Iris flowers and cats: toxicity?

Hi,

I'm trying to find out whether the iris plant is dangerous for cats.
I'm talking about cut flowers in a vase, not flowers growing in the
ground or in a flower pot.

Does anyone here know the answer? I bought a small iris bunch
yesterday on impulse. I've never had any flowers or plants in my
apartment except cat grass. It was my birthday and I felt like
getting something small but special for myself. I was pretty sure I
remembered that they were safe for cats, but just in case, I put them
on a high shelf that the cats can't reach, until I had time to
research it and make sure.

Well. You have no idea how many different answers I've found on the
web. Some say the iris is poisonous. But what does that mean? Does it
mean a bit of indigestion, or death, or what? Others say it is only
mildly toxic. Some say it's only the bulb that's toxic (which
wouldn't be a problem, because I'm asking about *cut* flowers - no
bulb). Some say it's the bulb and the leaves. Some say it's the whole
plant. I don't know how reliable the information is, anyway.

I would prefer that people not respond with links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be more
conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I thought
if I just asked people for their personal experiences, or experiences
that a friend had, or, if you're an expert on cat health, feel free
to impart info. Please be specific. If you know iris is toxic, please
say *how* toxic it is, and what it could do. And please say which
parts of the plant are toxic, and which parts are OK.

Thanks!
Joyce

--
There are 10 kinds of people in the world: those who understand binary
and those who don't.

wrote:
Hi,

I'm trying to find out whether the iris plant is dangerous for cats.
I'm talking about cut flowers in a vase, not flowers growing in the
ground or in a flower pot.

Does anyone here know the answer? I bought a small iris bunch
yesterday on impulse. I've never had any flowers or plants in my
apartment except cat grass. It was my birthday and I felt like
getting something small but special for myself. I was pretty sure I
remembered that they were safe for cats, but just in case, I put them
on a high shelf that the cats can't reach, until I had time to
research it and make sure.

Well. You have no idea how many different answers I've found on the
web. Some say the iris is poisonous. But what does that mean? Does it
mean a bit of indigestion, or death, or what? Others say it is only
mildly toxic. Some say it's only the bulb that's toxic (which
wouldn't be a problem, because I'm asking about *cut* flowers - no
bulb). Some say it's the bulb and the leaves. Some say it's the whole
plant. I don't know how reliable the information is, anyway.

I would prefer that people not respond with links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be more
conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I thought
if I just asked people for their personal experiences, or experiences
that a friend had, or, if you're an expert on cat health, feel free
to impart info. Please be specific. If you know iris is toxic, please
say *how* toxic it is, and what it could do. And please say which
parts of the plant are toxic, and which parts are OK.

Thanks!
Joyce

Here is a link I found:
http://cats.about.com/od/catsafety/ss/toxicplants.htm#

Bill Graham wrote:

wrote:
Hi,

I'm trying to find out whether the iris plant is dangerous for cats.
I'm talking about cut flowers in a vase, not flowers growing in the
ground or in a flower pot.

Does anyone here know the answer? I bought a small iris bunch
yesterday on impulse. I've never had any flowers or plants in my
apartment except cat grass. It was my birthday and I felt like
getting something small but special for myself. I was pretty sure I
remembered that they were safe for cats, but just in case, I put them
on a high shelf that the cats can't reach, until I had time to
research it and make sure.

Well. You have no idea how many different answers I've found on the
web. Some say the iris is poisonous. But what does that mean? Does it
mean a bit of indigestion, or death, or what? Others say it is only
mildly toxic. Some say it's only the bulb that's toxic (which
wouldn't be a problem, because I'm asking about *cut* flowers - no
bulb). Some say it's the bulb and the leaves. Some say it's the whole
plant. I don't know how reliable the information is, anyway.

I would prefer that people not respond with links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be more
conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I thought
if I just asked people for their personal experiences, or experiences
that a friend had, or, if you're an expert on cat health, feel free
to impart info. Please be specific. If you know iris is toxic, please
say *how* toxic it is, and what it could do. And please say which
parts of the plant are toxic, and which parts are OK.

Thanks!
Joyce

Here is a link I found:
http://cats.about.com/od/catsafety/ss/toxicplants.htm#

Yeah, that's one of the sites I've already looked at (see above). It
didn't feel conclusive to me.

Thanks,
Joyce


--
Something you'll never hear an 8-year-old say:

"Nana, will you spit on your hankie and wipe the gravy off my face?"

20.9.2011 8:43, kirjoitti:
Bill Graham wrote:

wrote:
Hi,

I'm trying to find out whether the iris plant is dangerous for cats.
I'm talking about cut flowers in a vase, not flowers growing in the
ground or in a flower pot.

Does anyone here know the answer? I bought a small iris bunch
yesterday on impulse. I've never had any flowers or plants in my
apartment except cat grass. It was my birthday and I felt like
getting something small but special for myself. I was pretty sure I
remembered that they were safe for cats, but just in case, I put them
on a high shelf that the cats can't reach, until I had time to
research it and make sure.

Well. You have no idea how many different answers I've found on the
web. Some say the iris is poisonous. But what does that mean? Does it
mean a bit of indigestion, or death, or what? Others say it is only
mildly toxic. Some say it's only the bulb that's toxic (which
wouldn't be a problem, because I'm asking about *cut* flowers - no
bulb). Some say it's the bulb and the leaves. Some say it's the whole
plant. I don't know how reliable the information is, anyway.

I would prefer that people not respond with links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be more
conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I thought
if I just asked people for their personal experiences, or experiences
that a friend had, or, if you're an expert on cat health, feel free
to impart info. Please be specific. If you know iris is toxic, please
say *how* toxic it is, and what it could do. And please say which
parts of the plant are toxic, and which parts are OK.

Thanks!
Joyce

Here is a link I found:
http://cats.about.com/od/catsafety/ss/toxicplants.htm#

Yeah, that's one of the sites I've already looked at (see above). It
didn't feel conclusive to me.

Thanks,
Joyce


Toxic according to this site:
http://www.aspca.org/Pet-care/poison...ants/iris.aspx

--
Christine in Finland
christal63 (at) gmail (dot) com

Christine BA wrote:

20.9.2011 8:43, kirjoitti:

I would prefer that people not respond with links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be more
conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I thought
if I just asked people for their personal experiences...

Here is a link I found:
http://cats.about.com/od/catsafety/ss/toxicplants.htm#

Yeah, that's one of the sites I've already looked at (see above). It
didn't feel conclusive to me.

Toxic according to this site:
http://www.aspca.org/Pet-care/poison...ants/iris.aspx

That's another one I've seen - that one says that most of the toxin is
in the bulb. I bought cut flowers, so no bulb.

Thanks,
Joyce

--
- Your mom and I are going to divorce next month.
- What??? Why! Call me please?
- I wrote Disney and this phone changed it. We are going to Disney.
-- damnyouautocorrect.com

wrote:
Bill Graham wrote:

wrote:
Hi,

I'm trying to find out whether the iris plant is dangerous for cats.
I'm talking about cut flowers in a vase, not flowers growing in the
ground or in a flower pot.

Does anyone here know the answer? I bought a small iris bunch
yesterday on impulse. I've never had any flowers or plants in my
apartment except cat grass. It was my birthday and I felt like
getting something small but special for myself. I was pretty sure I
remembered that they were safe for cats, but just in case, I put
them on a high shelf that the cats can't reach, until I had time to
research it and make sure.

Well. You have no idea how many different answers I've found on the
web. Some say the iris is poisonous. But what does that mean? Does
it mean a bit of indigestion, or death, or what? Others say it is
only mildly toxic. Some say it's only the bulb that's toxic (which
wouldn't be a problem, because I'm asking about *cut* flowers - no
bulb). Some say it's the bulb and the leaves. Some say it's the
whole plant. I don't know how reliable the information is, anyway.

I would prefer that people not respond with links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be more
conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I
thought if I just asked people for their personal experiences, or
experiences that a friend had, or, if you're an expert on cat
health, feel free to impart info. Please be specific. If you know
iris is toxic, please say *how* toxic it is, and what it could do.
And please say which parts of the plant are toxic, and which parts
are OK.

Thanks!
Joyce

Here is a link I found:
http://cats.about.com/od/catsafety/ss/toxicplants.htm#

Yeah, that's one of the sites I've already looked at (see above). It
didn't feel conclusive to me.

Thanks,
Joyce

From having lived with and around cats all of my life, and being in many
houses filled with potted plants, I think that, in general, there are no
plants found in the average home that are toxic to cats or other pets. If
there were such plants, everyone would know about them by now, and they
would be "common knowlege". Of course, any pet might be allergic to
anything, so there will always be exceptions. In general, however, I
wouldn't worry about it.

On 9/20/2011 3:38 PM, Bill Graham wrote:
wrote:
Bill Graham wrote:

wrote:
Hi,

I'm trying to find out whether the iris plant is dangerous for cats.
I'm talking about cut flowers in a vase, not flowers growing in the
ground or in a flower pot.

Does anyone here know the answer? I bought a small iris bunch
yesterday on impulse. I've never had any flowers or plants in my
apartment except cat grass. It was my birthday and I felt like
getting something small but special for myself. I was pretty sure I
remembered that they were safe for cats, but just in case, I put
them on a high shelf that the cats can't reach, until I had time to
research it and make sure.

Well. You have no idea how many different answers I've found on the
web. Some say the iris is poisonous. But what does that mean? Does
it mean a bit of indigestion, or death, or what? Others say it is
only mildly toxic. Some say it's only the bulb that's toxic (which
wouldn't be a problem, because I'm asking about *cut* flowers - no
bulb). Some say it's the bulb and the leaves. Some say it's the
whole plant. I don't know how reliable the information is, anyway.

I would prefer that people not respond with links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be more
conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I
thought if I just asked people for their personal experiences, or
experiences that a friend had, or, if you're an expert on cat
health, feel free to impart info. Please be specific. If you know
iris is toxic, please say *how* toxic it is, and what it could do.
And please say which parts of the plant are toxic, and which parts
are OK.

Thanks!
Joyce

Here is a link I found:
http://cats.about.com/od/catsafety/ss/toxicplants.htm#

Yeah, that's one of the sites I've already looked at (see above). It
didn't feel conclusive to me.

Thanks,
Joyce

From having lived with and around cats all of my life, and being in
many houses filled with potted plants, I think that, in general, there
are no plants found in the average home that are toxic to cats or other
pets. If there were such plants, everyone would know about them by now,
and they would be "common knowlege". Of course, any pet might be
allergic to anything, so there will always be exceptions. In general,
however, I wouldn't worry about it.

huh? there are plenty of toxic house plants available in local stores
all over that are toxic to humans, and would also be toxic to all house
pets. this is well documented.

or did you mean something else?

chaniarts wrote:
On 9/20/2011 3:38 PM, Bill Graham wrote:
wrote:
Bill Graham wrote:

wrote:
Hi,

I'm trying to find out whether the iris plant is dangerous for
cats. I'm talking about cut flowers in a vase, not flowers
growing in the ground or in a flower pot.

Does anyone here know the answer? I bought a small iris bunch
yesterday on impulse. I've never had any flowers or plants in my
apartment except cat grass. It was my birthday and I felt like
getting something small but special for myself. I was pretty sure
I remembered that they were safe for cats, but just in case, I put
them on a high shelf that the cats can't reach, until I had time
to research it and make sure.

Well. You have no idea how many different answers I've found on
the web. Some say the iris is poisonous. But what does that mean?
Does it mean a bit of indigestion, or death, or what? Others say
it is only mildly toxic. Some say it's only the bulb that's toxic
(which wouldn't be a problem, because I'm asking about *cut*
flowers - no bulb). Some say it's the bulb and the leaves. Some
say it's the whole plant. I don't know how reliable the
information is, anyway. I would prefer that people not respond with
links, because (1)
chances are, I've already seen the site, and (2) it'll just be
more conflicting information and I'm already confused enough. So I
thought if I just asked people for their personal experiences, or
experiences that a friend had, or, if you're an expert on cat
health, feel free to impart info. Please be specific. If you know
iris is toxic, please say *how* toxic it is, and what it could do.
And please say which parts of the plant are toxic, and which parts
are OK.

Thanks!
Joyce

Here is a link I found:
http://cats.about.com/od/catsafety/ss/toxicplants.htm#

Yeah, that's one of the sites I've already looked at (see above). It
didn't feel conclusive to me.

Thanks,
Joyce

From having lived with and around cats all of my life, and being in
many houses filled with potted plants, I think that, in general,
there are no plants found in the average home that are toxic to cats
or other pets. If there were such plants, everyone would know about
them by now, and they would be "common knowlege". Of course, any pet
might be allergic to anything, so there will always be exceptions.
In general, however, I wouldn't worry about it.

huh? there are plenty of toxic house plants available in local stores
all over that are toxic to humans, and would also be toxic to all
house pets. this is well documented.

or did you mean something else?

No. I meant exactly what I said. Why don't you assemble and give us a list
of these plants? It would be very useful to this group.

On 9/29/2011 11:47 AM, Bill Graham wrote:


From having lived with and around cats all of my life, and being in
many houses filled with potted plants, I think that, in general,
there are no plants found in the average home that are toxic to cats
or other pets. If there were such plants, everyone would know about
them by now, and they would be "common knowlege". Of course, any pet
might be allergic to anything, so there will always be exceptions.
In general, however, I wouldn't worry about it.

huh? there are plenty of toxic house plants available in local stores
all over that are toxic to humans, and would also be toxic to all
house pets. this is well documented.

or did you mean something else?

No. I meant exactly what I said. Why don't you assemble and give us a
list of these plants? It would be very useful to this group.

there's multiple places around on the net that have lists. some common
ones off the top of my head:

rhododendron
chrysanthemum
philodendron
daffodil
mistletoe

all of these are commonly found as house plants or purchased flowers

chaniarts wrote:

On 9/29/2011 11:47 AM, Bill Graham wrote:


From having lived with and around cats all of my life, and being in
many houses filled with potted plants, I think that, in general,
there are no plants found in the average home that are toxic to cats
or other pets. If there were such plants, everyone would know about
them by now, and they would be "common knowlege". Of course, any pet
might be allergic to anything, so there will always be exceptions.
In general, however, I wouldn't worry about it.

huh? there are plenty of toxic house plants available in local stores
all over that are toxic to humans, and would also be toxic to all
house pets. this is well documented.

or did you mean something else?

No. I meant exactly what I said. Why don't you assemble and give us a
list of these plants? It would be very useful to this group.

there's multiple places around on the net that have lists. some common
ones off the top of my head:

rhododendron
chrysanthemum
philodendron
daffodil
mistletoe

all of these are commonly found as house plants or purchased flowers

Don't forget lilies! They're among the worst - very deadly.

--
Joyce

May the great galactic kitten always purr you to sleep.