Pet Safety / Compounds / Sodium dichloroisocyanurate

Is Sodium dichloroisocyanurate safe for dogs and cats?

Low risk for pets

Treated water at recommended doses safe for animal consumption.

What is sodium dichloroisocyanurate?

The IUPAC name is sodium 1,5-dichloro-4,6-dioxo-1,3,5-triazin-2-olate.

Also known as: sodium 1,5-dichloro-4,6-dioxo-1,3,5-triazin-2-olate, Dikonit, Simpla, Troclosene sodium.

IUPAC name
sodium 1,5-dichloro-4,6-dioxo-1,3,5-triazin-2-olate
CAS number
2893-78-9
Molecular formula
C3Cl2N3NaO3
Molecular weight
219.94 g/mol
SMILES
C1(=NC(=O)N(C(=O)N1Cl)Cl)[O-].[Na+]
PubChem CID
517202

Risk for dogs

Low risk

Treated water at recommended doses safe for animal consumption.

Risk for cats

Low risk

Same as dogs.

Regulatory consensus

6 regulatory and scientific bodies have classified Sodium dichloroisocyanurate. The classifications differ — that's the data.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
WHO2019no carcinogenicity classification; WHO prequalified water purification agent for emergency and household use; safety governed by hypochlorous acid and cyanuric acid hydrolysis products; no separate carcinogenicity data
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: negative (Ames: negative, 0 positive / 6 negative reports)
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: negative (Ames: negative, 0 positive / 6 negative reports)
WHO—Essential Medicine — on WHO Model List of Essential Medicines for water purification
EPA—Registered antimicrobial pesticide under FIFRA
NSF—NSF/ANSI 60 certified for drinking water treatment

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where pets encounter sodium dichloroisocyanurate

  • Industrial Facilities — Manufacturing plants, Chemical storage areas, Waste treatment sites
  • Occupational Environments — Factories, Warehouses, Transportation vehicles
  • Swimming Pools And Spas — Granular pool shock treatment, Spa/hot tub sanitizer (preferred over TCCA for spas)
  • Emergency Water Treatment — Aquatabs (WHO-approved), Military water purification, Disaster relief water treatment
  • Hospital Disinfection — Surface disinfection in healthcare settings, Blood spill cleanup tablets
  • Food Processing — Produce wash, Dairy and beverage equipment sanitation

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Sodium dichloroisocyanurate:

  • Physical/mechanical pest control (IPM)
    Trade-offs: More labor-intensive. May not be sufficient for severe infestations.
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×
  • Sodium hypochlorite (bleach)
    Trade-offs: Alternative approach; specific tradeoffs depend on application context, scale, and regulatory requirements. Full hazard assessment of alternative recommended before adoption to avoid regrettable substitution.
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×
  • Calcium hypochlorite (cal-hypo)
    Trade-offs: Alternative approach; specific tradeoffs depend on application context, scale, and regulatory requirements. Full hazard assessment of alternative recommended before adoption to avoid regrettable substitution.
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

Is sodium dichloroisocyanurate safe for pets?

Treated water at recommended doses safe for animal consumption.

What products contain sodium dichloroisocyanurate?

Sodium dichloroisocyanurate appears in: Manufacturing plants (Industrial facilities); Chemical storage areas (Industrial facilities); Factories (Occupational environments); Warehouses (Occupational environments); Granular pool shock treatment (Swimming pools and spas).

Why do regulators disagree about sodium dichloroisocyanurate?

Sodium dichloroisocyanurate has been classified by 6 agencies including WHO, EPA CTX / Genetox, EPA CTX / Genetox, WHO, EPA, with differing conclusions. Regulators apply different standards of evidence (animal data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds), which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. See the regulatory consensus table on this page for the full picture.

See Sodium dichloroisocyanurate in the pets app

Look up products containing sodium dichloroisocyanurate, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

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Sources (2)
  1. WHO NaDCC Prequalification: Emergency Water Treatment 1.67–3.33 mg/L Free Chlorine; Aquatabs WHO List; Household Water Treatment HWTS; Humanitarian Emergency Safe Water (2019) — regulatory
  2. WHO UNICEF NaDCC Water Purification Tablets: 56% Available Chlorine; Rapid Dissolution; Contact Time 30 min; Low-Resource Settings; Disinfection Byproduct Profile (2016) — regulatory

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →