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

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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
Dogs · Toxicity calculator Do macadamia nuts hide in trail mix and protein bars I buy for my 4 kg Chihuahua's snacks? Yes — macadamia nuts quietly hide in trail mix, granola bars, and nut-based protein snacks. Just one nut per… Dogs · Emergency guide Are cooked chicken bones worse for my 15 kg Labrador than raw ones — and what's the actual difference? Cooked bones are far more dangerous than raw bones. Cooking drives moisture out and leaves bones brittle … Cats · Emergency guide My 5 kg indoor cat licked a bit of moldy coffee grounds from the outdoor compost bin — is this an emergency? Yes — even a lick can be enough. Mold growing on decomposing coffee grounds produces tremorgenic mycotoxins… Cats · Emergency guide Where should I store mothballs so my 3 kg cat can't smell or reach them — and does the package matter? Store mothballs in a sealed plastic container inside a locked closet or garage cabinet — the original… Cats · Emergency guide My 5 kg cat chewed a corner of my cyclobenzaprine tablet that was on the coffee table during a family dinner — is this an emergency? Yes, treat this as an emergency. Human muscle relaxant tablets contain 5–10 mg per pill, which is enormous… Cats · Food safety My 4 kg Maine Coon snatched string beans from my plate with garlic butter — is the bean itself dangerous or is it the butter? The bean itself is safe — both green beans and string beans are non-toxic to cats. The danger here is the… Dogs · Food safety My 8 kg Beagle just snatched a bite of raw, unpeeled plantain from the cutting board — is raw plantain toxic to dogs, or is it the peel? Raw plantain is not toxic to dogs, but the peel is tough and difficult to digest, and a whole raw chunk can… Dogs · Food safety My 10 kg terrier eats commercial dog treats labeled pistachio-flavored — are those safe, or could the shells be in them? Most commercially produced dog treats flavored with pistachio use only extract or powder, not whole nuts with… Dogs · Food safety My 12 kg Golden Retriever found an open bag oftrail mix with visible quinoa on the kitchen floor — is quinoa in snacks dangerous for him? Plain cooked quinoa is safe for dogs, and it is commonly found in trail mix, energy bars, and grain-based pet… Dogs · Emergency guide Is it dangerous to give a 4 kg dog a pump of hand sanitizer every day? Yes, repeated daily exposure is dangerous for a small dog. Even a single pump contains enough ethanol to… Cats · Emergency guide Can my 3 kg cat get sick from eating poinsettia leaves that were left out overnight? Yes, dried or left-out leaves can still irritate a cat. The old rumor that one leaf kills a pet is untrue… Cats · Emergency guide My 4 kg cat ate a tulip bulb at a New Year’s party — what should I do first? Act quickly because tulip bulbs contain concentrated tulipalins that can damage the mouth and kidneys. Call… Dogs · Food safety Is it risky for my 9 kg dog to lick pepperoni grease and spice residue off a plate? A small lick of grease and spice is unlikely to cause serious harm, but the combination of salt, fat, and… Dogs · Food safety How do I keep my 20 kg hunting dog from eating raw wild venison left in the garage? Store wild game meat in sealed, dog-proof containers inside a locked cabinet or heavy-duty cooler, since raw… Dogs · Emergency guide My 10 kg dog ate a two-inch piece of glue trap adhesive left on the floor for three hours — is this an emergency? Yes, treat this as an emergency. Even a small amount of industrial adhesive can cause intestinal blockage… Dogs · Emergency guide My 8 kg beagle got into a bottle of diphenhydramine gummies with xylitol — is the gummy form worse than tablets? The gummy form is worse, and not just because it's more palatable. Xylitol is an additional poison that… Dogs · Emergency guide My 5 kg pug was stung on the paw pad by two bees during our morning walk — with his small size, is he at higher risk than a larger dog? Yes, a 5 kg dog absorbs a proportionally larger dose of venom than a 20 kg dog from the same sting. Two bees… Cats · Emergency guide How do I stop my 4 kg cat from walking on freshly mopped bathroom floors treated with ammonia cleaner? Keep her out of the room until the floor is completely dry — cats track residue on their paws and then ingest… Dogs · Emergency guide My 6 kg dachshund licked zinc oxide diaper cream off my sunburned leg — how soon after ingestion would vomiting appear? Vomiting usually starts within 1–4 hours after ingestion, sometimes sooner if he got a thick layer. The cream… Cats · Food safety After feeding my 5 kg indoor cat a piece of plain cooked lamb, what signs should I watch for and when do they usually appear? Plain cooked lamb is safe, so you're unlikely to see any problems. If he does get an upset stomach from the… Dogs · Emergency guide My 2 kg Chihuahua just swallowed half an oleander leaf — is this an emergency for such a small dog? Yes — take her to an emergency vet now. Body weight matters here: two kilograms means half a leaf delivers a… Dogs · Emergency guide My 10 kg dog got into my leftover tramadol bottle at a family dinner and ate two pills — should I rush him to the vet now? Yes — go now. Tramadol depresses the central nervous system and breathing, and two pills for a 10 kg dog can… Dogs · Emergency guide My 15 kg dog ate some unknown wild mushrooms I'd added to his dinner stew yesterday evening — is this an emergency even though they were cooked? Yes, treat this as an emergency. Cooking does not destroy the toxins in deadly mushrooms like the death cap… Dogs · Emergency guide My 6 kg Shih Tzu chewed an English ivy leaf that had been sprayed with houseplant fertilizer this morning — is the fertilizer making it worse? The ivy itself is enough to worry about — it contains saponins that irritate the mouth and gut, causing… Cats · Emergency guide My 4 kg domestic shorthair just licked one sacred lotus petal from a tabletop vase — should I rush to the vet? Call your vet now rather than waiting to see if symptoms appear. Sacred lotus contains alkaloids that can… Dogs · Emergency guide My 15 kg husky knocked over an open bottle of liquid laundry detergent this afternoon and is now foaming at the mouth — what should I do first? Call your vet or the ASPCA poison line at 888-426-4435 immediately — do not wait. Do not induce vomiting. The… Dogs · Emergency guide My 8 kg beagle swallowed two American mistletoe berries from the Christmas decorations an hour ago — is this an emergency? Yes — American mistletoe berries are the most toxic part of the plant and contain viscumin, which can… Dogs · Food safety My 10 kg dog managed to steal a heaping spoonful of homemade elderberry jam from the counter this morning — is that amount dangerous? Yes, that is dangerous. All parts of the elderberry plant — raw berries, leaves, bark, and stems — contain… Dogs · Food safety My 12 kg hunting dog tracked down and ate a raw wild rabbit yesterday — what should I watch for? Raw wild rabbit carries real risks — parasites like toxoplasma and protozoa, plus bacteria such as Salmonella… Dogs · Food safety Is sour cream safer than Greek yogurt for a 6-month-old, 4 kg puppy with a sensitive stomach? No — Greek yogurt is the better choice for a puppy with a sensitive stomach. Sour cream is high in both fat…

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