**NEW** Cat Hazards ~ Part 6 ~ The Art of Keeping Your Cat Safer ~ Top 12 Common Indoor Plants 'Safe' To Have Near Cats **Free Printable List with Pictures**

  Happy Monday supurr pals

Today we're sharing Part Six of our Cat Hazards series, and if mew missed the last post click here to catch up on the free A4 printable of 'safe' cut flowers to have near cats.

If mew're new to being cat staff, then maybe there are a few things mew haven't thought about, and we're here to point mew in the right direction and share tips that we've garnered over 25+ years. And for those seasoned and veteran cat staff, do feel free to add more suggestions in the comments, as all tips and cat hacks are welcome. 

Let's Talk About House Plants - AGAIN!

In our second Cat Hazards post, we talked about house plants which are highly toxic to cats and should be avoided at all costs ~ There is a free A4 Printable available on the post for mew.

Today we're sharing a list of the Top 12 Indoor Plants which are deemed **safe to have near your kitties.

Top 12 Common Indoor Plants Safe To Have Near Cats

And here's a free A4 printable so mew can have a visual reference of what's ok to have near Fluffy.

right-click the graphic to print it off and stick on your fridge or noticeboard

**Just remember that nothing is truly safe, especially if ingested in larger quantities. And mew really don't want Fluffy drinking any water that is sitting in a plant saucer.

Ideally, we would advise mew to position your plants in areas inaccessible to fluffy, as mew can never be too careful. 

We have several spider plants at BBHQ, which are in an accessible place for a nibble alongside our homegrown cat grass, and if mew'd like to grow your own cat grass and other greens see the links below. 

The B Team have never shown any adverse effects from nibbling on our spider plants, however all cats are not the same, as all humans are not the same.

If mew are bringing in a new plant from the 'safe' list we would recommend monitoring things closely for a few weeks, just in case your kitty is not compatible with it.

There are more 'safe' plants which mew can have in your home and if mew'd like another list, drop us a comment, and we'll extend this information further.

>^.^<

Check out our definitive guides to growing greens for your cat

If mew can't grow your own cat grass for whatever reason, take a look at our review of My Cat Grass mail order company, click the link. (This isn't an affiliate link)

Or check out our definitive guides for growing greens for your cat:

How To Grow Cat Grass

Epically Funky Grass Pots

The Complete Guide To Catnip

If mew need any further info on growing your own plants or have queries on anything else in today's post, let us know in the comments as we answer all our readers' questions on our Wednesday posts, The BBHQ Midweek News Round-Up.

>^.^<

What To Do If Your Kitty Ingests or Licks Something That Might be Poisonous or Toxic

If mew think that Fluffy may have ingested something that he or she shouldn't have, call your emergency vet immediately.

Or call the Animal Poisonline run by the PDSA on 01202 509000 - calls cost £30 payable at the time of the call. 

If mew are in the USA, mew can call Pet Poison Helpline on 855-764-7661 - they have a $75 charge payable at the time of the call.

Our advice, check online for your country and keep the number handy, whether that's stored in your phone or on the fridge, or where mew keep your emergency numbers.

The above prices are correct at the time of posting - September 2022 

Please note: these are not affiliate links, and we are in no way linked to either organisation in any capacity.

It doesn't take long to make your home a safe place, and mew'd do it for a baby/toddler/child, so do it for your cat too, and our K9 buddies, of course!

If in doubt, don't do it! 

We'll be back in a couple of weeks with some more top tips, and if mew missed any of our previous Cat Hazards posts, stop by our Top Tips for Pawents page, and mew'll find oodles of useful stuff and pointers to help mew safely navigate pet pawrenthood.

Until next time...

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team

Disclaimer: We are not vets, animal medical professionals, animal doctors or have any formal qualifications in animal health. If mew are worried or concerned about anything at all, purrlease take your feline furiend to your purrsonal veterinarian or other health care provider and seek expert advice and assistance immediately.

The safe indoor plant list is subject to change pending new information and data on the aforementioned plants, but at the time of publishing was correct according to our resources.

Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com   

**NEW** Cat Hazards ~ Part 5 ~ The Art of Keeping Your Cat Safer ~ Top 12 Common Cut Flowers 'Safe' To Have Near Cats **Free Printable List with Pictures**

  Happy Monday supurr pals

Today we're sharing  Part Five of our Cat Hazards series, and if mew missed our last post, click here to catch up on a re-run of our Cat Hazards posts sharing the dangers of air fresheners and candles.

If mew're new to being cat staff, then maybe there are a few things mew haven't thought about, and we're here to point mew in the right direction and share tips that we've garnered over 25+ years. And for those seasoned and veteran cat staff, do feel free to add more suggestions and tips in the comments, as all cat hacks are welcome. 

Let's Talk About Cut Flowers or Bouquets

Recently, we re-ran our free A4 printable list of cut flowers that are toxic to cats which are really best avoided at all costs, and unfortunately they are among some of the most readily available flowers to buy.

So if mew really love your cut flowers, what can mew have?

We did a bit of research and floated around the interwebs a little while we gathered information on today's list of:

The Top 12 Common Cut Flowers Safe** To Have Near Cats

And here's a free A4 printable so mew can have a visual reference of what is ok to have near Fluffy.

right-click the graphic to print it off and stick on your fridge or noticeboard

There are quite a few more safe** flowers and if mew'd like another list, drop us a comment, and we'll extend this information further.

But don't forget:

**EVEN SAFE FLOWERS CAN BE HARMFUL

Always make sure that Fluffy can't knock the vase over, or drink the water.

And we would always recommend keeping any cut flowers, even those on the safe list in a place where your cat can't have access to them.

At BBHQ we just don't have any cut flowers in the house, we have house plants but never any flowers.

If your kitty is looking or trying to eat the flowers or any foliage, this indicates to us that your cat is probably looking for cat grass to assist with a possible furball removal, or digestive issue and we would recommend that mew always have fresh cat grass available, especially for indoor-only cats. 

The B Team always have fresh greens available, and if mew can't grow your own, there are many places that supply ready-grown cat grass by mail order, or check at your local florists or garden centre as we've noticed there are several places around us which have recently started selling ready-grown cat grass, and catnip plants.

If mew want to check out a review of My Cat Grass mail order company, click the link.

Or check out our definitive guides for growing greens for your cat:

How To Grow Cat Grass

Epically Funky Grass Pots

The Complete Guide To Catnip

If mew need any further info on growing your own plants or have queries on anything else in today's post, let us know in the comments as we answer all our readers' questions on our Wednesday posts, The BBHQ Midweek News Round-Up.

What To Do If Your Kitty Ingests or Licks Something That Might be Poisonous or Toxic

If mew think that Fluffy may have ingested something that he or she shouldn't have, call your emergency vet immediately.

Or call the Animal Poisonline run by the PDSA on 01202 509000 - calls cost £30 payable at the time of the call. 

If mew are in the USA, mew can call Pet Poison Helpline on 855-764-7661 - they have a $75 charge payable at the time of the call.

Our advice, check online for your country and keep the number handy, whether that's stored in your phone or on the fridge, or where mew keep your emergency numbers.

The above prices are correct at the time of posting - August 2022 

Please note: these are not affiliate links, and we are in no way linked to either organisation in any capacity.

It doesn't take long to make your home a safe place, and mew'd do it for a baby/toddler/child, so do it for your cat too, and our K9 buddies, of course!

If in doubt, don't do it! 

Next time in this series we'll cover the Top 12 Safe House Plants For Cats, and if mew missed any of our previous Cat Hazards posts, stop by our Top Tips for Pawents page, and mew'll find oodles of useful info and pointers to help mew safely navigate pet pawrenthood.

Until next time...

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team

Disclaimer: We are not vets, animal medical professionals, animal doctors or have any formal qualifications in animal health. If mew are worried or concerned about anything at all, purrlease take your feline furiend to your purrsonal veterinarian or other health care provider and seek expert advice and assistance immediately.

The safe flower list is subject to change pending new information and data on the aforementioned flowers, but at the time of publishing was correct according to our resources.

Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com  

Welcome to Cat Hazards **A Brand New Series** at BBHQ ~ Keeping Your Cat Safer #2 ~ Top 12 Common House Plants Toxic For Cats & To Avoid ~ **Free Printable List with Pictures**

  Happy Monday supurr pals

Welcome to Cat Hazards ~ A Brand New Series at BBHQ 

Today we're sharing the second post in our new series, and we're talking about house plants, if mew missed Part One which is all about cat toys, click here.

If mew're new to being cat staff, then maybe there are a few things mew haven't thought about, and we're here to point mew in the right direction so mew can learn what's safe and what's not. And for those seasoned and veteran cat staff, do feel free to add more suggestions in the comments as...

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

...and helps avoid and avert all kinds of disasters.

Lets Talk House Plants

House plants are really lovely, and who doesn't like to have all that lush greenery indoors, plus plants help to clean the air, what's not to love? We love our plants at BBHQ and have several in the main living spaces.

We have a lot of spider plants and grasses; we know what plants we like and always head for the highly accessible spider plants and grasses, which are placed for us to be able to nibble at will. We do have a post dedicated to cat-friendly house plants coming soon, so stay tuned for that.

So let's look at today's list of what mew really don't want to have indoors.

Top 12 Common House Plants Toxic For Cats 

right-click the graphic to print it off and stick on your fridge or noticeboard

Many other plants are toxic too, so essentially mew need take the time to do your research and make informed choices for the safety of your cat.

Let's Talk Plants

Your local garden centre or plant sales at DIY stores don't usually include any information about whether a plant is harmful or not, so it's up to mew to check out before mew buy whether a house plant is safe to have with your cat. Our advice is, if mew're not sure, don't buy it. 

If a plant is toxic, poisoning can be caused by any of the following;

drinking water from a plant drip tray

eating flower heads, berries or even roots

eating the leaves or green shoots

brushing against the pollen on the flower head and then accidentally ingesting while cleaning fur

eating soil 

So mew can see the multiple ways your cat could potentially come to harm.

Ideally, any plant unless it's on the cat-friendly list should be situated in an inaccessible place where Fluffy can't get his gnashers on it or better still just give it/them to someone who doesn't have pets.

 Indoor-only cats are notoriously known for being plant nibblers, as they can be looking for a bit of greenery to assist them with yacking up furballs; this behaviour is inbuilt so don't think that Fluffy won't try to eat your plants especially he's an indoor-only cat, all cats are prone to eating some greens, so our advice to grow your own cat grass. 

See our Gardening with Cats post for details on growing your own greens, but if your cat staff has a severe case of Blackthumb mew could always buy it in ready grown, we reviewed this company a while ago and have actually subscribed for the winter months.


There are many plants which are safe for cats, and we'll be sharing our top 12 list soon.

Do make sure that non of your indoor plants if they flower can come into contact with your cat, as the pollen on the flower stamen is highly toxic, especially from lilies and it can be fatal.

>^.^<

If mew are partial to exotic plants and flowers or just like lots of plant colour we have a great idea for mew; there are many companies that make wunderful faux versions, we have several faux lilies from Peony flowers, they have some really amazing faux plants.

 So mew can have lovely plants just make sure they're faux! MOL

It doesn't take long to make your home a safe place, and mew'd do it for a baby/toddler/child, so do it for your cat too, and our K9 buddies of course!

Next time we'll cover our top 12 cut flowers mew need to avoid, just in case Fluffy takes a shine to them, and mew can also find oodles of helpful posts on our Top Tips for Cat Pawrents page.

And remember, always do your research furst, until next time...

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team

Don't furget to subscribe to our blog and never miss another post. 

Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com 

Please note, links to My Cat Grass and Peony flowers are not affiliates.

**New Series** at BBHQ ~ Cat Hazards ~ The Art of Keeping Your Cat Safer ~ Household Items Are Not Cat Toys

  Happy Monday supurr pals

Welcome to Cat Hazards ~ The Art of Keeping Your Cat Safer ~ Another Brand New Series at BBHQ 

Today we sharing Part One of this new series, which we've been planning it for quite a while, so we do hope mew enjoy it.

If mew're new to being cat staff or cat pawrents, then maybe there are a few things mew haven't thought about, and we're here to point mew in the right direction so mew can learn what's safe and what's not. And for those seasoned and veteran cat staff and pawrents, do feel free to add more suggestions in the comments as...

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

...and could help avoid and avert all kinds of kitty related disasters.

We don't know about mew, but we see some purretty strange stuff on the interwebs which results in cats ending up at the vets through silly errors that could so easily be avoided.

Just recently we saw that a poor kitty ended up in surgery due to the owner allowing him to play with her hair elastics - like WHAT THE FLUFF!  He'd swallowed a lot of them over a period of time and it had blocked his intestines. Didn't his owner wonder where her hair elastics were disappearing? Seriously, this type of stupidity astounds us. 

While it may be funny to watch Fluffy pounce and chase hair bands/accessories for a Tik Tok video or whatever, this is not a good idea; it's supurr dangerous and could seriously harm or even kill your cat and cost mew thousands and thousands.

Purrlease use common sense - we know this is in supurr short supply for a few peeps - but really dig deep and find some, Fluffy will thank mew for it!

Also, Cat Toys are called CAT TOYS for a reason, they are specially designed to entertain your cat safely; some under pawrental supervision and others which can be left out freely.

So let's look at today's example list of what NOT to let your cat play with, bat around, chew or chase:

HAIR ELASTICS  = NO

RUBBER BANDS = NO

PLASTIC RING PULLS = NO

ANY JEWELLERY = NO

PAPERCLIPS = NO

MARBLES = NO

BALLS SMALLER THAN GOLF BALL SIZE = NO

PLASTIC BAGS = NO

COTTON BUDS = NO

SMALL KIDS TOYS = NO

BOTTLE TOPS = NO

SWEET WRAPPERS = NO

TINY BITS OF SCRUNCHED UP TINFOIL = NO

CABLES AND WIRES* =   NO

SMALL BITS OF PLASTIC = NO

RANDOM PIECES OF STRING OR TWINE = NO

SHOELACES = NO

HEADPHONES = NO

THE CORD ON WINDOW BLINDS** = NO

etc...etc...etc...

*If your kitty has a habit of chewing things they shouldn't, mew need to either: A. Remove it and put it away safely, or B. Discourage your cat from playing with it altogether.  

What we have done at BBHQ in the past if someone is a serial-offender is use the squirt method; fill a small spray bottle with plain tap water and put a few small stones in the bottom, so they make a rattling noise. When Fluffy next misbehaves squirt once near him/her but not on them and never in the face, eyes or ears and gently shake the bottle so he/she hears the noise. Soon mew will only have to shake the bottle for Fluffy to stop misbehaving. Training your cat is easy if mew stick to it. Use this method only as a last resort, and remember that it is NOT a game, it is for training only.

**We have heard many times over the years of poor cats and kittens getting caught in the cords of window blinds and being strangled while their pawrents were out at wurk, which is absolutely terrible. Though obviously mew can't take all your blinds down, but mew can either tie the cord up out of the way or use a bulldog clip to fasten the cord safely out of reach and temptation, it only takes a minute to make them safe.

Remember NOT everything is a toy but your cat doesn't know this, and while it may be funny for 20 seconds your cat could get hurt or wurse.

Obviously, there are many other household items that mew shouldn't let your cat play with and we can't list them all here, but mew get the idea; use your noodle, if there's the minutest chance it could possibly hurt your cat, remove it immediately.

Let's Talk Real Cat Toys

At BBHQ we have a designated toy box full of all kinds of fun cat toys, some shop-bought and others which we have made, mew can see some of these examples on our Crafting with Cats page. Anyhoo we always put our toys away aftur a good play session, and then that way there are no trip hazards for the pawrents either. We also rotate toys too, so we never get bored of the same thing, this also gives your toys a longer life.

Do try to check all toys on a regular basis:- if they have become damaged, frayed and ripped or things have come loose such as tinkly bells and bobbly eyes etc... purrlease dispose of them safely. They aren't made to last forever, and even if your budget is small or tight and mew can't afford to buy more, mew can make news ones easily enough for very little outlay. In fact, most of the time mew can literally make them for nothing if mew upcycle fabrics; we do this all the time - see our Crafting page above.

Before we head off our final thing today is:- Wands and Teasers with long strings or elastic cord - NEVER EVER LEAVE YOUR CAT WITH THESE ITEMS UNATTENDED EVER!  

When mew've finished playing wind the cord around the wand - see pic below of how we store ours -  and put away in a cupboard or drawer, these things are lethal if your cat gets ravelled up and mew're not there to free them.

This is a really fun catnip teaser toy we made a few years ago - completely no sew.

It doesn't take long to make your home a safe place, and mew'd do it for a baby/toddler/child, so do it for your cat too, and our K9 buddies of course!

Next time we'll cover some house plants mew need to avoid, just in case Fluffy takes a shine to them.

If mew're looking for more advice on being a cat pawrent, check out our Top Tips for Cat Pawrents page too.

Thanks for joining us today and we do hope mew like our new series, feel free to share the post on your social media and we'll be back on the morrow with the grand finale in our epically epic adventure, The Clockwurk Labyrinth, so if mew missed any episodes, click here to go catch up.

Until then...

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team

Follow Us @BionicBasil®  at Instacat, Twitter and Facebook

and

Don't furget to subscribe to our blog and never miss another post 

Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com