Regardless of whether you live in an apartment or a multi-bedroom house, part of making a home your own is wanting to create an atmosphere that suits your personality. Besides just filling it with a couple of couches, a bed, and a handful of appliances, we want our homes to be places where we can find refuge from the daily grind and just get away from it all. Our homes are places where we recharge our batteries, spend most of our time, and create memories that last a lifetime. Unfortunately though for those of us that have pets not everything we decorate our homes with is safe for our furry friends.
Many times in looking for items to decorate with, pet owners purchase plants that while they may look nice can also be deadly if ingested by our animals. Thankfully the American Animal Hospital Association has provided a list of 700 plants that are poisonous if eaten by animals:
|
PLANT |
TOXIC PARTS |
PLANT TYPE |
|
Aconite |
roots, foliage, seeds |
garden flower |
|
Apple |
seeds |
cultivated tree |
|
Arrowgrasses |
leaves |
marsh plants |
|
Atropa belladonna |
entire plant esp. seeds, roots |
garden herb |
|
Autumn Crocus |
entire plant |
garden flower |
|
Azaleas |
entire plant |
cultivated & wild shrub |
|
Baneberry |
berries, roots |
wildflower |
|
Bird-of-Paradise |
pods |
garden flower |
|
Black locust |
entire plant esp. bark, shoots |
tree |
|
Bloodroot |
entire plant esp. stem, roots |
wildflower, herb |
|
Box |
entire plant esp. leaves |
ornamental shrub |
|
Buckeye |
sprouts, nuts, seeds |
tree |
|
Buttercup |
entire plant esp. leaves |
wildflower, garden herb |
|
Daffodil |
bulbs |
garden flower |
|
Daphne |
bark, berries, leaves |
ornamental shrub |
|
Day lily |
entire plant is toxic to cats |
garden & wildflower |
|
Death Camas |
leaves, stems, seeds, flowers |
field herb |
|
Delphinium (Larkspur) |
entire plant esp. sprouts |
wildflower |
|
Dumbcane |
entire plant |
house plant |
|
Dutchman's breeches |
roots, foliage |
wild & garden flower |
|
Easter lily |
entire plant is toxic to cats |
flowering house plant |
|
Elderberry |
leaves, bark, roots, buds |
tree |
|
Elephant's ear |
entire plant |
house plant |
|
English Ivy |
entire plant esp. leaves, berries |
ornamental vine |
For a complete list of harmful plants or to learn more about what types of house plants are ok for pet owners to have around the house, learn more by visiting The Ameican Animal Hospital Association website.