Unattended dogs will occasionally ingest large amounts of zinc oxide in human sunscreens or ointments. Zinc toxicity in dogs may have numerous symptoms: Excessive and continuous vomiting and diarrhoea. Lack of appetite, lethargy and weakness.

There are some sunscreens created specifically for pets, but using baby sunscreen is also an option. Most human sunscreens have ingestion warnings because the ingredients can be toxic if a child or dog ingests them, so if your pet is likely to lick it, look for a pet-specific sunscreen.