Tea Tree Oil

[panda]

I know it is toxic to hedgies, & maybe it is stupid I am even asking this & should just throw it out, but certain organic earrings i have i was told can only be cleaned with this, also it is a good thing for cleaning ears which are pierced like mine so I guess I am wondering if there is a safe way to use TTO on yourself without endangering your hedgie.. I have only used it twice since bringing Norma home because i needed to, i used to use it more often but i get freaked out about using it because i am scared of poisoning her, every time i use it i wash my hands twice and keep her away from my ears.. but just tonight i thought about the fact that my ears will touch my pillow and blankets when i am sleeping, Norma is on my bed all the time.. I tried looking this up on the forum and couldnt find an answer, I guess I am just wondering if it is A, safe to use on yourself as long as you wash hands? B, safe after it has dried up ie from my ear to pillow case/blanket?

I hate when I randomly think of things like this and get paranoid, but I guess my over worrying/anxiety isnt all bad, although everyone outside of this website thinks i overdo it with my pets, & i have to say i get A LOT of crap for it , personally I think you can never do enough research or care/love for them too much.

If it is not safe, is there anyone else that has had to switch from TTO to something else for ear care? i dont know what the alternatives are for cleaning lobes/cleaning organic plugs.

A, Ex-girlfriend of mine used Dr. Bronner’s Magic All-One! for her organic earrings and her shampoo, only thing I can contribute.

[panda]

oh thanks! Where did she get the all in one?

also i just found out that emu or jojoba oils can be an alternative, are these a safe alternative?

The more paranoid I am getting the more i want to take all my sheets & blankets off tomorrow, wash those, throw away the oil, scrub my vanity where it was kept & scrub my earrings & where they were kept

http://www.drbronner.com/DBMS/LAV.html

They're fairly cheap and I would assume any scent is okay, she actually used a hemp mixture, but there are so many to choose

[panda]

awesome, thanks!
Well just for peace of mind I am getting rid of it tomorrow.. Wondering if I also need to go through and scrub anything it may have come into contact with now... not sure how long any residue would linger.

[hanhan27]

I would throw it out and scrub/sanitize where you know it touched stuff. Maybe change your bedding, wash the (possibly) contaminated bedding in hot water (I would wash twice, but I'm also overly paranoid and not sure if my level of paranoia is above or below yours ), and switch to the stuff TWC suggested.

I have absolutely no clue what's all in emu oil, but if you look up the ingredients and it's all from... parts... of emu... I personally would assume that it's OK. If hedgies can eat meat, I doubt that an oil made from an animal would hurt them. I'm not an expert in any way, so maybe do some more research on that lol.

I know I read somewhere (probably the Tea Tree Oil Toxicity stickie) that most people who own hedgehogs just get rid of TTO - if it's not in the house, it can't hurt them. I threw mine away weeks before I brought Milly home, and scrubbed the crap out of the cabinet it was kept in.

[CanadienHedgie]

Here's a thread about it a bit.
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10145&p=87777&hilit=+tea+tree+ oil#p87777

Quote by Nancy: "Tea tree oil or shampoo is only toxic if applied to hedgie or ingested. If you've had it on your hands, wash well before handling hedgie and don't allow him to lick you. Same with hair. If you use it, don't let hedgie chew your hair."

[sayhedgehog]

I was going to suggest jojoba oil as well. I have several piercings, including stretched earlobes and jojoba is by far the best thing I've ever used. I use all natural products for everything around my house, but I am very careful not to have ANYTHING that contains tea tree oil. Perhaps I am too paranoid, but I feel it's better to be safe than sorry.

[panda]

Yeah, I only kept the TTO because I was told it was the only thing ok for cleaning organic plugs & stretched lobes, but last night I was worrying about it. So rather than worry I'm getting rid of it, Mainly just want to know if it is necessary to scrub down everything in my room or not, if there is an answer to that, I couldnt find anywhere ( i googled it ) about how long the oil sticks around on things. & i did already look it up on this site, and read those threads, thanks!

[panda]

.. I think I will look into the jojoba stuff, if i can find it anywhere around here. just hoping it isnt as expensive as my bottle of tea tree oil was