and hydrogen peroxide (3%). The prescribed dosage of this solution is 1 teaspoon/5 pounds bodyweight of your dog with a maximum dose of 3 tablespoons (>45 pounds body weight). However, hydrogen peroxide should be used under proper veterinarian’s instructions and suggestions.
Can a dog die from hydrogen peroxide?
Whether hydrogen peroxide can kill a dog or not it depends on the strength of hydrogen peroxide and the quantity used. The recommended concentration and quantity of hydrogen peroxide for dogs is 3% solution and one tablespoon/10-pound body weight. At this concentration hydrogen peroxide is safe and does not cause any damage or toxicity to your dog. However, if huge quantity of hydrogen peroxide is used that is above 3% concentration, it can cause serious gastrointestinal irritation that can lead to secondary health complications to your dog, even death as well.
What caution should I take while administering hydrogen peroxide to a dog?
Usually, hydrogen peroxide is administrated to dogs when they ate something harmful. After giving the correct dose it is necessary to wait for approximately 15 to 20 minutes to check whether the dog starts to vomit or not. Walking with your dog and/or gently shaking the dog stomach with hand can help the hydrogen peroxide to mix well with the gut contents. Usually, after ingestion hydrogen peroxide dog gets nauseous, and then expels the unwanted harmful material. In case, if you feel you have administrated too much of hydrogen peroxide or you noticed unusual symptoms in your dog call immediate for your vet or medical emergency.
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