Plants hazardous for cats: catalogue

Discover everything you need to know about the Maine Coon, an affectionate and playful cat breed.

Plants hazardous for cats: catalogue

The Internet abounds with the lists of poisonous plants but they are often far from being complete. It is impossible to remember everything. So it’s easier for the cats’ owners to examine their own plants for hazards for cat’s health than try to remember the long lists of poisonous plants.

Far not all the plants which are mentioned in the lists of dangerous for cats herbs can cause serious poisonings. So you don’t have to take all these lists so serious. But there are some deadly poisonous plants that every ailurophile has to know about.

Every ailurophile should also realize that it is better to be too careful that just careless: plants should be put aside of the cat’s way because most houseplants are poisonous in varying degrees.

Many garden and field herbs can cause cat’s poisonings of greater or lesser severity. Most cats’ owners are sure that as soon as they take their pet outdoor it can easily find some useful herbs on its own. It is not quite so. Cats navigate their search by smell and taste and they sometimes make mistakes. The mistake can sometimes cost them their lives: the plant can be treated with pesticides. Some gardeners throw everywhere in their garden rat poison. Those poisons aren’t perceived by cats as dangerous substances. Both cats and dogs often get poisoned and die.

Below you can find a list of the most common poisonous plants. Remember that many of plants which are mentioned here have a lot of sorts and varieties and different species of one plant (genus) can differ from each other markedly. The fact that plants on your windowsill are not similar to the plants in the pictures below does not mean that your plants aren’t poisonous. Find out the names of your houseplants and check them using the names (the 1st column) but not the pictures.

Poisonous houseplants

Name of the plant

Poisonous parts

Symptoms of poisoning

Azalea

the whole plant

vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency

Aloe

diarrhea

Amaryllidaceae

leaves, stalks and scales of the bulbs

allergic dermatitis, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency, lesions of the nervous system

Gemantus

Hymenocallis

Gippeastrum

Clivia

Crinum

Zephyranthes

Euharis

Araceae

juice contains oxalic acid

The juice can cause burns, causes edema of larynx and oral mucosa. A severe edema can.

Aglaonema

Alocasia

Dieffenbachia

Anthurium

Zamoiculcas zamiifolia

Caladium

Colocasia

Monstera deliciosa

Syngonium

Spathiphyllum

Scindapsus, Epipremnum

Philodendron

Scindapsus, Epipremnum

Begonia

the whole plant contains oxalic acid

Being ingested it burns the mucous membrane of the mouth, causes edema of larynx and oral mucosa.

Asparagus plumossus, Asparagus densiflorus sprengery

vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency

Gardenia jasminoides

allergic dermatitis

Geranium, Pelargonium, especially blood red geranium (Sanguinaria Canadensis)

the whole plant, especially leaves

indigestion

Epiphyllum Pfeiffer, Epiphyllanthus Berger, Zygocactus Schumann, Schlumbergera Lemaire

the whole plant, especially leaves

edema of larynx

Dracaena marginata

edema of larynx

Zamia

allergic dermatitis

Apocynaceae

juice contains oxalic acid

vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency, lesions of the nervous system; heart glycosides can cause cardiac standstill

Adenium

Allamanda

Mandevilla or Dipladenia

Katarantus

Oleander

Pachypodium

Solanaceae

Ornamental Pepper

Browallia

Brunfelsia

Brugmansia

Solandra

Peperomia

edema of larynx, violation of coordination of movements, acute heart failure

Hedera: platanoides, heart-shaped, egg-shaped, silver

It contains a substance which interacts with cholesterol in red blood cells and makes them divide

vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency; Boston Hedera can cause edema of larynx

Sanseveria, or viper’s bowstring hemp

allergic dermatitis

Buxus

severe poisoning of the organism, lethal outcome is possible

Saintpaulia

vomiting, diarrhea

Fatsia japonica

the whole plant

lesions of the nervous system

Haworthia

edema of larynx

Chlorophytum

allergic dermatitis, but not for every cat

Cyclamen

juice

eye irritation, skin burns vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency

Cyperus

vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency

Schefflera

the whole plant

contact dermatitis, irritation of the mucous

All Euphorbia (more than 1600 species)

they secrete milky juice containing poisonous substance called euphorbin

skin burns, irritation of the mucous, conjunctivitis that can be followed by blindness, lesions of the nervous system, severe , diarrhea

Acalypha

Codiaeum (Croton)

Cypress Spurge

Euphorbia helioscopia

Poinsettia (“Christmas Star” or Euphorbia pulcherrima)

Ficus

Jatropha

Euphorbia Mile

Ficus

Bouquets

Name of the plant	Poisonous parts	Symptoms of poisoning
Hyacinthus	pollen, leaves, stems, flowers, bulbs	toxic poisoning, violation of coordination of movements, heart failure
Iris	leaves, roots	vomiting, diarrhea
Convallaria majalis		vomiting, diarrhea
Calla	it contains oxalic acid	irritation of mouth, edema of larynx, heart failure, lesions of the nervous system
Lilium	pollen	edema of larynx, heart failure, lesions of the nervous system
Narcissus	leaves, , stalks and scales of the bulbs	vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Galanthus	the whole plant, especially flowers and berries	after the cut flowers have stood in water it also gets poisonous. Don’t allow the cat to drink out of the vase. Flowers and berries can cause allergic reactions, dysfunction of the digestive system, and even heart failure.
Tulipa	pollen, leaves, bulbs	toxic poisoning, violation of coordination of movements, heart failure, allergic dermatitis
Chrysanthemum		irritation of mouth, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency, allergic dermatitis

Garden and field plants

Name of the plant	Poisonous parts	Symptoms of poisoning
Adonis vernalis	all parts of the plant
Aconitum	all parts of the plant	systemic toxic effects
Aquilegia (Granny’s Bonnet or Columbine)	seeds
Arisaema tryphyllum		edema of larynx, violation of coordination of movements, acute heart failure
Arum	it is poisonous because it contains alkaloids
Vinca		hallucinogen
Begonia	the whole plant contains oxalic acid	Being ingested it burns the mucous membrane of the mouth, causes edema of larynx and oral mucosa.
Colchicum autumnale	all parts of the plant	allergic dermatitis, toxic poisoning, violation of coordination of movements, acute heart failure
Atropa belladonna (or deadly nightshade)	all parts of the plant contain alkaloids	sickness, vomiting, drowsiness
Robinia pseudoacacia	bark	vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, stomach ache, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Hyoscyamus		systemic toxic effects
Galanthus vernus	leaves, stems, bulbs	allergic dermatitis vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency, damage of the nervous system
Euonymus	the whole plant
Biota orientalis or Thuja orientalis		edema of larynx, violation of coordination of movements, acute heart failure
Cicuta virosa (cowbane or northern water hemlock)	The whole plant is poisonouos. Cicuta smells like carrots, and its roots taste like reddish. The resin of the root contains cicutoxin.	Sickness, vomiting and colic, dizziness, shakiness, foaming at the mouth. The pupils are dilated, epileptic fits and cramps can end with paralysis and death. 100-200g of the roots is enough to kill a cow, and 50-100g kills a sheep. According to some sources, Socrates was killed with the poison from this plant.
Heracleum		the most severe skin burns
Parthenocissus tricuspidata		edema of larynx, violation of coordination of movements, acute heart failure
Daphne mezereum	Bark, leaves, flowers and fruit are very poisonous.	systemic toxic effects
Hellebores	the whole plant, especially roots and leaves	irritation of mucous, vomiting, diarrhea, heart failure
Heliotropium laseocarpum	leaves, stalks and seeds
Geranium, Pelargonium, especially blood red geranium (Sanguinaria Canadensis)		indigestion
Wisteria		vomiting, diarrhea
Gloriosa		deadly poisonous
Hydrangea	Leaves and flowers contain cyanide ions that have a poisonous effect when the contact saliva or water	vomiting, diarrhea, shiver, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Delphinium		vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Datura	all parts of the plant contain alkaloids	sickness, vomiting, drowsiness
Sweet tobacco	all parts of the plant contain alkaloids	sickness, vomiting, drowsiness
Jasminum or Philadelphus		systemic toxic effects
Lonicera		edema of larynx
Hypericum		damage of the nervous system
Lonicera caprifolium
Cornus		edema of larynx
Clematis		vomiting, diarrhea
Ricinus communis		vomiting, diarrhea
Cannabis		hallucinogen
Aesculus	seedlings, nuts, seeds	vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Crocus	the whole plant	vomiting, diarrhea
Trollius	roots
Phytolacca Americana and Phytolacca accinosa		vomiting, diarrhea
Lysichiton americanum		vomiting, diarrhea
Lupinus		systemic toxic effects
Ranunculus		systemic toxic effects
Papaver		hallucinogen
Digitalis	leaves	vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Viscum		disorders of the heart and central nervous system
Nerium oleander	the whole plant, especially leaves	systemic toxic effects, disorders of the heart
Polypodiophyta		vomiting, diarrhea
Capsella
Primulaceae, including Primula	juice	skin burn and allergic dermatitis
Petunia	all parts of the plant contain poisonous alkaloids	vomiting, diarrhea, drowsiness
Tansy (Tanacetum )	while blooming the inflorescences of Tanacetum contain alkaloids (0.04-0.5%), glycosides, organic acids. The plant is toxic because of the presence of thujone
Artemisia taurica Willd	aboveground parts
Orange tree, bigaradia, bitter orange (Citrus aurantium)		vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Pulsatilla pratensis	juice	The leaves extract has strong bactericidal and fungicidal effect, has sedative effect and can be used as a hypnotic, an analgesic and expectorant, stimulates liver functions. It is used in veterinary medicine. The juice can cause skin diseases.
Rheum	leaves	systemic toxic effects
Rhododendron	leaves	cardiovascular disorders, diarrhea and vomiting
Ruta graviolens (rue, herb-of-grace)		inflammation and burns of the mouth
Buxus (European box, boxwood)		systemic toxic effects, lethal outcome is possible
Nicotiana	leaves	edema of larynx, violation of coordination of movements, acute heart failure
Taxus baccata (yew, English yew, European yew)	bark, leaves, seeds	vomiting, diarrhea, acute heart failure
Physalis		vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency
Chlorophytum		allergic dermatitis, but not all cats get it
Veratrum (false hellebores, corn lilies)	leaves, roots, seeds	vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, heart failure, kidney and pulmonary insufficiency up to lethal outcome
Chelidonium	it contains alkaloids: homochelidonine, chelerythrine, sanguinarine, protopine and others	Cramps, increased intestinal peristalsis and secretion of saliva, hallucinations. Cattle gets severe poisoning, strong inflammation of the stomach and intestines. When, for example, a pig has eaten Chelidonium, it does not only get weak, but it also becomes deaf.

Some more poisonous plants: potatoes (sprouts), onions, tomatoes (stems, leaves, green fruit), apple (seeds), elderberry (berries), dandelion (milky juice of old plants is dangerous).

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