Air fresheners work by releasing chemicals into the air. They don’t deodorize or eliminate odors; but temporarily mask them. Air fresheners often cause respiratory tract irritation, particularly in smaller animals. Well, dogs and cats are even more sensitive to these effects. Air fresheners in both aerosol sprays and plug-ins contain a number of toxic chemicals that are dangerous to your pet's health. While air fresheners might seem like a good solution to help your house smell nice, around a cat’s litter box or dogs sleeping area, an air freshener toxic chemicals can cause long-term health problems. The chemicals irritate the mucus membranes and breathing passages of your pet, and that can cause even more serious long-term respiratory problems. Part of the problem with pets and air fresheners is that the air freshener is often placed close to the source, which means they are inhaling or ingesting more of the chemicals. Avoid putting air fresheners anywhere near your pets food and water, and also anywhere in or around a litter box. Air fresheners are toxic to pets in particular because they are right at nose level and can really affect your pets breathing.
