Cat's Been Eating Anthurium

mfamphlett

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Hi, we have had an Anthurium plant in the house for a few weeks which our cat has been chewing on. Not sure if she has been ingesting it or not but there is a reasonable amount of damage to the plant so she has been munching on it a fair bit. this is what the plant looks like now.



We didn't realise the plant was poisonous to cats until now. She has been more vocal than usual the past few days or so and a bit more subdued and little less friendly. We wondered whether she was sick and I thought to look up the plant online. looking at the effects and symptoms I can't say I've really noticed many other than the vocalisation, possibly a bit of drooling and she was sick the other night. We have removed the plant now and her appetite doesn't seem to have suffered much. Will she be fine now or should we be more worried? She has potentially ingested a fair amount of the stuff over the past few weeks. Should we take her to the vet?
 

abyeb

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Yes, since she's been drooling and was sick, I think it's best to take her to a vet, especially since you for sure that she ingested a poisonous plant.
 

lalagimp

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I think the precaution is that when the cat has eaten and poisonous plant you at least get them to the vet for fluids to flush their system. The fact that there were any symptoms at all poses a risk for damage to the organs. Some people have had their cats eat lilies, get a little sick, and have issues show up months later.
 

Willowy

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It appears Anthurium contains a localized toxin, not a systemic toxin. So it may have caused some burning to her mouth and throat but shouldn't cause any organ failure, at least. If she's drooling, yes, get her to the vet to see what they can give her for the irritation. But the good news is that it sounds like the effects of this particular plant shouldn't last too long once the plant is removed :). http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poison/anthurium/
 
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mfamphlett

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Thanks for your responses.

Willowy, I had also read that it was not a systemic toxin which was why I was thinking maybe it wouldn't be necessary to take her to the vet. The plant has been gone a few days now and she seems to be back to her normal self. She's eating normally and I haven't noticed any drooling (to be honest, I'm not even sure if she was before).

We'll be keeping an eye on her a bit longer but I don't think we'll take her to the vet.
 
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