4 Unconventional Ways To Give Flower Essences To Dogs

Flower essences for dogs are typically given either on food or a treat, or directly into the dog’s mouth. But these methods aren’t a good fit for every dog or situation. Learn some unconventional but practical and effective ways of giving flower essences to your dog – or any animal. 

In this article I’ll discuss some alternative ways to give flower essences to dogs (and other animals) that may never have occurred to you, and why you might like to do so.

The two ways most of us are used to giving flower essences are either placed on food or a treat, or directly into the mouth.

But sometimes we may want or need to use different methods. And while these less conventional methods may be less familiar, the great thing is they are no less effective.

First, let’s look at why we might not want to give flower essences in one of the usual ways.

Why Not Give Flower Essences On Food Or Into Mouth?

• Picky animals may reject something strange smelling on their food.
• Nervous animals may be afraid of someone approaching their head with a strange object like a dropper.
• Some animals (cats come to mind) may be naturally suspicious of anything new or different in/on their food.
• If your dog doesn’t tolerate handling of his mouth, this can make it difficult if you want to administer drops directly into the mouth.
• Alcohol sensitive animals may not be able to tolerate even very small amounts of alcohol. (And all Bach flower remedies have at least some alcohol in them).
• Dogs with sensitive digestion may suffer unfortunate consequences when given new foods or supplements.

So we can see there are several legitimate reasons why we might want to explore alternatives. And some pet owners may decide to not use flower essences at all for one or more of the reasons above.

But the fact is, there are some great alternative methods of administrating essences to pets. Some of these are used more in certain animals than others, but they should be viable and effective for any type of animal.

Alternative Ways To Give Flower Essences To Animals

Add to water bowl. Put some flower essence drops into the animal’s water bowl/bucket. This may sound awfully similar to putting flower essences on the food, but it has the advantage of diluting the drops to such a degree that most animals won’t reject them. Also, if the animal is very sensitive either digestively or energetically, flower essences are far less likely to cause a reaction when in this highly diluted form.

And because flower essences are an energy therapy, their effectiveness is more dependent on how frequently they are taken, rather than on the actual quantity given per dose.

If the animal is super-sensitive, try placing a second water bowl with the flower essence drops *next to* your animal’s regular water. This way, she has complete control over how much she gets, and can adjust to the taste and regulate the energy-balancing effects at her own pace. Change or refresh the flower essence water once or twice a day.

Spray mist. Flower essences can be misted around the dog’s head, and/or his bedding, in his crate and other sleeping/resting areas. This can be done at full flower essence blend strength, but a more economical option is to put several drops into a spray mister bottle with some spring water added.

Apply drops directly to bare skin and massage it in. Anything put onto the skin will absorb directly and bypass the digestive system, so this is a great way to go if your dog is prone to digestive upsets or sensitive to alcohol.

You can put a few drops into the palm or your hand and massage into the inside of the ear flaps, paw pads, or belly skin. Alternatively, rub a few drops briefly between your palms, then glide your hands over the dog’s face and head.

Apply to acupressure points, or to areas on the body where muscle tension tends to accumulate. In this case, part the fur and drip a few drops onto the skin in the desired area. Then massage in with fingertips.

This method is probably most commonly used with horses, but is good for any animals that tend to accumulate tension in particular regions of the body.

Is There A Best Method Of Administration?

I honestly don’t think there is a best method of administering flower essences to dogs, or any animal. I think it simply depends on what works best for the individual dog, situation, and what you’re comfortable with. 

The real test will be to try out these alternative methods and see what works best for your dog. It may be that one method works well in one situation, and different method in another. Try it out and see! 

As you can see, the possibilities for administering flower essences go way beyond “the usual suspects”.

I hope this has been helpful, especially if you have a dog, or even just a situation, that you didn’t think flower essences would be practical for.

If you learned something, or enjoyed the info, I would love it if you would share the article with your friends. Every little bit helps!

Aldaron Essences’ online store closed permanently on May 31, 2023. I no longer sell flower essence formulas directly to customers.

Instead, I’m focusing on developing the Aldaron Essences blog into a premier resource on flower essences for dogs and other animals. I’ll also be expanding my dog training website, Train2Behave.com, as well as my Etsy store of mostly dog training- and breed-related apparel and gifts.

In the coming weeks, you can expect new pages on this site that will detail some of my most popular flower essence formulas for dogs. These pages will replace the old links to those products on the store. Thanks for your patience during the transition!

Best,
julie

Julie Cantrell BSc is a professional dog trainer and canine behavior consultant who’s logged many thousands of hours training dogs and teaching owners since 1990. Flower essences have been part of her work with canine behavior since 1994. (Bio)