Are Pothos Toxic To Cats?

Protecting your cats can be a hard one especially if they are outdoor cats. Most of the time our cats are clever and intelligent creatures who have survived for millenia without human intervention.

Yet, sometimes their curiosity can get the better of them, especially when we invite them into our homes which they love to explore. 

So plants are toxic to cats, whether you grow them indoors or outside it can be hard to tell which plants are toxic and which plants aren’t if you aren’t experienced with botany or horticulture, this can put a serious halt on any decorating or landscaping you may be doing.

To save you time, and keep you informed, we have written a guide to Pothos plants, a common and popular houseplant, so you can find out if they are toxic or if they are pet friendly. Let’s find out together!

What Are Pothos Plants?

Pothos is a colloquial term coined for a genus of plants called Epipremnum, and more specifically Epipremnum aureum. Renamed in 1964.

The Epipremnum aureum was called Pothos aureus in 1880 and was renamed due to horticultural classification reasons which resulted in ‘Pothos’ being a common and colloquial name that has stuck around.

This specific specimen is part of a wider family of plants known as Araceae.

The specific specimen ‘Epipremnum aureum’ is what is most commonly sold as a houseplant and is often what people refer to when talking about ‘Pothos’.

They can be identified by their variegated leaves and ivy look. Their leaves are shaped like love hearts and are on the end of thin stems.

Are Pothos House Plants Dangerous?

Typically, they can be considered toxic to pets, including cats and dogs. The Pothos plant is toxic due to the presence of raphides in the plant. As the plant has been around approximately the Miocene period which is around 20 million years ago.

This is relevant as raphides are a natural defence mechanism that has evolved in many old age plants to ward off plant predators.

In any case, these aren’t particularly great for your pets to eat, while they won’t lead to immediate death they can make your pet uncomfortable. Yet, it remains unlikely your pets will try to eat this plant anyway.

Moreover, the Pothos’ foliage is full of calcium oxalate. Calcium oxalate contact can cause your skin to be a little irritable if you touch the plant regularly.

The same goes for cats and dogs too, keep them nice and high when in pots so your pets don’t brush against them too often.

This calcium oxalate makes the plant toxic to humans when consumed. The calcium oxalate can cause serious irritation to your mouth and bowels as a result of consuming the foliage of pothos. 

Symptoms Of Pothos Poisoning

If your pet has had a little much on your pothos plant they won’t die immediately. Raphides are designed to cause irritation to the predator that eats the plant.

Yet, the foliage of a pothos isn’t particularly tasty so there isn’t any reason your pet will eat the plant beyond general curiosity. 

Raphides is just a morphological name for needle-like crystals of calcium oxalate. It’s not necessarily the calcium oxalate that is toxic, rather the raphides, which are needle shaped, cause irritation to the soft tissue of the mouth and throat in both animals and humans.

Calcium oxalate isn’t the toxic part, calcium oxalate is found in hundreds of plant families, especially heirloom plants that we eat. For instance.

Spinach and Beets are full of calcium oxalate but the formation of the calcium happens in more block shapes than the needle formation that causes irritation to the throat.

The morphological formation of calcium oxalate into needles is specifically what ‘raphides’ refers to, so it’s not technically poisoning. 

Here are common symptoms your pet, or even a human, has eaten raphides:

• Edematous swelling
• Dysphasia (trouble swallowing)
• Stinging or burning sensations
• Refusing to eat
• Immediate pain after eating

Raphides are very uncomfortable to eat, which is why they are a great plant defence mechanism. Luckily, as they are so uncomfortable, this usually stops the person or pet from eating too much of the foliage to be fatal.

You, or your pet, will probably spit it out before swallowing anything. Once swallowed, this is when the damage occurs.

It’s important to always check the airways of pets or humans that are thought to have eaten raphides, this can stop serious cases evolving into death. Always see your medical or veterinary professional if you are worried about potential plant poisoning.

Final Thoughts

Yes, ‘pothos’ or ‘Epipremnum aureum’ are dangerous to animals and humans.  Luckily, most people use Pothos as a hanging plant so it can often be high up and away from the reach of your pets.

The plant is considered dangerous due to the formation of raphides, a needle-like crystal of calcium oxalate, that causes serious irritation to the throat or mouth as the crystals cause soft tissue damage.

In most situations severe damage is avoided as the pet or person will reject the eaten item pretty quickly as raphides cause immediate damage when consumed.

Long term symptoms can be burning or tingling sensations, when airways get blocked are when serious emergency action should be taken. Consult your health or veterinary professional in serious cases of raphide consumption.

While the idea of pet poisoning can be scary, it’s worth considering our role in this equation. The likelihood a cat would ever come into contact with a pothos pre-domestication is extremely unlikely.

Most of these plants are eons old and have developed complex defence mechanisms to fight against serious plant predators. In our weird modern age we have brought together these age old plants with domesticated animals.

While most animals are clever enough to not eat plants, the fact they live in an area full of foreign plants will always lead to some danger being accrued in your home.