If you have a cat at home you might have some planning to do regarding the issue of indoor plants. While many plants are perfectly fine for cats to be around, not all of them are harmless and many can hurt or kill your cat if consumed.
There are a number of popular plants that are toxic to cats when ingested such as lilies, daffodils and hyacinths whereas simple skin contact with geraniums and tomato leaves may cause skin irritation and itching.
Cats often eat grass or other plants for the nutrients which is harmless but others can be highly dangerous to their health.
Let’s take a closer look at which plants can hurt cats and how to avoid this exposure.
Which common houseplants are poisonous to cats?
There are a number of plants in and outside the home that can be poisonous and toxic to cats either by consuming them or simply making skin contact with them.
Here is a list of some of the most common houseplants and garden plants that can be dangerous and in some cases deadly to cats.
| African Violet Air Plant Amaryllis Aphelandra Azalea Azaleas Caladium Cannabis Castor Oil Plant Christmas Cherry Chrysanthemum Codiaeum Croton Cyclamen Dendranthema Devil’s Ivy Dieffenbachia Dieffenbachia Dumb Cane Elephant’s Ear Epipremnum aureum | Ferns Holly Hyacinthus Hypoestes phyllostachya Ivy Kalanchoe Lilies Mistletoe Nerium oleander Oleander Ornithogalum Pencil cactus Poison ivy/oak Rhododendrons Sago palms Senecio Spider Plant Star of Bethlehem Umbellatum Umbrella Plant Zebra Plant |
For a more complete list of plants that are dangerous to your cat, check out the ASPCA’s list that goes into great detail with both the commercial and plant name for over 400 plants that are dangerous to your cat.
Why cats eat plants
As a kid, I noticed our cat would munch on very long blades of grass in our backyard from time to time. I wondered why she would eat grass especially as she was well fed and watered.
While cats generally eat meat and cat food, they aren’t known as plant eaters. Cats will however from time to time consume plants of various types and may do so for different reasons.
They are:
Instinct
Interesting research from 2019 explored the idea that I’d heard back when I was a kid: That cats eat grass to try to make themselves sick when they have an upset stomach. Just like when humans do the finger in throat routine to throw up when we’re filling ill.
The research shows that this doesn’t seem to be the case.
Instead, the report showed
that if cats throw up from eating grass, it’s simply a byproduct and that in actuality, cats may eat grass due to historical instinct. They eat grass because their ancestors did it (as did other animals) to get rid of parasites in their stomach.
While cats no longer have to worry about parasites as their ancestors did probably due to better food and modern medication, they still may eat grass instinctually.
Sickness
There remains a theory that cats eat grass and other plant material to assist with the expulsion of fur and to essentially soothe their stomach.
As mentioned above, if grass consumption does cause a cat to throw up, it might be a simple byproduct of eating too much grass but could assist the cat if its stomach is upset.
If cats are aware that eating enough grass will make them sick, they may do so to speed up the expulsion of a hair ball if they are experiencing an upset stomach.
Nutritional deficiency
Grass juice contains folic acid, something that cats require to live a healthy life. If they are deficient in folic acid, occasionally eating some grass may help to alleviate this deficiency.
To help ensure your cat receives the nutritional content it requires, mix up your cat’s foods to ensure they have a choice and wide variety.
Cat foods that are likely to contain folic acid include ones with kidney and liver among others.
Thirst
If your cat is largely eating dry food and not getting enough water, they may consume some plants for the moisture value.
Ensure your cat has several bowls of fresh drinking water in clean bowls in several locations inside your house to prevent this from being a problem.
How can you protect dangerous plants from being eaten by your cat?
The list of plants that may be dangerous to your cat is a long one. If your cat wanders around outside freely on its own, you may not be able to completely limit your cat’s ability to be exposed to certain plants.
Other than providing your cat with enough food and water to keep them full and perhaps catnip to distract their attention, there are several things you can do to protect plants in and outside your home from being consumed.
Several things that tend to dissuade cats from going near plants include:
- Cayenne pepper – Cats do not like the smell or taste of cayenne.
- Citrus – Cats don’t like the smell of citrus. Spraying plants with diluted lemon or orange juice or placing citrus rinds near plants can help to deter them.
- Some plants – You can use some plants to keep your cats away from other plants: Cats tend not to like the smell of rue, lavender, penny royal and Coleus canina among others.
- Strong-smelling herbs – Cats tend not to like the smell of some herbs such as rosemary, lavender, lemongrass, and lemon thyme. If you grow some in your garden you can not only ward off cats outside your home, you can use some dried herbs for your plants inside the home and still have enough herbs to use for cooking.
- Coffee grounds – Fresh coffee grounds has been purported to ward off cats although personally, I toss used coffee grounds on my lawn as fertilizer and have literally watched the neighborhood cat go to the bathroom less than one foot away from an area that I regularly spread the grounds on.
You may also consider placing plants where they can’t be reached by your cat such as in an elevated position or by making it difficult for your cats to reach.
NOTE: While mothballs were used when I was a kid to ward off cats, they are chemical-laden and can hurt not only animals but children too and should be avoided.
What is catnip and why do cats like it?
Felines are fans of catnip (Nepeta cataria) which is a herb that is typically sold in dried form or put inside a cat toy. When cats smell it, they tend to react in a positive way by often rolling around and by rubbing their head, body and paws on it.
You may think your cat is high when watching them react (positively) to catnip exposure.
If the catnip is inside a toy, they will often alternate by holding and licking it for several minutes with the same reaction, before they give up on it and move on when they’ve had their fill.
Catnip is not dangerous to cats and in a nutshell tends to give cats a temporary feeling of euphoria for around 10 minutes or so before they go back to normal and being a regular cat.
By providing your cat with catnip or a catnip-filled toy, it might prevent them from going after plants that are inside or outside your house that might endanger them.
Which plants do cats like to eat that won’t hurt them?
Other than fresh catnip, your cat may also like the smell and taste of plants such as:
- Mint
- Cat grass (a mix of oat or barley grass)
Summary
Cats eat plants for several reasons but since many plants are toxic and poisonous to them, you need to be aware of which ones to avoid having inside your home. There are several strategies available for preventing your cat from being injured or worse by consuming plants that they shouldn’t.
Ensuring your cat has enough food and water and a balanced diet will keep them full and less likely to eat plants.
Looking for another article on pet-related safety around the home?
Check out my article on pet insurance specifically related to covering yourself if you have a dog. If your dog bites someone, you can be held liable.