We have several cats in our house, and we love them all. I had thought that incense and essentials were very bad things to have around cats, so I’ve avoided them.
But I was just reading the Healing Prayer for a Beloved Cat and it mentions sandalwood and frankincense incense and also frankincense oil, sandalwood oil and lavender oil.
Are those particular oils and incenses safe to use around cats? Or does the cat have to be safely in another part of the house during the ritual (and after, if the smoke lingers) ?
Of the things you’ve listed, my concerns would more be with the incense and less so the frankincense oil as that can be harmful to cats if inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin.
I have cats and when I use incense or potentially toxic (to cats) essential oils, I shut them out of the room where I’ll be using it. Then I air out the room well before letting them back in. The oils are more of a concern if you are diffusing them, letting the cat ingest them, or putting them on them. Otherwise, I think if you use them in a ritual or spell, I’d have the kitties in another room to make sure the cats don’t have access to the oils.
Thanks. That’s pretty much what I thought. I’ll have to continue avoiding incense. My altar is in the master bedroom and two of the cats pretty much live in there, away from the other cats in the house. Moving them out of the bedroom when I want to do a ritual is not an option.
I previously had a cat with asthma and couldn’t use incense in the house at all. With my current trio of kitties, I just shut them out of the room while the incense is lit, and air out the room well after I’d done before they are allowed back in.