Aloe Vera is a staple in so many of our homes. We love this succulent not just because it looks great on a windowsill, but because that gooey gel inside its leaves is basically a miracle worker for our skin. But while Aloe is a total blessing for us humans, you might be wondering: is it actually safe for our furry friends—especially cats?
What’s Really Inside Aloe Vera?
Hailing from tropical climates, Aloe Vera is a master at storing water in its thick, fleshy leaves. If you’ve ever snapped a leaf open, you’ve seen that clear gel ooze out. For us, that gel is a powerhouse for hydrating dry skin, soothing sunburns, and speeding up wound healing. It gets its healing reputation from a cocktail of over 200 active ingredients, including:
- Essential oils
- Amino acids
- Vitamins
- Salicylic acid (which helps with pain relief)
- Acemannan (a complex sugar that helps fight off bacteria and viruses)
Using Aloe Vera with Pets
The good news is that pets can actually benefit from Aloe’s healing properties too! If your pet gets a little scrape or irritation while playing outside, applying some cooling gel can help soothe the pain and kickstart the healing process. However, things get a little tricky when it comes to “internal” use.
Cats are notorious for nibbling on houseplants, which is usually fine—unless that plant contains something toxic. Besides the good stuff, Aloe Vera contains a bitter compound called Aloin. This substance is toxic to cats, dogs, and even birds. If your cat decides to make a snack out of your Aloe plant, the Aloin can cause some pretty nasty symptoms, such as:
- Diarrhea
- Intestinal bleeding
- Cramping
- Irritation of the mouth
- Lethargy or paralysis
- Kidney damage
Because of this, it’s always a smart move to keep your Aloe plants on a high shelf or in a room where your pets can’t get to them.
Aloe Vera as a Natural Remedy
If you want to use Aloe gel as a natural remedy for your pet (even internally), you have to make sure the toxic Aloin is completely filtered out first. Luckily, there’s an easy way to do this at home:
- Grab a clean pot or jar and set a fine-mesh strainer over the top.
- Cut a fresh leaf off your Aloe plant and place it upright (cut-side down) in the strainer.
- Let it sit for a while. The yellow sap—that’s the Aloin—will drain out.
- Once the yellow liquid stops dripping, the clear gel left inside the leaf is safe to use.
- You can then apply this pure gel to your pet’s wounds. If they lick it off now, it’s perfectly safe!
- You can even mix a little bit of this purified gel into their food every now and then to help boost their immune system.
