Cats are naturally curious creatures and get into lots of things and this leads to thousands of accidental poisonings each year.  Many times a cat will knock over a can of a chemical like anti freeze or something along theses lines and lick their paws containing the chemical. In some cases cats are poisoned by evil, diabolical, sick humans. Here are some signs to look for.

• drooling
• vomiting
• diarrhea
• abdominal pain
• twitching
• nervousness

If you suspect that your cat has been poisoned, here’s what you can do.

1. If she is comatose, wrap her in a blanket and take her to the vet along with the suspected chemical or item that caused the poisoning.
2. If the cat has an odor of the poison on his or her skin, wash the entire cat with mild soap until the odor is gone. Cats will continue to lick areas that contain poison if it is not washed off. Flushing the mouth with clean water may help with decontamination.
3. If the cat has not vomited, and has not ingested a caustic or petroleum product, give her one tablespoon of hydrogen peroxide every ten minutes until she vomits. Do not exceed three doses. If no vomiting occurs within thirty minutes take her to the vet right away.Caustics include battery acid, corn and callous remover, dishwater detergent, drain cleaner, grease remover , lye, and oven cleaner, Petroleum products include paint solvent, floor wax, and dry-cleaning solution.
4. Call the pet poison control hotline for further instructions: ASPCA Pet Poison Control (888) 426-4435. (There is a charge for this service.)

If you have evidence that another person is responsible for poisoning your cat, contact the police immediately and do anything you can to prosecute this person. They deserve to be thrown in jail.  When I was very young, one of my cats was poisoned by my next door neighbor. I still have a sharp image etched in my mind of finding my dead pet lying in my neighbors garden. Unfortunately at that time, my parents did not do anything to prosecute this horrible neighbor. They were more concerned about keeping the peace in the neighborhood.Don’t take this route, do everything you can to find out who poisoned your pet and have this degenerate thrown in jail!

Remember, your pets count!