Are Pet Wipes Safe?

Pet wipes are essentially the "baby wipes" for those with fur babies instead of human babies. But that may lead some people to ask: are pet wipes and baby wipes the same thing? 

Furthermore, what are the benefits of pet wipes compared to baby wipes? If they do the same job, are they essentially interchangeable?

Well, yes and no. 

In reality, both pet wipes and baby wipes have distinct benefits and intended uses. They’re also distinct products from regular surface wet wipes and even hand wipes. In general, you won’t want to interchange any type of wipe for a different job.

Let’s break down the different benefits of pet wipes and baby wipes and examine the situations where you can blur the line a little bit and use them outside their intended purposes.

Naturally, since both types of wipes are named for their uses, they’re different. Pet wipes (or dog wipes, as they’re often called) are wet wipes specifically designed to be used for your furry friends, not for your human baby. Dog or pet wipes are disposable cleaning cloths you can use to:

Clean your pet after spending some time outside

Clean their paws so they don’t get your furniture dirty

Clean behind their ears or other places where they may not be able to clean themselves

In general, pet wipes are madewithout alcohol and without artificial fragrances, plus several other compounds commonly found insurface wipes and baby wipes. 

Instead, pet wipes may have additional antibacterial wipes compound that won’t cause an allergic reaction or cause any problems if your pet accidentally ingests some of the ingredients.

Furthermore, pet wipes often come in two types: grooming and antibacterial. Grooming pet wipes are designed to help you get your cat or dog’s fur in place or smooth down any rough patches. Antibacterial wipes are better for general sanitizing and for soothing and irritated areas.

Pet wipes are mostly different from baby wipes because of ingredient differences. For instance, baby wipes may include:

Essential oils

Alcohol or isopropyl alcohol

Moisturizers

All of these are mostly safe for use with babies because you can expect that your little one won't lick their own skin and ingest any of those compounds (at least, not to the same degree as a typical pet!).