Lemongrass for Your Dog & Cat.

Lemongrass has many healing benefits for both humans and pets alike. There are more than 50 different types of lemongrass but the lemongrass variety you want to work with is known as, Andropogan Citratus Lemongrass or Cymbopogon Citratus, not a citronella grass, which is part of the same family. 

It's easy to grow in a pot or in the garden and is a great addition to your edible garden for your cat or dog.

Lemongrass Nutrients

Lemongrass is incredibly useful for both humans and pets as it naturally contains an array of electrolytes and minerals such as potassium, copper, sodium, calcium, magnesium, manganese, selenium, phosphorous, iron, zinc, folate, vitamin C and antioxidants.

If you get your Lemongrass in a powder form then it's full of tannins, saponins, alkaloids, flavonoids macronutrients and micronutrients.

Basically, Lemongrass packs a punch in the nutrient rich department. If given access to a lemongrass plant both cats and dogs will seek it out for when they need help with any of the following ailments.

Lemongrass Uses & Benefits

• Treats anxiety
  
• Treats gastrointestinal problems
• Help with regulating sleep
• Lowers blood pressure
• Is anti-inflammatory
• Is anti-cancer
• Is a great antioxidant
• Is a great anti-fungal and anti-bacterial treatment.  It's better than antibiotics for treating pathogenic bacteria as it can treat 20 kinds of bacteria including E. coli, Salmonella, 7 different yeasts including Candida albicans and 15 different types of fungi.
• Helps alleviate the pain around gum disease
• Helps delay the onset of seizures
• Is effective in its use against heartworms
• Helps with allergies and with reactions such as asthma 
• Supports oral health. Helps with both plaque control and the prevention of gingivitis. Chewing on lemongrass stalks helps keep any oral bacteria at bay and keeps the mouth feeling fresh. Perhaps this is one of the main reasons pets naturally seek out the plant.
• Acts as a great insect repellent and helps against malaria
• Lemongrass is also an anti pyretic, so it can be used to prevent a fever when it gets too high
  

Lemongrass for Detox 

As a diuretic lemongrass helps in detoxification. It's rich in antioxidants and helps prevent oxidative stress as it releases an enzyme involved in detoxification and that detoxes the liver. It can help clean out the toxins specifically for the digestive and cardiovascular system.  It helps remove uric acids, contaminants and bad cholesterol. It also improves blood circulation and helps the digestive system.

Lemongrass for Digestion

Lemongrass helps promotes digestive health and relieves stomach pains. Lemongrass extract protects against stomach lesions, promotes healthy stools, is anti-diarrheal, reduces inflammation, helps against parasites including amoeba, relaxes the abdomen, reduces belching or acid reflex and acts as an antispasmodic.

Lemongrass for Pain 

When your cat or dog is permitted to munch on Lemongrass, it has the effect of relieving inflammation, pains and aches.  It helps with stomach and joint pains, relieves headaches, toothaches and reduces tension. Studies suggests that Lemongrass may actually help in blocking pain and prevent the patient from feeling pain. 

Lemongrass for Blood Issues

It Improves blood circulation, lowers blood pressure and helps boost the ability of the body to increase hemoglobin in red blood cells. It can be used as a treatment for anemia and studies by the University of Uyo and Calabar in Nigeria, determined hematologic indices are improved with lemongrass.

Lemongrass for Skin 

As mentioned above Lemongrass is a great natural antimicrobial and anti-fungal treatment. It's an excellent antiseptic and astringent. It's great for using in baths and foot/paw soaks to help relax and use for anti-fungal treatments.  

Lemongrass is a natural deodorizer and can strengthens hair follicles against hair loss, helps with the prevention of acne, skin infections and skin lesions as it's and insecticidal and counter-irritant.

It's works effectively with dogs that have skin issues or Demodex where you're needing to cleanse the hair follicles so it's helpful to give them lemongrass baths. You can also mix the lemongrass extracts with Neem, Rosemary or Curcumins for issues such as dermatitis or hot spots. It can be very healing for a variety of skin issues due to it's natural anti inflammatory properties.

Lemongrass for Cancer

In both vitro and vivo animal studies it's been shown that Lemongrass is as effective as chemotherapy, but without the toxic side effects. Lemongrass contains a substance which causes apoptosis, - it basically makes cancer cells commit suicide without killing healthy cells. 

It acts as an effective adjunctive therapy to chemo-radiation as it protects against DNA damage anti mutagenicity and helps neutralize damaging free radicals.

It's Citral cytotoxic effects have been shown to work against many cancers including drug resistant breast cancer through direct injection of the essential oil in a dose dependent manner. In cases such as Sarcoma it's been shown to have a 94% hit rate for tumor inhibition and it's effective in Leukemia and skin cancer treatment and prevention.

Lemongrass for Cleansing 

Since the 1700 it's been documented in the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum, that Lemongrass has been used in Van Van oil for hoodoo. Van Van oil is made using a combination of grasses, Lemongrass being just one ingredient but it's powerful properties were considered an essential ingredient to the oil. 

Van Van oil was and still is used today, to protect against evil spirits, helps with spirituality, brings about magical protection, cleanses a house of bad energy, brings good luck and new prospects.

Effective Ways to Use Lemongrass 

Three of the most effective ways to use Lemongrass with your pets are, 

1. Buy a plant so your cat or dog can select when to eat it. They know their requirements better than you so they'll seek it out as needed. 
2. Use the essential oil with a humidifier. If a few drops of Lemongrass essential oil are used as part of a humidifier your pet will benefit from the powerful properties of Lemongrass. Your cat or dog will naturally work with the humidifier by getting closer or further away from it to allow the lemongrass to work on a cellular level and depending on their individual needs. 
3. A Lemongrass hydrosol or make your own. Hydrosols contain the same properties as essential oils but are much safer to use with animals. Click here to learn how to make your own hydrosols.

Never apply essential oils directly onto a pet. They can be extremely harmful and sadly with the increasing popularity of essential oils growing, there are increasing cases of toxic reactions leading to death in pets.  Click here to know which essential oils you can safely use with your pet without any adverse effects.

Lemongrass as a tea is great also but this is mainly for humans. If you're going to allow your pet to drink a little ensure your using the pure leaves seeped in water and not the teabags, as this ensures nothing else has been added to the tea that may be harmful to your pet.

Do Not Use - with pregnant animals as it has a uterine and menstrual stimulating component that could affect the fetus and lead to a miscarriage.  Also don't give it to mothers that are breastfeeding because it's still unknown if there is an effect on the breastfeeding infant or animal.

Avoid giving lemongrass to liver or kidney compromised patients, those with Diabetes as the plant lowers glucose so if they are on medication it can be contraindicated. The same goes for those patients with blood pressure issues that are medicated as it naturally lowers blood pressure.

Lemongrass Essential Oil 

A dog has about 300 million olfactory receptors - odor sensitive cells in their nose and a cat 200 million, compared with humans who have ony 5 million. 

When using an essential oil, the aromatic molecules are absorbed through the mucous membranes in the olfactory tract while the lungs enable molecules to enter the lungs and therefore the bloodstream. There is also the Vomeronasal organ. You can see when an animal is using this because her mouth will hang slightly open. 

The aromatic molecules activate the VNO receptors which send signals to the emotional centers of the brain. The method of inhalation for dogs and cats is incredibly simple.  As a guide, a good distance when using the oil is to have it no closer than 1 or 2 feet from her nose. Let your cat or dog work with the oil by moving closer or further away, as needed and always have the room open so they can leave if it becomes too much or they've finished working with the oil.

Lemongrass essential oil is a great mood enhancer. If your pet is suffering from depression or deep sadness read more here, but using the essential oil acts as a sedative to calm the nerves, ease anxiety, relax muscles, reduces stress in cats, dogs and humans!

It can also be used for Cognitive Dysfunction and Night time waking. It's an effect way to treat insomnia and even memory loss such as Alzheimer's, dementia and neuro-behavioral diseases. It's been found to be 3 times more effective than sodium thiopental in lengthening sleep.

Look for the brand Ayurdeva's Essential Oils or Absolute Aromas. These are the only two brands we'll ever use with our pets as we trust their sourcing and that the oils are never mixed with synthetics or altered. 

 
Storing Your Lemongrass

Fresh lemongrass is good for many days after it has been cut. It can last for several months if freshly cut and added to water without loosing it's nutrition or flavor! 

You can also store cut stems in the refrigerator for several weeks, or freeze them for months. Equally lemongrass can be dried and stored indefinitely.

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Resources
www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs/lemongrass
www.luckymojo.com
Health Benefits of Lemongrass and How to Use - Dr Pat Jordan