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You are here: Home / Kitty Wisdom / What You Need to Know About Cats and Lilies

What You Need to Know About Cats and Lilies

April 2, 2021 By: Summer Samba21 Comments

Many people know lilies are deadly to cats. But Summer fills in the details to explain why and how important it is to get veterinary care.

Banning lilies from a home with cats is such a no-brainer that I haven’t written about it here before. But even though you know not to bring lilies into your home if you have a cat, you may not know the details about why they are deadly, and just how urgent it is to rush a cat to the vet if you even suspect they have been in any sort of contact with lilies. So I wanted to fill you in.

Easter Lily

Easter Lily

Most Lilies Will Kill a Cat

The list includes, but is not limited to:

  • Easter lily
  • Stargazer lily
  • Japanese snow lily
  • Asian lily
  • Day lily
Stargazer Lily

Stargazer Lily

These, and related lilies from the genera Lilium and Hemerocallis will cause renal failure and death.

Lilies of the valley have toxins that affect the heart and could cause seizures or even coma. Ingesting these are definitely a veterinary emergency and your cat needs immediate attention.

Peace Lily

Peace Lily

Other lilies are not as toxic, but still need veterinary attention if ingested. These include peace lilies and calla lilies. They contain crystals that are extremely irritating to the mouth and digestive system. They will make your cat very sick.

Calla Lily

Calla Lily

All Parts of the Lily Are Toxic… and More

Your cat does not have to eat a lily to die from it. She could just bite into it, or brush up against it. All parts of the lily — flowers, leaves, stems, roots and pollen — are deadly. In fact, it is deadly if your cat just laps water from a vase that contained lilies. They are that toxic.

Rush Your Cat to the Veterinary Clinic Immediately if You Even Suspect She Has Been in Contact With a Lily in Any Form.

Time is crucial if your cat has ingested anything from a lily. The more time her body has to absorb the toxins, the less likely it will be that she will survive. If you wait before symptoms show up, the prognosis is not good.

Symptoms of lily poisoning include drooling, vomiting, lethargy, loss of appetite and diarrhea. Within 12 to 24 hours, you will see dehydration and increased urination. If a cat is showing these symptoms, it may already be too late to save her.

If the unthinkable happens, and your cat runs afoul of a lily, it will be very helpful to bring along a photo of the plant to show the vet.

There Is Actually No Antidote to Lily Poisoning

The only thing the vet can do is flush the toxins out of your cat before they have a chance to do damage. That includes stabilizing the cat, inducing vomiting, and using activated charcoal to bind to the toxins. Then the cat will need IV fluids, probably for several days, to clear out the kidneys.

You Cannot Treat a Cat Who Has Lily Poisoning at Home

Even if you have taken a class in cat first aid, you do not have the skill or ability to properly treat a cat with lily poisoning. Do not try to induce vomiting on your own. Just call the veterinary clinic or emergency vet and rush down there right away. The vet will know that this is something that needs to be addressed immediately.

If Treated in Time There Are No Lasting Health Issues

If you get your cat to the vet promptly and treatment is successful, she probably won’t have lasting kidney damage. You should still keep an eye on her urinary habits, however, and any change in frequency especially should be looked into.

There will also be severe damage to your pocketbook because this type of medical emergency requires a lot of attention from the veterinarian and staff.

Most of you reading this already know not to ever have lilies in your home, or anywhere near your cat. But now you have more details, and you can pass them along to people who may not even know how toxic and deadly lilies are to cats. Paws crossed that you never have to deal with this emergency.

Other posts you’ll enjoy:

  • 7 Household Items Dangerous to Cats
  • Unusual Household Items that are Poisonous to Your Cat
  • Cats and Smoking Don’t Mix… Plus Tips for Smokers
What You Need to Know About Cats and Lilies
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Comments

  1. LESLEY CASTLE says

    March 16, 2022 at 12:29 pm

    Oh my!

    Reply
  2. Catherine says

    April 3, 2021 at 12:19 pm

    Thank you Summer. I know a lot about toxic plants. I would never have,a lily in my house and I love them. I sniff them in the store. Happy kitty safe Easter

    Reply
  3. Sue Janson says

    April 2, 2021 at 9:45 pm

    Such good advice, Summer. I have never had lilies of any kind in my house, because I have always had cats. I did share this on my time line giving you and your human the credit.

    Reply
  4. BellaDharma an LadyMew says

    April 2, 2021 at 5:50 pm

    Mee-yow wow Summer! Now mee knowss why LadyMew not like Lilliess! An why there are NO plantss inn our place!
    Shee iss furry purrtective of mee as shee was with all her feeliness!
    Grate post~~you saved a life today mee betss!
    **purrss** BellaDharma an ((huggiess)) LadyMew

    Reply
  5. Cathy Keisha says

    April 2, 2021 at 4:21 pm

    This is a very important post and I have shared it.

    Reply
  6. mickeys Musings says

    April 2, 2021 at 4:17 pm

    Pwsome message!
    Always good to remind people of the dangers of theis plant.
    Beautiful but dangerpous!
    Purrs, Julie

    Reply
  7. LESLEY CASTLE says

    April 2, 2021 at 3:50 pm

    This is so important!

    Reply
  8. Melissa & Mudpie says

    April 2, 2021 at 3:33 pm

    This is information that can never be shared enough! It drives me nuts even seeing a lily in the grocery store and I walk a mile away from it.

    Reply
  9. Mary McNeil says

    April 2, 2021 at 3:24 pm

    Most plants that come from bulbs are dangerous to cats – such as daffodils and crocuses. I wonder if they are related to onions and garlic, which come from bulbs and are very toxic to cats. Thanks for this post.

    Reply
  10. Truman says

    April 2, 2021 at 12:52 pm

    Thank you so much for this well-researched and well-written article! I hope that the information helps lots of cat owners.

    We don’t have any live plants in our home because we had previous cats who would try to eat them so it’s just safer for our humans to enjoy them outside.

    Reply
  11. Katie Isabella says

    April 2, 2021 at 11:32 am

    I didn’t know all of the information. Much, but not the nitty gritty. Grateful for it. No idea about lilies of the Valley!

    Reply
  12. Ellen Pilch says

    April 2, 2021 at 10:40 am

    Excellent post Summer.

    Reply
  13. Sue Brandes says

    April 2, 2021 at 9:53 am

    Thanks for the post. I did not know about Lilys of Valley.

    Reply
  14. Brian says

    April 2, 2021 at 9:26 am

    We’ve not got any of those evil things here either!

    Reply
  15. meowmeowmans says

    April 2, 2021 at 8:21 am

    Lilies are so dangerous for cats. As pretty as they are, we would never have lilies in our house, ever.

    Reply
  16. Andrea and the Celestial Kitties says

    April 2, 2021 at 8:09 am

    I love cala lilies, but we dont have plants or flowers of any sort in our house. We call flowers “Glitter Salad” because she wants to eat them all and is so obsessed that she never stops staring at them as long as they are in the house and trying to find a way to where we have put them ‘out of reach’. She is sure she can get to the out of reach spots if she just thinks about it hard enough!

    Reply
  17. The Florida Furkids says

    April 2, 2021 at 6:19 am

    No live plants or flowers around for us since Raz will eat ANYTHING.

    The Florida Furkids

    Reply
  18. Ernie from the ISland Cats says

    April 2, 2021 at 5:09 am

    Thanks for the reminder about lilies, Summer.

    Reply
  19. Lola The Rescued Cat says

    April 2, 2021 at 4:30 am

    Thanks for sharing this important info, Summer. A couple of years ago our mom visited a friend who is a dog person, but who took in her mother’s cat when her mother died. She had lilies in the house! She didn’t know! Our mom told her and she promptly got rid of them.

    Reply
  20. Cleo says

    April 2, 2021 at 3:04 am

    Mom and dad knew to some degree of the dangers of lilies to felines, but man, we had no idea about all this. Thank you for putting up such an informative post, especially for those who aren’t aware of their dangers.

    Reply
  21. Memories of Eric and Flynn says

    April 2, 2021 at 2:14 am

    It is frightening how dangerous lilies are, but even more frightening that some people don’t know of the dangers.

    Reply

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