Pet owners, you CAN have your precious fur babies and your beautiful plants, just with a little compromise. 

Cats are brats. They have a look of permanent smugness about them as they gaze at you over the up-ended pot they just sent crashing to the floor; a look that says “I could do this all day and you’ll still clean up my poop.”

They are adorable monsters and yet somehow we don’t want them to be poisoned. Dogs are less evil, but tend to have a dopey curiosity about them that makes them just as likely to taste things around the house that they shouldn’t.

We need to protect our little monsters and idiots from themselves and their desire to try leafy green things.

The following are some of the plants we regularly carry at Flowers Talk Tivoli that are safe to have around your little feline and Fido; followed by some that should be avoided:

Pet Safe Plants:

• Pony Tail Palm, Beaucarnia recurvata
• Peperomia
• Haworthia
• Christmas cactus, Schlumbergera bridgesii
• African violet, Saintpaulia
• Baby’s Tears and Polka Dot Plant, Hypoestes
• Spider Plant, Chlorophytum
• Boston Fern, Nephroleptis exaltata bostoniensis
• Prayer Plant, Maranta leuconeura
• Aluminum Plant, Pilea cadierei
• Waxplant, Hoya carnosa
• Hens and Chicks, Echiveria elegans
• Burrow’s Tail, Sedum morganianum
• Button Fern, Pellaea rotundifolia
• Phalaenopsis orchid

Shop our current stock of pet safe plants here!

Plants Not Safe To Have Around Pets:

• Norfolk Island Pine, Araucaria heterophylla
• Croton, Codiaeum variegatum
• Jade Plant, Crassula argentea
• Azalea, Rhododendron
• Geranium, Pelargonium
• Easter Lily, Lilium longiflorum
• Aloe, Aloe barbadensis
• Corn Plant, Dracaena
• Dumb Cane, Deiffenbachia (highly toxic)
• Daffodil and Paperwhite, Narcissus
• Calla Lily, Zantedeschia
• Yucca
• Elephant Ears, Caladium
• Philodendron
• Pothos and Devil’s Ivy, Epipremnum aureum
• Holly, Ilex
• Amaryllis
• Tulip
• Peace Lily, Spathiphyllum
• Daisy and Mum, Chrysanthemum
• English Ivy, Hedera helix
• Mother In-Law’s Tongue and Snake Plant, Sansevieria
• Ficus

These lists are by no means complete, if you are concerned about a plant not listed, the ASPCA has a fairly comprehensive search feature to check. You can also call your vet for advice before brining home a new plant.

With very few exceptions like cat grass and catnip, no plant is really considered “safe” in the sense that they could munch on it all day and not see ill effects. In most cases even “pet-friendly” plants are only ok in reasonable, nibbling doses. If your pet has a real penchant for mowing down whole pots, try to limit their access to the plant (for the plant’s sake as well!) and if in doubt, give your vet a call to ask if it’s ok that Fluffy devoured an entire bush.

If your animal ever shows signs of lethargy, weakness, excessive drooling or foaming, vomiting, or diarrhea they may have eaten something they shouldn’t and you must contact your vet or an emergency clinic immediately.

Let’s keep our little hooligans safe and healthy, so they can bother us for many more years!