Are Lilies Toxic to Cats?
Yes — the ASPCA lists lilies as toxic to cats, and, in the same entry, as NON-toxic to dogs.
What the ASPCA publishes
- Scientific name
- Lilium species
- Family
- Liliaceae
- Toxic to cats
- Yes
- Toxic to dogs
- No
- Toxic principle
- Unknown
Clinical signs, in the ASPCA’s words
“Cats: kidney failure.”
⚠️ The same entry lists lilies as non-toxic to dogs. One source, two species, two different answers — we show both rather than flattening them into “toxic to pets”.
⚠️ The ASPCA publishes no threshold for any of these plants — no “this much is a problem”. We don’t invent one.
Common questions
Are lilies toxic to cats?
Yes — the ASPCA lists lilies as toxic to cats, and, in the same entry, as NON-toxic to dogs.
What happens if a cat eats lilies?
The ASPCA publishes this as the clinical signs, word for word: “Cats: kidney failure.” It names the toxic principle as “Unknown”. We reprint their wording rather than paraphrasing it — a paraphrase is what gets quoted back with the caution removed. It does not tell you how much is too much, and neither do we: the ASPCA publishes no threshold for any of these plants.
Are lilies safe for cats?
Not according to the ASPCA, which lists lilies as toxic to cats and publishes clinical signs for it. That is the answer to the question as asked; we are not going to soften it, and we are not going to tell you a small amount is fine either — the ASPCA publishes no threshold for any of these plants.
Are lilies toxic to dogs too?
No — and that is the striking part of this entry. The same ASPCA page that lists lilies as toxic to cats lists them as NON-toxic to dogs. One source, two species, two different answers. We show both rather than flattening them into “toxic to pets”.
My cat ate lilies — what now?
Call your veterinarian, or the ASPCA Poison Control at (888) 426-4435. Note which plant, which part, and roughly how much. This page reports what the ASPCA publishes about lilies; it cannot tell you whether your cat is affected, and no amount is described here as safe.
Other plants the ASPCA lists as toxic to cats
Every cat calculator
- Cat Age Calculator — Your cat’s age in human years, and why the sources disagree
- Cat Pregnancy Calculator — Your cat’s due date from her mating date
- Cat Calorie Calculator — How many calories your cat needs a day
- Kitten Feeding Calculator — How much to feed a kitten, by weight
- Kitten Age Calculator — How old your kitten is, estimated from its weight
- Kitten Growth Chart — What a kitten weighs at each age, from a published study
If your cat has chewed lilies, call your veterinarian or the ASPCA Poison Control at (888) 426-4435. This page reports what the ASPCA publishes; it is not a diagnosis, and no amount is described here as safe.
Verified on . Based on ASPCA Poison Control (ASPCA, 24-hour emergency line, accessed 2026-07-28) and Kitten Age & Weight Chart (ASPCA Pro, 2023 (golden-test source, not used to build the calculation)). See the method.