Poisonous Plants and Flowers for Cats (and dogs too!)

[CountAllVotes]

Lots of good information here!

http://www.1stinflowers.com/articles/poisonous-plants-for-cats.html

There is also info. for dogs as well.

http://www.1stinflowers.com/articles/poisonous-plants-for-dogs.html

I just had a bunch of trees ripped out of the backyard and at present I'm trying to come up with some SMALL plants/bushes, etc. to put in, like a Juniper or two perhaps.

I found these plants on the toxic list:

Flowers and plants that cause organ damage
(Kidney, liver, stomach, heart, etc.)

Azalea (in small amounts)
Cardboard Palm
Crocus
Foxglove
Juniper (so much for the Juniper idea)
Lily

As for flowers/plants that have a fatal reaction, they list these:

Flowers and plants that cause death

Azalea (in large amounts)
Cyclamen
Delphinium
Dumb Cane (Dieffenbachia)
Foxglove
Lantana
Larkspur
Mistletoe
Oleander
Rhododendron
Sago Palms

Rhododendrons are big where I live and grow easily here. That idea is OUT needless to say. I had no idea that the above plants could cause organ damage and/or death!

Just posting this FYI in case you happen to have these common plants around.

NOTE: Chrysanthemums are also listed. Many of these exterminators/pest control folks use a spray containing Chrysanthemum in it and tout that it is pet-friendly. It is NOT pet friendly -- many very serious side effects can come from it so be sure to ask for details about their "pet-friendly" products!

As the old saying goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure".

And so it is! Yikes!!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Lilies are especially bad.

Never bring lilies inside! If somebody gives you an arrangement with lilies in it, or if you end up with an Easter lily in the spring, give it away or keep it outside. Lilies are extremely poisonous to cats.

[Curmudgeoness]

2. I don't know about the juniper being a problem.

I have about 50 juniper bushes planted all over my front hill, and the stray cats in the neighborhood are always hunting under them since they are planted close together and form a solid grouping. These strays have lived here for years with no issues. I cannot imagine any cat wanting or trying to eat it. I would not be worried at all about planting junipers.

[CountAllVotes]

3. It seems that some species of juniper are more toxic than others

Found this info. on a search:

https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110105082408AAheqam

There are between 50-67 species of juniper. Juniper is not listed on either link #1 or #2. It is listed on link #3 from Australia. Digging deeper it seems the toxic juniper is Juniperus sabina. All parts of the J. sabina plant are poisonous due to several toxic compounds including ethereal oils. You'll want to look at link #5 which mentions that Juniperus virginiana and Juniperus thurifera should also be considered as toxic as J. sabina. It also lists the toxic ingredients and some of the home preparations that might call for juniper. Essential oil from Juniperus occidentalis is also toxic [link #6].

For more information enter Juniperus toxicity into a search engine.
Source:
http://www.aspca.org/Pet-care/poison-con...
http://www.xmission.com/~emailbox/plants...
http://amby.com/cat_site/plants.html
http://www.cat-world.com.au/plants-toxic...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juniperus_s...
http://www.botanical-online.com/alcaloid...
http://juniper.oregonstate.edu/craig.pdf

Not sure what to think given your situation.

[Curmudgeoness]

4. I think that I know the species that I have

is Juniperus chinensis. And I seriously doubt that any animals would be willing to try eating it. The leaves are very prickly and can be painful. I do think that there is some toxicity to it, since I always have an allergic reaction when I come in contact with it on bare skin but I can't see animals trying to eat it.

With that said, I will say that there are so many shrubs to choose from, including many evergreens, if you are uncomfortable with using juniper in your yard, you don't have to. Find other choices. I would if I had the choice to do it because I would look for native plants that would furnish food and shelter for wildlife...but that is me.

[CountAllVotes]

5. Well, the native tree in these parts is ...

The redwood tree and there is no way that I'd want one of these in the backyard. It was bad enough getting rid of all of those other trees that were back there and oh my what a job it was to be rid of them.

Had to hire a guy with a humungous Ford truck who then backed the sucker into the yard and attached a chain to the hitch on the truck and then on to the tree and backed it up and pulled, backed it up and pulled until they came up.

Needless to say the backyard is a mess and Jules no longer has her "secret" cat den. Those trees had to go as my husband can no longer keep them up. They grew to be 30' high and woah ... they had to go!

Sorry to hear of your allergies. Allergies are one of my many problems in life as well.

[shenmue]

6. Thanks for posting

[CountAllVotes]

7. Awww ....

Thank you.

[rhana99]

8. Anthuriums are very toxic to cats

I'm a cat owner for a long time, but due to lack of information last year I bought an Anthurium. It's a lovely plant; however, it turned out to be very toxic. One evening my cat decided to chew a leaf and it triggered a strong allergic reaction. The vet informed me that Anthuriums are poisonous to cats. This surprised me a great deal, but also made me more cautious in choosing indoor flowers. I hope this article will be of use as well ? https://storify.com/jessie_alinari/six-poisonous-flowers-to-keep-away-from-your-cat

[CountAllVotes]

9. Thanks for the info.!

and Welcome to the Democratic Underground!

Needless to say, I'm a cat lover too. I have three of them at present.

They make for good company as my old cousin in Indiana says.

[Electric Monk]

10. k&r, nt

[CountAllVotes]

11. kick for Julie & everyone else out there