Can Cats Eat Tomatoes

You should not feed your cat with tomatoes or even products that contain it like tomato sauce, ketchup, puree, juice, or soup, even if your pet loves or likes them. Though many experts find ripe tomatoes to be safe for cats, that might not always prove to be true. Let us analyze why it is still not 100% reliable.

How are tomatoes bad for cats

To be precise, though there are no documented complaints or evidence that, ripened (red) tomatoes have killed cats, but it is still advisable that you do not allow your cats to have either the red or the green ones. The presence of a type of glycoalkaloid called ‘solanine’ in the green fruits has made it unsafe for your pet.

However, the concentration of solanine decreases rapidly as a tomato gets redder and redder, but traces of the chemical can still be present in the ripened ones too. Hence, to be on the safer side, you should not offer tomatoes to your felines at all.

How are tomato plants poisonous to cats

The plant parts (including the leafy greens, vines, stems, or fruit blossoms/buds) are the most poisonous and can be potentially toxic to your cat. This is because the tomato plants contain a natural fungicidal, antimicrobial, and insecticidal substance called ‘tomatine’ which is quite harmful to these animals.

Symptoms & treatment of tomato poisoning

The symptoms of tomato poisoning in felines commonly include gastrointestinal irritation resulting in vomiting, diarrhea, followed by ataxia (i.e., unsteady movements and confused gaits), lethargy, or other general sicknesses. In such cases, you should rush to your nearest veterinarian without a second thought.

The treatment depends on the amount of the tomato or its plant your cat has eaten. The vet might induce vomiting alongside other measures, in case your feline has eaten a large amount of it.