Lily poisoning??

[Squinty]

We plan on getting a new cat in the coming weeks. No kittens tho. To hard to manage. We will get another 9 month old from rspca

 

[Kristy_07]

Good luck

 

[Chris1]

thats so sad squinty, i have no issue with indoor cats, i was amazed to find myself hoping urs would pull thru.

sorry for ur loss, hope u and the mrs are ok.

 

[FAY]

So sorry for your loss.

Thanks for making us aware of lillies as I had no idea.

 

[FAY]

Do you know without sounding harsh ..CodeRed ,thats a brilliant idea in that I want to have reptiles out doors and as usual we get neigbours cats(ONE NEIGHBOUR MAINLY) peeing and marking on our property ..and even though you can drop a 1000000 hints to them like GEEZE MY PLACE SMELT LIKE CATS PISSSSSSSSSSSS this morning,or MY CHOOK HOUSE ROOF IS COVERED IN CAT PRINTS!! ...they still dont get the big picture ..as I live in a small town and basically know who owns cats near me and who doesnt ,and the fact I have busted this particular cat time and time again over my house ...the HINT still doesnt sink in !! So maybe by planting LILLIES and telling them "You know Lilly plants can kill cats ...and I have just planted a heap ..you may wanna keep ya cat on your side of the fence now " might just be the answer

sorry to hear about your cat really ...this post wasnt aimed at you guys, I have no problem with resposible cat owners ever and I like cats ....

I agree, responsible cat owners are fantastic.

Nothing worse then going out to your car and there is cat's smell all around it and you don't even own a cat!!!

 

[Squinty]

Our cats are always indoor cats and I train them to be let outside supervised and they just stay on the lawn. When I've had enough I just walk inside and call them and they come in. They are very well behaved. Just have to spend some time training them. The vets are always supprised when I tell them how well trained our cats are cause usually they do what they want.

Thanks for everyones kind words. It means a lot to us.

 

[Squinty]

Oh and just to add. The vet said in her whole 3 years of being a vet this is the first case she has seen come through.

 

[Sarah]

im so sorry to hear your cat passed, ive never heard of this lily poisoning and will pass this onto my cat friends so they never go through this.

 

[shellfisch]

Really sorry to hear mate

Michelle

 

[slide]

:cry: My condolences. Pour out some liqour.
While it is important to educate people on the toxicity we must also consider who it is that we tell as there is already too much animal cruelty. As we are aware many in the community are anti-cat, but we must also remember that many people will think nothing of taking a spade to our beloved reptiles and we must ask ourselves are we those same people if we go around harming cats?
I do quite like stories of people being bitten whist weilding a spade though :lol:

 

[redbellybite]

:cry: My condolences. Pour out some liqour.
While it is important to educate people on the toxicity we must also consider who it is that we tell as there is already too much animal cruelty. As we are aware many in the community are anti-cat, but we must also remember that many people will think nothing of taking a spade to our beloved reptiles and we must ask ourselves are we those same people if we go around harming cats?
I do quite like stories of people being bitten whist weilding a spade though :lol:

I dont think many on here are all for being cruel to any cat ,despite what they feel about them ..cruelty to any animal wether it be a cat or a cane toad isnt right in my books ...but I must say it peeeves me off when I see or read of people using the excuse for thier cats/dogs like "Oh well if the snake or what ever animal ventures into my yard its not my dogs fault that it killed it " as we know most native animals especially the likes of possums and Koalas do venture out at night ..YOU as the dog owner should be responsible to have your dog either locked up or on a chain at night even if its in your yard . CAT owners KNOW cats like to prey on everything ..so all cats should either be CAGED or kept inside and outside should be supervised there are NO EXCUSES EVER...and if alot more people followed these rules of owning a domestic dog or cat we would have way less senarios of injured or killed wildlife .

 

[Kristy_07]

I totally agree with you on locking up cats at night, RBB. But I disagree with you about the dogs. If possums walked around on the ground at night in the wild, they would be in a similar vulnerable position as if they wander around in someone's yards. They are not predominantly terrestrial animals, and most possums come into backyards scavenging for scraps, rubbish, and left out pet food, which encourages them to the ground. It's the catch-22 of possums having urbanised themselves. I'm not saying it's "their fault" if they're killed by dogs, but as an urbanised animal, it goes with the territory.

Sorry for being inflammatory, but this touched a recent sore point with me! My dog has killed 2 possums in 4 years (stupid mongrel), and I feel really bad about it. But, possums are ABUNDANT, even to the point of being a pest, in my area. And, having just been broken into and had $10 000+ of stuff stolen from my house, I definitely will not be locking my dogs up in side the yard at night. Even for the sake of the odd brushtail. If I was on acreage, or it was threatening more vulnerable species (as in, their population numbers) I would probably think differently. JMO.

 

[slide]

Redbellybite, just clearing up my statement- when I said community I should have said public, I was not necessarily refering to this particular community although it is clear that some are anti-cat. I just know of MANY instances of feline cruelty. I too am all for responsible animal ownership.
Squinty, you must be the cat whisperer or something, sounds like some well trained animals. All the best for your next addition to your zoo when you are ready for it.

 

[redbellybite]

I totally agree with you on locking up cats at night, RBB. But I disagree with you about the dogs. If possums walked around on the ground at night in the wild, they would be in a similar vulnerable position as if they wander around in someone's yards. They are not predominantly terrestrial animals, and most possums come into backyards scavenging for scraps, rubbish, and left out pet food, which encourages them to the ground. It's the catch-22 of possums having urbanised themselves. I'm not saying it's "their fault" if they're killed by dogs, but as an urbanised animal, it goes with the territory.

Sorry for being inflammatory, but this touched a recent sore point with me! My dog has killed 2 possums in 4 years (stupid mongrel), and I feel really bad about it. But, possums are ABUNDANT, even to the point of being a pest, in my area. And, having just been broken into and had $10 000+ of stuff stolen from my house, I definitely will not be locking my dogs up in side the yard at night. Even for the sake of the odd brushtail. If I was on acreage, or it was threatening more vulnerable species (as in, their population numbers) I would probably think differently. JMO.

Kristy can fully understand your fear ,after being broken into now ..but HUMANS encroached on our NATIVE animals territory and as they dont have a voice they cant PROTEST when we humans develop more housing areas to accomodate our urban style of living now ,bringing our NON native pets with us that PREY upon them ..YOU should be responsible about your dogs killing a possum ..even if its just an abundant brushtail as you quoted ...you see your not the only one with that attitude heaps of people have that same attitude and you cant claim your any better with your thinking then some cat owner as you are fully aware that your dogs have killed ...Dogs need only to let their owners know 'to load the shotgun so to speak' They will still bark like crazy if someone ventures into your yard if they are kept chained up ..and if you hear your dogs barking YOU as the owner need to go and see what he /she is barking at . Criminals that want to break into your home regardless of dogs will do so ..and sadly either kill or injure your dogs in the process ..baits are easy to make and if being sussed out for a while now ,will know exactly what type of dogs you have etc ...obviously your dogs werent a deterrent from your break in ...but are possum killers .....We need to change our way of thinking ..because our pets cant know the difference between a non threatend species to an endangered one now .

 

[Snowman]

Great everyone now knows that Lilys are poisonous to cats.. How are you going to stop the cat haters loading up their water pistols and spraying the cats with lily consentrate? The cats will lick it off....
PS I don't like cats so hand them to my local pound when they tresspass on my property.. But I know fellow haters are always looking for ways to kill cats and one such hater mentioned the water pistol to me after this discussion. I agree it's cruel but it wont stop the passionate haters.

 

[Ingrid]

Great everyone now knows that Lilys are poisonous to cats.. How are you going to stop the cat haters loading up their water pistols and spraying the cats with lily consentrate? The cats will lick it off....
PS I don't like cats so hand them to my local pound when they tresspass on my property.. But I know fellow haters are always looking for ways to kill cats and one such hater mentioned the water pistol to me after this discussion. I agree it's cruel but it wont stop the passionate haters.

Seriously, if someone's that anti-cats, I think they're going to find any way possible to harm them. I don't really think having this new information is enough to initiate some kind of 'lily concentrate' cat-killing spree in people that weren't already planning to harm cats.

 

[Snowman]

that's true... they could have or probably already do spray them with some other poison. Lily sounds like more of an accident than intentional poisoning though when the owners get an autopsy done.

 

[Kristy_07]

Kristy can fully understand your fear ,after being broken into now ..but HUMANS encroached on our NATIVE animals territory and as they dont have a voice they cant PROTEST when we humans develop more housing areas to accomodate our urban style of living now ,bringing our NON native pets with us that PREY upon them ..YOU should be responsible about your dogs killing a possum ..even if its just an abundant brushtail as you quoted ...you see your not the only one with that attitude heaps of people have that same attitude and you cant claim your any better with your thinking then some cat owner as you are fully aware that your dogs have killed ...Dogs need only to let their owners know 'to load the shotgun so to speak' They will still bark like crazy if someone ventures into your yard if they are kept chained up ..and if you hear your dogs barking YOU as the owner need to go and see what he /she is barking at . Criminals that want to break into your home regardless of dogs will do so ..and sadly either kill or injure your dogs in the process ..baits are easy to make and if being sussed out for a while now ,will know exactly what type of dogs you have etc ...obviously your dogs werent a deterrent from your break in ...but are possum killers .....We need to change our way of thinking ..because our pets cant know the difference between a non threatend species to an endangered one now .

RBB, possums are so abundant because they have created a niche for themselves within the urbanised environment. I studied this in uni - possum numbers are usually higher in built up areas than in the bush, because there is a much larger food source. The compromise for them is that the food is usually in bins, pet dishes, barbecue scraps etc. so they have to come to the ground to get to it, making them more vulnerable. But, their numbers are still much much higher than in their natural habitat because they have urbanised. If a rat, fox, or feral cat did the same thing, they would definitely be considered a pest, but I bet there's no argument about whether they kill the occasional non-native rat that runs through the yard, as well. Overpopulated native animals shouldn't be considered all that different - see the current discussion on eating roo.

I am responsible for my dogs, but if we (me, the dogs, and the possums) are all going to share the same urbanised lifestyle, then everyone has to learn the boundaries. The possums know that there are two massive predators in the yard - they're not stupid and without instinct. If they want scraps, they can get them from the bin outside the yard.

In my opinion, it is different from a cat owner that lets their cats roam and hunt things - my dogs can only hunt in the 10m2 of the yard, if something wanders into it, which is never an endangered or threatened species.

As to your rant about checking on the dogs barking and loading the shotgun etc. - of course we do! (Well, not the shotgun part... yikes! Remind me to ring you up before visiting your place after dark ) And I'm aware that even big dogs aren't a total deterrent to a professional burglar. The dogs were in the kennels when we were broken into, so your point about them not being a deterrent this time is a moot point.

I'm not holding this point of view because I'm ignorant (as you may be thinking), but because I've weighed the pros and cons and am comfortable with the minimal risk that a possum will wander into the yard and get cornered by the dogs (which is fairly unlikely unless it's sick, old, or injured anyway) versus having to chain them up, which, as a side point, has the distinct possibility of making them more territorial and acutely aggressive of anything - possum, burglar, or innocent child - that comes within reach of the chain. Again, JMO.

 

[PhilK]

Kristy don't try and justify your dogs killing native wildlife. Cats always get a bad wrap for killing native wildlife but 9 times out of 10 if someone's dog did it people don't care. Dogs are just as bad as blood cats.. my mates yard is littered with dead bluies, and I don't think it's OK because there are plenty of blue tongues around. Yes your dogs don't go out roaming, but people get crucified here all the time for cats killing things in their yard.

Anyway funny that I should read this thread.. I vaguely remember something about lillies during my toxicology lectures but couldn't find the notes. Today I had a prac at the hospital at uni and in the consult room what should I find but a laminated poster entitled LILLY POISONING IN CATS.

My condolences for your loss, it's very sad to hear.

 

[Kristy_07]

I'm not justifying anything. I hate that the dog killed the two possums, and if there was any threatened on endangered wildlife around, I would be managing the issue differently. We actively discourage possums from coming into the yard on near the house (along with the neighbours' cats) with a variety of measures. The purpose of the dogs being free in the yard is very different to the purpose of a cat being free outside. I was explaining why I'm not going to chain the dogs up at up (on the nights they aren't sleeping inside, anyway), and why I feel comfortable with the decision.