Did you hear that this is National Poison Prevention Week? It’s a week to raise awareness of poison prevention for the whole family, and we all know that our cats are an important part of the family. Every day of this week has a different awareness focus, and today is Home Safe Home day.

We live in our home with cats every day and don’t think about the trouble they can get into until a breakable vase is knocked on the floor, then we realize that the vase was in a dangerous place all the time. Things that may be poisonous to our cats in our home are like that, too. We live alongside them all the time without thinking about them until something unfortunate happens. Take a few minutes during this awareness week to look around your house at a cat’s eye view.

Has your cat ever gotten into the attic or basement? Many attics and basements have moth balls, rat bait, or ant poison in unprotected locations because you don’t expect a cat to be in there. Putting these items in locations that are accessible to moths, rats, or ants rather than cats is always a good idea, just in case a cat visits the area.

Does your cat know how to get into cabinets? What about drawers?

Take a look in the cabinet under your kitchen and bathroom sink. What do you store there? Cleaning products and detergents? If your upper cabinets are like ours, they probably have bottles of vitamins, human medicines, and veterinary medicines. If your cat is as adept at opening cabinets and drawers as Pierre, you might want to look into baby latches intended to keep children out of cabinets. They’re not expensive, and can keep curiuous cats out of the cabinets. We have posted previously about solutions for securing pantries and other storage areas that have bifold doors.

You may have houseplants in any room of the house. Some houseplants are toxic to cats, while others are fine. A good resource to check about the specific plants in your house is the Pet Poison Helpline list of poisons. This resource includes plants and many other poisonous items found throughout your home, so you can find out about their potential effects on your cat.

Does your cat have access to your garage? Walk out there and take a look at what you’re storing there. Are there slug baits for the garden? What about weed killers? If your washer and dryer are in the garage, the dish washing detergent and fabric softener sheets are toxic, too. (Though not related to poisons, don’t forget to be careful to always check the interior of the dryer before putting in a load in case a cat gets inside!) Automotive chemicals such as oil, gasoline, and antifreeze are also toxic. It only takes a teaspoon of antifreeze to kill a cat.

Take a few minutes to move poisonous items out of your cat’s reach today to make your house a safer place for your cat each and every day.

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