The entire lily plant is toxic: the stem, leaves, flowers, pollen, and even the water in a vase. Eating just a small amount of a leaf or flower petal, licking a few pollen grains off its fur while grooming, or drinking the water from the vase can cause your cat to develop fatal kidney failure in less than 3 days.
How to Keep Your Pet Safe
Make sure you know the kind of lily you are bringing into your house before you bring any in. It’s best to avoid bringing in Lilium spp. , Hemerocallis spp. , or Convallaria spp. , especially if you have cats, because of worries about these plants’ potential for toxicity. Your cat buddy might decide to show interest in a new plant even though they don’t usually like plants. Additionally, it might be more difficult than you think to keep our feline friends away from these plants. Cats can sneak into rooms that you try to keep them out of quite well. As Lilium spp. When flowers age, they may begin to drop leaves and pollen, which could give your cat access to the plant or bouquet when it was previously out of reach.
Why are lilies poisonous to cats?
Cats are more likely to become poisoned due to altered liver metabolism, as we mentioned in our post about the top 10 poisons that send cats to the emergency vet.
According to Dr. There is no known toxin called Laria Herod that causes lilies’ nephrotoxicity, or sharp decline in kidney function. According to recent research, the toxic principle might consist of a complex mixture of steroid glycoalkaloids, which are naturally occurring substances that are present in the plant family that includes tomatoes, eggplants, and potatoes. Although the exact toxic principle is unknown, we do know that the toxin can result in kidney failure and liver abnormalities. Symptoms may appear as soon as two hours after consumption, and they usually take 12 to 36 hours to manifest. Without aggressive treatment, death can occur within a few days.
Which lilies are poisonous to cats?
The severity of poisoning that a cat may experience from eating parts of a lily varies greatly from genus (sub-family) to genus. The Lilium genus, which includes Easter lilies, tiger lilies, and Asiatic lilies, and the Hemerocallis genus, which includes daylilies, are the genera of lilies that are most toxic to cats. These plants are particularly problematic because florist bouquets frequently include them because they are typically fragrant, affordable, and long-lasting.
There are additional lily species that are toxic to cats as well. In general, avoid bringing the following plants into the house:
- Easter lily (also called trumpet lily)
- Tiger lily
- White lily (also called Madonna lily)
- Daylily
- Asiatic lily
- Stargazer lily (also called Oriental lilies)
- Calla lily (also called pig or arum lily)
- Lily of the Valley
- Wood lily (also called red lily)
- Japanese Show lily (also called rubrum lily)
- Bush lily (also called Clivia lily)
- Plantain lily (also called Hosta lily)
FAQ
Which lilies are not toxic to cats?
What happens if my cat sniffs a lily?
Are surprise lilies poisonous to dogs?
What is the survival rate for cats with lily poisoning?