Listerine for Hot Spots
Home Remedies
A horse lover shared the following formula she used on the mane and tail of her filly: 1/3 Listerine (original formula) 1/3 baby oil and 1/3 water Put in a spray bottle, shake well and spray it on. This is quite similar to the formula recommended for dogs’ itchy hot spots. The herbal oils in Listerine may have some antifungal or antibacterial activity. Chronic itching may be the result of an allergic reaction. Changing to a hypoallergenic dog food is sometimes helpful.
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Copyright (c) 1999 by Graedon Enterprises, Inc. From The People's Pharmacy Guide To Home And Herbal Remedies by Joe Graedon and Teresa Graedon. Reprinted by permission of St. Martin's Press, LLC.





Reader Comments
This really does work! My mother's dog has anxiety problems, and when she's stresed she licks and chews on her elbow until she ends up with a raw sore. On the advice of her vet, my mom and I mixed this up and rubbed it into her 'hot spot' twice a day, making sure to bandage it so she didn't ingest any of the mixture. We started noticing results immediately - the spot scabbed over and dried up, and started healing within a couple of days.
It's easy to use - just mix as much as you want, then the best way to apply it is to pat some on with a tissue or cotton pad until the area is fully moistened, then alternate pouring some directly on the spot (carefully) and rubbing it in until the area is very wet. No need to rinse off, and it doesn't appear to sting. Just make sure to shake the solution every time you use it, because the baby oil separates.
Posted by: LPD | April 8, 2008 2:21 AM
This is/was the most fantastic solution I'd read about in a long time! The minute my dogs start "worrying" a spot, I get out my spray bottle, spray the area thoroughly, massage the solution into their skin, and the problem stops immediately. No more hot spots that involve trips to the vet. Thank you whoever suggested that remedy.
Posted by: Jill | April 20, 2008 12:34 PM
I have been dealing with a flea infestation that I discovered I had a week ago. I brought the dog to the vet and had him dipped. They kept him overnight so that I could have the exterminator come into the house the next day and then as soon as poor Jake came home, he had the fleas on him again. The vet said it takes time to go through the kill cycle and they sent him home with a pill that is supposed to kill the adult fleas. He was still suffering four days later and then I remembered reading your article on the Listerine remedy. I looked it up on your website and sprayed it on Jake and then combed his fur with a flea comb to get the Listerine formula to penetrate. Within minutes two fleas that I had been trying to catch all night came right to the surface and I was able to just pick them off the dog.
Thank you so much. My little Jack Russell is sleeping soundly and not jumping up going crazy with fleas.
I will be buying Listerine and baby oil by the gallon.
Posted by: Karen E. | June 5, 2008 10:50 PM
My dog Abbie has had a really bad itchy rash on her chest feet and arm, I've tried Listerine on her stomach and chest and it helped a lot, but her feet still itch so bad she has them raw from chewing.
Is there anything else I can try? The vet has given me a shampoo and a anti-fungi tab for her to use, but so far its not helped. We even switched her dog food. Does anyone have an answer to what is happening with her?
Posted by: E Parks | November 5, 2008 11:52 AM
We have been battling our dog licking his paws since he was 4 mths old. We have him on lamb and rice but it still continued and we'd end up going through another bout of antibiotics to clear it up. I read about giving them organic yogurt and apple cider vinegar so I've started giving him a heaping tbsp in the morning with his food and a cap full of acv mixed in it. He loves it actually. We've also started wiping his feet with a baby wipe when he comes in from outdoors. We had to use his itching medicine for a couple of days but he's been off all other antibiotics for over a month now. I think these things are really helping.
Posted by: SW | November 14, 2008 2:11 PM