This time of year we see far too many cats and dogs getting sick, some with life-threatening symptoms, simply because they found a lovely plant and decided it was a salad bar!
And thank you for the updated info on poinsettias...at one time it was thought to cause liver damage, but that has been shown not to be the case. It WILL make your pet sick if they eat enough, and it can occasionally cause canker sores (which in my experience seems to happen more to dogs than cats. No idea why.). Not that that's EVER stopped any of my 4 cats from taking a nibble!
A good rule of thumb is, if it comes from a bulb/tuber, it's toxic, especially to cats. Doesn't matter if we're talking daffodils or garlic, lilies or vidalias, iris or turmeric--pretty much every bulb or tuber-based plant contains compounds that are lethal to pets, even in small amounts.
If you're gifted any of these, take it to your office, put it somewhere your pet can't reach (quite a challenge with a cat, I know), or--gasp!--re-gift it to someone without pets!
This time of year we see far too many cats and dogs getting sick, some with life-threatening symptoms, simply because they found a lovely plant and decided it was a salad bar!
And thank you for the updated info on poinsettias...at one time it was thought to cause liver damage, but that has been shown not to be the case. It WILL make your pet sick if they eat enough, and it can occasionally cause canker sores (which in my experience seems to happen more to dogs than cats. No idea why.). Not that that's EVER stopped any of my 4 cats from taking a nibble!
A good rule of thumb is, if it comes from a bulb/tuber, it's toxic, especially to cats. Doesn't matter if we're talking daffodils or garlic, lilies or vidalias, iris or turmeric--pretty much every bulb or tuber-based plant contains compounds that are lethal to pets, even in small amounts.
If you're gifted any of these, take it to your office, put it somewhere your pet can't reach (quite a challenge with a cat, I know), or--gasp!--re-gift it to someone without pets!
--Stephanie Csornok
25+ year animal rescuer