Suspect poisoning? US: ASPCA Poison Control (888) 426-4435 · UK: 01202 509 000 · Severe symptoms → nearest emergency vet now.
Home / Questions

Poisoning questions, answered

Every question has a direct answer, a symptom checklist and clear next steps — plus a matching tool that estimates the real risk.

Prefer to run the tool?

The four most-used triage calculators:

chocolate · open tool My dog ate dark chocolate — how much is dangerous? grapes & raisins · open tool My dog ate one grape. Should I panic? xylitol · open tool Dog ate sugar-free gum with xylitol — emergency? lily · open tool Cat licked a lily petal — is that fatal?
Full answer library
Cats · Emergency guide My 5 kg cat licked a plate that had dried-on ammonia-based window cleaner residue — she's drooling a little now. What do I do? This is urgent. Ammonia is a corrosive alkali that burns the mouth and throat on contact. Even dried residue… Dogs · Food safety My 10 kg dog snatched a fried, salted plantain chip from the counter — is the frying or salt dangerous, or is plantain itself safe? The plantain itself is safe, but the frying and salt are the problems. Fried foods are too greasy for dogs… Cats · Toxicity calculator My 4 kg pregnant cat licked a plate that had beef stew with a crushed zinc supplement mixed in — is this risky for her and the kittens? Yes, it is risky. Zinc is a heavy metal toxic to cats, and pregnancy doesn't change that. Even a small amount… Cats · Food safety My 5 kg cat ate a plain cooked scallop yesterday and today is scratching her ears and seems itchy — could she be allergic to scallops? Yes, she could have a shellfish allergy. Plain cooked scallops are safe for most cats, but any protein can… Dogs · Food safety Is the skin on roasted butternut squash safe for my 8 kg dog, or should I always peel it first? Safe, as long as you remove the skin first. Raw butternut squash skin is nearly indestructible for a small… Dogs · Food safety My 10 kg golden retriever ate a tablespoon of chocolate hazelnut spread 3 hours ago and now has diarrhoea — is this just an upset stomach? It's an emergency, not a simple stomachache. Chocolate in that spread is toxic to dogs regardless of sugar or… Dogs · Food safety My 25 kg retriever ate cooked pheasant off the counter while my 4 kg Yorkie watched �� is my tiny dog at risk from just being near it? Both dogs are fine. Lean cooked pheasant is safe for dogs, and simply being near it poses no risk to your… Cats · Food safety My 5 kg cat with chronic kidney disease ate one cooked oyster from my plate. Is this okay for her? Yes, one cooked oyster is okay for a cat with kidney disease. The main risk for cats with kidney issues is… Cats · Food safety My 4 kg nursing cat ate one brine-cured olive that fell on the floor. Is the salt dangerous for her milk or kittens? One olive is a mild risk, but unlikely to affect her milk or kittens directly. The high salt in brine-cured… Cats · Food safety My 4 kg cat with a history of a sensitive stomach ate one small tangerine segment 30 minutes ago. Could this cause diarrhoea or vomiting? Yes, it could easily cause an upset stomach. Citrus fruits like tangerines contain essential oils and acids… Cats · Food safety I've been sprinkling a tiny pinch of garlic powder on my 5 kg cat's food daily for weeks. What long-term damage could this cause? Stop immediately. Garlic powder is concentrated and far more dangerous than fresh garlic, especially with… Dogs · Food safety My 3 kg, 12-week-old puppy licked a piece of watermelon rind once and didn't swallow any. Is this a choking or blockage emergency? No, a single lick is not an emergency. The rind itself is a choking and intestinal blockage risk only if a… Dogs · Food safety My 20 kg pregnant dog lapped up a bit of pickle juice from the floor, should I be worried? A little pickle juice is unlikely to harm her, but it's not ideal. The main concerns are the high salt… Dogs · Emergency guide My 4-month-old, 2 kg puppy licked a tiny crumb of rat poison off the floor. What's the risk for a dog this small? Yes, this is an urgent risk for a tiny puppy. Even a crumb contains enough poison to block vitamin K and… Cats · Food safety My 3 kg adult cat just ate a spoonful of organic baby food with rutabaga listed third — is that okay? Yes, that's perfectly safe. Rutabaga itself is non-toxic to cats, and the tiny amount in a spoonful of baby… Dogs · Food safety My 8 kg Golden ate a tablespoon of olive oil but my 5 kg Poodle didn't — do I watch both or just the big one? Watch both dogs, not just the one who got the oil. Olive oil is safe for dogs — a small drizzle over food… Dogs · Food safety Can a 4 kg pregnant Shih Tzu eat a few bites of fresh grapefruit, or are the oils in the peel dangerous for her unborn puppies? A few bites of the flesh alone is fine — the peel, seeds, and white pith are the problem. They carry oils and… Dogs · Emergency guide My 20 kg Labrador eats a few pieces of cocoa mulch from the garden every day — what long-term damage could this cause? This is a high-risk habit that can lead to chronic theobromine poisoning. Cocoa mulch contains the same… Dogs · Emergency guide My 2 kg, 8-week-old puppy licked a pea-sized blob of alcohol hand sanitizer off his paw — is his tiny size a bigger danger? Yes, his size makes it much more dangerous. A puppy's liver is immature and processes alcohol poorly, and a… Dogs · Food safety Could a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in my 7 kg dog's water bowl give him diarrhoea and gas if he has a sensitive stomach? Yes, it easily could. Vinegar is acidic and can irritate the lining of a sensitive stomach, leading to gas… Dogs · Food safety My 12 kg diabetic dog on insulin just ate one segment of mandarin — is the natural sugar a problem for his condition? One segment is usually fine, but you need to monitor his blood glucose. The flesh of a single mandarin… Dogs · Food safety Does papaya secretly show up in things like tropical smoothie mixes or breakfast cereals that my 8 kg dog might get into? Yes, papaya is common in dried fruit mixes, tropical trail mixes, some cereals, and pre-made smoothie packs.… Dogs · Food safety My 18 kg dog is allergic to shrimp — are plain cooked scallops a safer shellfish alternative, or is the allergy likely to cross over? Scallops can be a safer alternative, but there's a real risk of cross-reactivity. Allergies are to specific… Cats · Food safety My 5 kg cat ate a bite of raw bread dough, but what if it's fully cooked bread? Yes, raw dough is an emergency for any cat. The yeast in raw dough ferments into alcohol inside their… Dogs · Food safety My 5 kg dog gets half a cup of plain steamed green beans every evening. Is that safe long-term? Yes, that's a safe and common way to add bulk to a small dog's diet. Green beans are low in calories and high… Dogs · Emergency guide My 15 kg dog licked a laundry detergent pod that got mixed into leftover pasta sauce — what do I do right now? Call the ASPCA poison line (888-426-4435) or your vet immediately. The concentrated surfactants in the pod… Cats · Food safety My 5 kg cat licked a raw parsnip peel off the kitchen floor — is that a problem? No, that tiny lick is safe. Cooked plain parsnip is fine for cats, and a raw peel carries no known toxin. The… Cats · Food safety What's the best way to keep a whole pomelo away from my 3 kg curious kitten? Treat it like a toxic plant — never leave it on a table or counter where she can bat it onto the floor. Store… Cats · Food safety My 6 kg cat ate about five salted pistachio kernels an hour ago — what should I watch for at home over the next 24 hours? Watch for vomiting, diarrhea, or increased thirst from the salt. The main immediate risks are the salt load… Cats · Emergency guide My 5 kg cat ate a small piece of dried lily from a potpourri mix — is dried lily just as toxic as fresh? Yes, dried lily is just as toxic and requires immediate veterinary care. All parts of true lilies, including…

Page 201 of 337

The library keeps growing. Can’t find your situation? Open the matching toxicity calculator and enter weight plus amount for an instant risk level.