My Cat Has Been Poisoned

Cats are poisoned less often than dogs, because they are more selective about what they eat. When it happens, it is usually through grooming something off their coat, or through a substance given to them by a well meaning owner.

The first minutes

Call before you set off. Tell us what was swallowed, roughly how much, and when.

Bring the packaging, the bottle, or a piece of the plant. Identifying the substance changes the treatment entirely.

Do not try to make your cat vomit. With caustic substances such as bleach or solvent, vomiting burns the oesophagus a second time on the way back up. Salt, oil and fingers down the throat all cause harm.

Do not give milk. The belief that milk binds poison is widespread and wrong.

If the substance is on the coat, stop the cat grooming it. An Elizabethan collar or a towel wrapped around the body will do until you reach us.

What poisons cats most often

Paracetamol. A single tablet can kill a cat. Cats lack the enzyme needed to process it. Signs include swollen face and paws, brown or blue gums and laboured breathing. Never give a cat human painkillers of any kind.

Permethrin spot on treatments made for dogs. This is one of the most common serious poisonings we see. A dog flea treatment applied to a cat causes tremors, seizures and death. Always check which species a spot on is intended for.

Lilies. Every part of the plant is toxic to cats, including the pollen and the water in the vase, and a small exposure causes kidney failure. A cat that has brushed against a lily and then groomed itself has been exposed.

Antifreeze. It tastes sweet, so cats will drink it. It damages the kidneys within hours, and treatment must be very fast.

Rat poison. Stops the blood clotting. Signs may not appear for several days, which is why a known exposure is treated straight away rather than watched.

Others: onion and garlic, chocolate, essential oils including tea tree, household disinfectants containing phenols, and human antidepressants.

Signs of poisoning

Drooling, vomiting, tremors or seizures, unsteadiness, laboured breathing, sudden collapse, gums that are pale, brown or blue, and pupils that do not react.

Some poisons produce nothing at all in the first hours. This is why a known exposure is an emergency even in a cat that seems fine.

What we do

Treatment depends entirely on what was taken. It may involve decontamination, activated charcoal, intravenous fluids to protect the kidneys, a specific antidote where one exists, and monitoring in the clinic.

Time is the single most important factor. Call.