Cats are not small dogs. Several things that only upset a dog will kill a cat, and the worst of them is a flower most people keep in a vase. Pick an item to see how it behaves in cats specifically.
If you think your cat has eaten any of these, phone a vet now rather than waiting for a symptom. With lilies in particular, treatment started before signs appear is the difference between a cat that recovers and one that does not. This page is a reference, not triage, and the list is not exhaustive — anything not listed here is still worth a phone call.
The one most people get wrong
True lilies and daylilies cause kidney failure in cats and only in cats — a dog that eats one gets an upset stomach. Every part is dangerous: stem, leaves, petals, pollen and the water in the vase. A cat that walks past a bouquet, gets pollen on its coat and grooms it off has had a meaningful exposure. Kidney failure can follow within 24 to 72 hours.
How this tool was built: methodology and sources
Every entry is drawn from the two bodies that publish on this for a general audience: the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, and the US Food and Drug Administration’s advisory on lilies. Where a source describes an effect in dogs rather than cats, this tool says so rather than transferring the claim across species — grapes and macadamia nuts are the clearest examples of a risk that is well described in dogs and poorly characterised in cats.
No dose thresholds are given. Reported toxic doses vary widely, depend on the cat’s weight and the form of the substance, and a number here would invite people to decide an exposure was small enough to ignore.
- People Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pets. ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center. Reference page
- Lovely Lilies and Curious Cats: A Dangerous Combination. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Animal Health Literacy, 2021. FDA advisory
- Lily Toxicity in Cats. UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Health Topics. Reference page