Sentry Natural Defense
Guinea Pig
I consider myself a pretty responsible pet owner. I research what I feed my cats, what kind of litter to use, so this really shouldn’t have happened.
Early Sunday morning I ran to PetCo to pick up an automatic feeder for the cats since we have to head out of town for a few days. While there I decided to check out their flea medication options. Since going outdoors, we’ve noticed a few hangers on coming home with the kitties. They aren’t welcome, but neither are toxic flea meds like Revolution and Advantage. I know they work very, very well, but I haven’t had the best of luck with them. Dim Sum gets rashes and fur loss and Lulu used to get the squirts. In a pinch Gizmo and Pookie both tolerate it, which tends to be enough to kill a colony in the home, but I’ve wanted to experiment with other, non-toxic, options.
When I scanned the flea remedy options at PetCo I noticed all the usual suspects — Advantage, Hartz, Frontline — and then saw Sentry Natural Defense. Its packaging boasts all natural ingredients, which included essential oils. I knew some oils, like lavender, are harmful to cats, but stupidly assumed that the oils within this product (sold at a major chain) wouldn’t be poisonous. Boy was I wrong.
It wasn’t until after I squirted the stuff on Dim Sum and Pookie, and saw their reactions, that I realized I had done something very foolish. The two automatically tried to lick the crap off (how a cat can turn and reach its shoulder blades I will never understand) and started spazzing out; spitting, running around in panic, and foaming at the mouth.
The stuff wreaks of peppermint and cinnamon, two of its active ingredients. Two ingredients I later discovered are toxic to cats. Turns out 4 of the 5 ingredients in Sentry’s Natural Defense are toxic to cats! Peppermint, cinnamon, clove and thyme oils are all bad for felines. Once I discovered this I grabbed some towels and mild (non-scented!) dish soap and started scrubbing Dim Sum and Pookie off as if they were victims of the BP disaster. I got most of it off, but the smell is still lingering on their fur. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this idiotic shopping decision does do any permanent damage. I’m sticking with Buck Mountain Herbal Gold flea powder. Haven’t had a problem with the stuff yet and it does a pretty good job at keeping the fleas out.
Why the hell does Petco sell this stuff? I’ll be writing them a letter later today.
OMG that’s so scary! I hope they’re okay. What’s next–chocolate flea spray for dogs? Damn.
HOLY SHIT, I’ve totally used this stuff before. My cat has a terrible reaction to it – his fur and top layer of skin came off at the application zone! I assumed it was because he had an allergic reaction to one of the ingredients, not that it was toxic to all cats; that is absolutely horrifying.
I’m so glad you washed that stuff off your cats. I’m going to make sure all my cat-owning friends know about this too.
it was very interesting to read.
I want to quote your post in my blog. It can?
And you et an account on Twitter?
it was very interesting to read.
I want to quote your post in my blog. It can?
And you et an account on Twitter?
it was very interesting to read.
I want to quote your post in my blog. It can?
And you et an account on Twitter?
HOLA YO LE ACABO DE PONER ESTE PRODUCTO A MI GATO DE 12 SEMANAS Y YA ME ASUSTE PORQUE LE VAYA A HACER ALGUN DAÑO, SI HUELE MUY FUERTE PERO MI GATITO LO VEO BIEN, ALGUIEN ME PUEDE DECIR QUE HAGO? TIENE EL PRODUCTO PUESTO.
GRACIAS
HOLA YO LE ACABO DE PONER ESTE PRODUCTO A MI GATO DE 12 SEMANAS Y YA ME ASUSTE PORQUE LE VAYA A HACER ALGUN DAÑO, SI HUELE MUY FUERTE PERO MI GATITO LO VEO BIEN, ALGUIEN ME PUEDE DECIR QUE HAGO? TIENE EL PRODUCTO PUESTO.
GRACIAS
HOLA YO LE ACABO DE PONER ESTE PRODUCTO A MI GATO DE 12 SEMANAS Y YA ME ASUSTE PORQUE LE VAYA A HACER ALGUN DAÑO, SI HUELE MUY FUERTE PERO MI GATITO LO VEO BIEN, ALGUIEN ME PUEDE DECIR QUE HAGO? TIENE EL PRODUCTO PUESTO.
GRACIAS
Debe limpiar el producto de su gato tan pronto como posible. Utilice un jabón apacible y calente agua para quitarlo de su piel.
Debe limpiar el producto de su gato tan pronto como posible. Utilice un jabón apacible y calente agua para quitarlo de su piel.
Debe limpiar el producto de su gato tan pronto como posible. Utilice un jabón apacible y calente agua para quitarlo de su piel.
From the ASPCA website:
“If ingested, the peppermint plant and its oil could indeed potentially cause harm to your cat. Cats are especially sensitive to peppermint oil, and effects such as gastrointestinal upset, central nervous system depression and even liver damage could occur if ingested in significant quantities. Some peppermint oil formulations also contain aspirin derivatives, which could result in additional toxicity. Furthermore, if inhalation of the volatile oil were to occur, aspiration pneumonia may be possible. Based on this, we would not recommend using peppermint leaves or oil in areas where your cat is allowed access.”
I am pretty far from a hyper-sensitive pet owner but this is a terrible, thoughtless product. I have never personally experienced an example of corporate greed so flagrant.
Their customer service line will play dumb if you call them about this. They gave me the usual “some kitties may experience a reaction to the product”.
Awful product and the very definition of a soulless company.