We love flowers and we can’t even think of a house without a green oasis, but what about our pets, curious by nature and eager to crunch? Cats, for example, are attracted to plants that resemble grass and their natural instinct leads them to chew these plants from desire to eliminate ingested hair during self-cleaning. Particular attention must attach the following ornamentals: lily, daffodil, hyacinth, snowdrops, azalea, chrysanthemum, ivy, fichus, hydrangea, iris, palm, aloe.
Temptation is great for cats and dracaena and yucca plants whose leaves are so loved by cats. All these plants can be harmful or poisonous depending on the amount ingested. Clinical signs can vary from simple vomiting to serious gastrointestinal disorders with diarrhea, vomiting, lethargy, nervous disorders, and kidney impairment. And garden plants may prove to be harmful to cats. The simple touch of strawberries, celery, tomatoes, cucumbers, parsnips leaves can cause skin reactions manifested by irritation or itching.
For dogs
For dogs, the house plants you can remember as harmful are azalea, Oleander, narcissus. Taking out your quadrupeds in the environment increases the chance that they encroach, from curiosity, a number of toxic plants such as lilies, gladiolus, iris, ricin, crocus, lily, elder, yew.
If our little friend decides to visit the vegetable garden, we should know that onion, potato (leaves, flowers), tomatoes (leaves and stems) and garlic have toxic effects if ingested. Clinical manifestations can be of gastrointestinal (lily of the valley, iris), heart (Oleander, lily of the valley, rhododendron, yew, ricin) or nervous paralysis and even death (crocus, ricin, jasmine, rhubarb).
Rodents
If we have a guinea pig or a rabbit, the risk to ingest a number of potentially toxic ornamentals is lower. But if we have a garden, we should know that most flowers are toxic for these rodents.
The most common harmful plants for guinea pig and rabbit are: hyacinth, juniper, gladiola, dahlia, chrysanthemum, lupins, yew and most ornamental evergreen trees. If these rodents get into the vegetables garden, here they can ingest a number of toxic plants: parsley wild privet leaves, potatoes, tomatoes (both plant and fruit), green beans, leeks, chives onions, Figwort, rhubarb, peppers.
Even if you are quite popular as rodent, you should offer them salad leaves in small quantities because there is a risk of nitrate poisoning. Lettuce is usually growth in sera, using nitrogen fertilizers, for production to be increased. But these pesticides accumulate in the leaves and their consumption in large amounts will increase the chance of nitrite poisoning.
First aid measures
When we notice that your pet has eaten a potentially toxic plant or where the overall condition changes, you should contact your veterinary surgeon the only one able to determine the therapeutic conduct in case of ingestion of toxic plants. As a first aid you can give them activated charcoal, which will minimize the absorption of toxic principles contained in these plants.
Another measure will be to give them oil that will induce soft feces and thus will favor the elimination of toxins contained by plant. Clinical signs are salivation, lethargy, diarrhea, paralysis. Their evolution is usually accelerated, so visit the veterinarian in such a emergency situation.
