What if my dog eats diatomaceous earth

Diatomaceous earth, often abbreviated as DE. It is a fine grayish-white powder that comes from the long-dead remains of diatoms, a type of algae. DE is mostly made up of silica, a very hard mineral, and it has a very coarse texture and absorbent properties.

Diatomaceous earth has been used as pest control for thousands of years. These days, you can purchase it for many different purposes. You can even get food-grade DE that is safe for human or pet consumption. Why would you want to eat DE, and what else can you do with it? Read on to find out!

Diatomaceous Earth for Flea Control

If you haven’t had to deal with fleas, consider yourself lucky. These blood-sucking parasites are happy to hop on your dog and hitch a ride into your home. Once they’re inside, they’ll lay thousands of microscopic eggs all over, and we mean all over! Your dog will be itchy, you’ll be itchy, and you’ll have to spend hours of time cleaning your home. Not to mention, you’ll have to bathe your dog, wash their bedding, and constantly monitor them for signs of a new outbreak of fleas. (Can you tell we’ve had to deal with this before?)

A Back-Up for Preventatives

Unfortunately, using a preventative doesn’t always prevent fleas. Across the nation, more fleas are reportedly becoming resistant to preventative treatments. Even if you keep up with the monthly dose, there’s still a chance that your dog or cat could get fleas. Skipping a dose or giving too small of a dose can keep your preventative medicine from working.

A Natural, Drug-Free Flea Treatment

Many people aren’t comfortable with using traditional preventatives (like oral or topical drugs and flea collars). We get it—you want to keep your pet and your family healthy, and the ingredients in these products are controversial. After all, they can kill fleas—can they harm your dog, too? Some pet owners have reported side effects that can be quite alarming. We don’t have the authority to comment on the safety of these medications, but we totally get that many people don’t want to use them.

No matter what camp you’re in—whether you want a backup for your regular flea preventative or you want to skip the flea medicine entirely—DE is here for you!

How to Use DE for Fleas

DE can kill fleas thanks to its microscopically-sharp edges. It won’t hurt you because the sharp edges are so tiny, but for an insect, it’s like crawling over broken glass. It will pierce their outer shell and kill them in a matter of hours or days. There are a few ways to use DE for fleas:

• Externally after potential flea exposure:

Just sprinkle it on your pet’s coat and thoroughly brush it through all their fur before a walk, hike, or other potential flea exposure. You’ll have to do this every time they go outside in a flea-ridden area and apply the DE before they come inside.

Note: Be careful when applying it around your dog’s nose, eyes, and mouth. Make sure it’s not drying out or irritating your pup’s skin—if your dog already has dry skin, don’t use it externally too often.

If you know there are fleas in your yard, sprinkling DE in the soil can kill the fleas and their larvae. Also kills ticks, earwigs, and other bugs! It’s non-toxic to your pets, so you won’t have to worry when they nibble on the grass or roll in the dirt.

• In your home, in case of an infestation:

Apply it to bedding and carpeting, leave it for at least 3 days, then vacuum it up. It does take 3+ days to work, but it will kill the larvae and adult fleas, breaking the life cycle and making your home flea-free!

Note: several sources recommend using a shop vac to vacuum up the remaining DE, since its sharp edges can be damaging to regular vacuum cleaners over time.

Diatomaceous Earth for Internal Parasites

While there isn’t much hard evidence out there, DE may be able to treat internal parasites. Those who use DE for deworming say that it can help eliminate several types of parasites. It can work for internal parasites in the same way that it kills fleas.

The FDA approves DE as pest control in food products. It’s often added to stored grain, like corn, and is generally recognized as safe. The FDA requires the testing of food-grade DE to make sure it doesn’t contain dangerous elements like lead, arsenic, or fluorine. You can rest assured that DE is a safe additive to your pet’s diet.

To use as a dewormer, simply add a small amount of food-grade DE to your dog’s diet. Approximately 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of DE should be given daily for a month—less for very small dogs and cats, more for very large dogs.

If you choose to use DE in your dog or cat’s food, make sure to mix it in with wet food instead of just sprinkling it on top. You don’t want your pet to inhale the powder and irritate their respiratory system.

Also, double-check to make sure it’s food-grade DE. You don’t want to feed your pet DE that is intended for yard and garden use. While it’s the same basic ingredient, it hasn’t been processed in the same way and might contain impurities that are unsafe for your pet to consume.

Diatomaceous Earth for Dogs: The Bottom Line

Are you interested in using DE for your pets?  Check out the Diatomaceous Earth products below that are featured in our health store. Let us know what you think! Contact us at or comment on this post. We look forward to hearing from you! 

Diatomaceous earth is a dirt cheap way to control parasites in your dog.

It’s not only low cost … it’s also easy to find at health stores or online. And it has a few other practical uses too.

So, what is diatomaceous earth? It’s white, so it doesn’t exactly look like earth.

Diatomaceous earth is a non-toxic natural substance. It’s made from crushed fossils of freshwater organisms and marine life. Through a microscope, the particles look like bits of broken glass.

Diatomaceous earth is deadly to any insect, yet completely harmless to animals. It can kill fleas, ticks, lice or mites on your dog.

It doesn’t poison insects or paralyze them like some pharmaceutical products do. The way it works is purely mechanical.

When the razor-sharp particles touch the pests, they pierce the insects’ protective coating. So the bugs quickly dehydrate and die. The particles affect larvae in the same way.

I’ll provide more detail on using diatomaceous earth for parasites in a bit.

But first, there are a few other things you can do with diatomaceous earth. Let’s talk about what it can do for your dog.

5 Benefits Of Diatomaceous Earth For Dogs

Diatomaceous earth can help your dog’s health (and yours!). You can also use it in your home and in the garden. And it’s safe to use around your dog and other pets.

#1 Repel And Eliminate Parasites

Diatomaceous earth can help your dog with both internal and external parasites.

Internal Parasites

You can control internal parasites like worms by giving diatomaceous earth with food. Make sure you choose the right product: diatomaceous earth for your dog must be food grade. The product that’s in gardens and pool filters is processed differently and can be harmful.

Diatomaceous earth can eliminate roundworms, whipworms, pinworms, and hookworms in your dog. It can work in as little as 7 days of daily feeding.

But, to be most effective, you should feed diatomaceous earth for at least 30 days. That’ll make sure you get rid of all newly hatching eggs. And it will catch the cycling of the worms through the lungs and back to the stomach.

Note: Diatomaceous earth works for intestinal worms. It will not kill heartworms.

External Parasites

Another use for diatomaceous earth is killing external parasites and insects. You can do this by dusting your dog’s skin with diatomaceous earth. If you have a flea infestation, you’ll also need to sprinkle it on his bedding and carpeted areas.

Other Uses

But it’s not just for parasites. Diatomaceous earth can be useful for several different purposes.

#2 Detoxification

Some sources report that diatomaceous earth may absorb methyl mercury, E. coli, endotoxins, viruses, organophosphate pesticide residues, drug resides, and protein. It may even remove the proteinaceous toxins from some intestinal infections. There’s research showing it can remove heavy metals from waste water.

This means diatomaceous earth can be very useful as a detox solution, digestive aid and colon cleanser.

But it also has nutritional benefits!

RELATED: Why Detox Is Important

#3 Food Supplement

Diatomaceous earth is full of minerals like:

• magnesium
• silicon
• calcium
• sodium
• iron
• potassium
• copper
• zinc
• phosphorous
• selenium
  

So it can help dogs – and people – as a nutritional supplement. According to Wolf Creek Organics, better sleep, more energy, healthy skin, hair and nails are all potential benefits.

And there’s research by the University of Innsbruck, Austria, showing it can even improve cholesterol numbers … lowering LDL and triglycerides and increasing HDL.

#4 Chemical-Free Deodorizer

If you have a stinky dog, you can also use diatomaceous earth as a natural deodorizer. You can sprinkle it on your dog’s coat and leave it in … or brush it out after a few hours. You can dust your carpet or other smelly area; leave it for about a day, then vacuum or sweep it up.

You can also use it in sweaty gym shoes or in your kitchen trash can.

If you have a kitty, try sprinkling diatomaceous earth in her litter box. It can help eliminate dampness and odors.

#5 Safe Garden Pest Control

Diatomaceous earth won’t harm beneficial earthworms in your garden. But it repels and kills most other bugs … ants, caterpillars, army worms, cockroaches, snails, spiders, termites, silverfish, earwigs, bed bugs, fruit flies and beetles. (Remember: it’ll keep the ticks away too!).

So it’s great for the garden and will help you avoid chemical pesticides. It’s safe for your dog, as well as birds and other non-bug wildlife. Sprinkle it in your garden, or mix it with water and spray on trees. According to Wolf Creek Ranch, about a cup per 1/2 gallon of water should do the trick). Make sure to apply repeatedly.

Dosage

Internally in dogs, give these amounts:

• Small dogs and puppies: 1/2 tsp per day in food
• Up to 50 lbs: 1 tsp per day in food
• Over 50 lbs: 1 Tbsp per day in food
• 100 lbs or more: 2 Tbsp per day in food
  

It’s best to mix it with raw or other moist food. If you feed dry food, add some water or broth to moisten the powder.

For external pest prevention, rub the powder into your dog’s coat. Start near the tail and pull back the hair to get it on the skin.

Avoid the eyes, nose and mouth as it can irritate mucous membranes.

Using it externally can also get rid of fleas on your dog. You’ll need to sprinkle it on his bedding and carpets too. Let it sit for up to 3 days, then launder or vacuum.

Cautions

Make sure you purchase and use food grade DE only. DE can cause lung irritation so please be careful you and your dog don’t inhale any dust.

Diatomaceous earth can be drying for your dog’s skin. If you notice any dryness, bathe your dog with a moisturizing shampoo or conditioner.

So there you have it. An amazingly versatile, low cost parasite control product with a bunch of other uses too!