Daily BiscuitsWhen to call the vet
If a cat may have ingested something toxic, call a vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (888-426-4435) immediately; do not induce vomiting at home.
Source: ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center
Any lily contact, even suspected, even with no symptoms, means a vet or emergency clinic now.
Source: US Food and Drug Administration, “Lovely Lilies and Curious Cats: A Dangerous Combination”
If you see string in the mouth or protruding from the anus, do not pull it; cut it if you must and go to a vet. Any cat known to have swallowed string that vomits, stops eating, hides or strains needs to be seen the same day.
Source: Cornell Feline Health Center; Synchrony/CareCredit 2025 procedure cost data
Lilies: the 18-hour window
The FDA’s warning on lilies is the most time-critical piece of cat safety information there is. Asiatic, Easter, Oriental, Stargazer, Tiger and Wood lilies and daylilies cause acute kidney failure in cats from ‘just a small amount of a leaf or flower petal, licking a few pollen grains off its fur, or drinking the water from the vase’. The timeline runs: vomiting, drooling and lethargy within 0 to 12 hours; increased urination at 12 to 24 hours; kidney failure at 24 to 72 hours. Treatment (decontamination and IV fluids) works well if started early, but ‘if treatment is delayed by 18 hours or more after ingestion, the cat will generally have irreversible kidney failure’. So any lily contact, even suspected, even with no symptoms, means a vet or emergency clinic now. Peace lilies, Peruvian lilies and calla lilies are not kidney-toxic, though they can irritate the mouth. The safest rule is no true lilies in a cat’s home, ever, including bouquets.
Source: US Food and Drug Administration, “Lovely Lilies and Curious Cats: A Dangerous Combination”
The 2024 top ten toxins and the hotline
The ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center handled more than 451,000 exposure calls in 2024. Its top ten toxins were over-the-counter medications (16.5%, including ibuprofen and acetaminophen, both deadly to cats), human food (16.1%; onions, garlic, grapes, xylitol), chocolate (13.6%), veterinary products (8.6%, usually flavoured medications eaten in bulk), plants and fungi (8.1%, lilies first for cats), rodenticides (7%), household products (6.5%, cleaners and essential oils), insecticides (3.7%, including dog flea products containing permethrin), and recreational drugs (2.1%). The hotline is (888) 426-4435, available 24 hours, with a consultation fee; the Pet Poison Helpline is an alternative. Cornell adds tulips, foxglove, philodendron, poinsettia, antifreeze and post-1982 zinc pennies to the cat list. Never induce vomiting at home unless a vet or the hotline tells you to; save the packaging or a plant sample to bring with you.
Common household toxins
Lilies (all parts, even pollen or vase water) cause kidney failure in cats. Other dangers: antifreeze, human pain relievers (acetaminophen and ibuprofen are both deadly to cats), many essential oils, onions, garlic, chocolate, grapes and raisins, xylitol, string and ribbon, and certain flea products made for dogs (permethrin). If a cat may have ingested something toxic, call a vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (888-426-4435) immediately; do not induce vomiting at home.
String, ribbon and hair ties
String, ribbon, hair ties, elastic, shoelaces, dental floss, tinsel and sewing thread are a specifically feline emergency. Cats’ barbed tongues push linear objects backward so they cannot spit them out; once swallowed, one end can anchor under the tongue or in the stomach while the intestine bunches along the rest, which can saw through the gut wall. If you see string in the mouth or protruding from the anus, do not pull it; cut it if you must and go to a vet. Any cat known to have swallowed string that vomits, stops eating, hides or strains needs to be seen the same day. Foreign-body surgery averaged $2,367 in Synchrony’s 2025 cost data, so this is also the strongest argument for keeping craft supplies and hair ties in a closed drawer.
Source: Cornell Feline Health Center; Synchrony/CareCredit 2025 procedure cost data