# Pets & Pennyroyal **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 3, 1999, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pets-pennyroyal/4447 "1999-11-03T22:04:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 1999, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pets-pennyroyal/4447/1 "1999-11-03T22:04:00Z")
My mother runs a pet store. Recently, she got a new insect repellant for dogs and cats that contains pennyroyal oil. Pennyroyal is an abortificatient, IIRC, and when consumed orally, is highly toxic. Web sites I checked said that pennyroal is also used as an insect repellant for animals, but none said how high of a concentration of the oil might be dangerous. My mother is wondering is a pregnant dog might absorb enough through her skin to abort, or if the oil in the spray could be toxic to animals. Mom says there are a lot of semi-toxic products that are sold for pets under the guise of being perfectly safe, and she doesn’t want to sell a product that is potentially harmful. Does anyone have an idea how/where I might find information on this? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 1999, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pets-pennyroyal/4447/2 "1999-11-03T23:10:00Z")
From the [url=][SmartBasics.com](http://SmartBasics.com) (manufacturer of herbal supplements) site: > [@](#): > > When employed to induce abortion the effects of pennyroyal oil are extremely dangerous and can be lethal. In one case, despite immediate emergency hospital treatment, an expectant mother died within hours of consuming just two tablespoonfuls of pennyroyal oil in an attempt to initiate self-abortion. Other cases have resulted in coma and convulsions after consuming much smaller amounts of this extremely toxic oil. Sounds pretty nasty to me. * * * TT “Believe those who seek the truth. Doubt those who find it.” --Andre Gide ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 1999, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pets-pennyroyal/4447/3 "1999-11-03T23:11:00Z")
Rats. Try this: [SmartBasics.com](http://www.smartbasic.com/welcome.html) * * * TT “Believe those who seek the truth. Doubt those who find it.” --Andre Gide