Nicotine Dangers in Cats
Is much more damaging than most owners realize



Nicotine dangers in cats reaches much further than just the damages that second hand smoke can inflict on your cat; it can also be one of the most toxic agents your cat can ingest.

Large amounts of nicotine that may be consumed by your cat can be life threatening, but even the smallest amounts can produce several symptoms.

Second hand smoke is dangerous enough to your cat, but if your cat ingests nicotine, it can cause a very rapid paralysis of several of your pets breathing muscles.

This could result in the death of your cat within just a few hours.

If you suspect that your cat has eaten any type of a product that contains nicotine and they are suddenly having difficulty in breathing,

it is an emergency situation and time is of the essence and every minute counts.

However, there are several other symptoms that you can watch for other than just sudden breathing problems.

THE SYMPTOMS OF NICOTINE DANGERS IN CATS

There are a myriad of symptoms with Nicotine dangers in cats that will alert you that your cat may have ingested nicotine, but the cause may not be just from cigarettes.

All forms of nicotine are toxic to cats and include cigars, snuff, nicotine gum or inhalers, as well as nicotine patches.

However, one of the most dangerous forms can be pipe tobacco or chewing tobacco simply because of the flavors that they have that will attract your cat to them.

The first set of symptoms of Nicotine dangers in cats will be breathing problems and it can be in three different forms.

first may be the result of bradycardia, which means that your cat’s heart has suddenly started to beat much slower than normal which is causing difficulty in getting oxygen pumped into their lungs.

The second form will be what is referred to as tachycardia.

This is just the opposite, and your cats heart is pumping at a very high rate and it is placing your cat in an extremely stressful and dangerous situation.

The third form is called cardiac arrhythmias, which is a condition where a there is a disturbance or some type of an irregularity in the heart that is affecting their breathing.

The affected breathing may than produce other symptoms.

If the heart beat is too fast, it can cause hyperactive symptoms in your cat as well as tremors.

If it is too slow it may also cause tremors, but it can also cause a very sudden weakness as well as stumbling as the result of a loss of coordination.

However, the two most telling symptom of Nicotine dangers in cats are drooling and vomiting in your pet.

Drooling like panting in cats is extremely unusual and is always a warning sign.

Dogs drool, cat do not, unless something is very wrong and the nicotine they have ingested is the problem.

Cute KittensNicotine dangers in cats is alot more than just second hand smoke

Vomiting suddenly, usually a danger sign is actually very helpful to your cat with this situation.

Nicotine is not absorbed directly into your cat’s stomach as it must first past through their small intestines to become deadly.

Your cat has a natural defense mechanism that alerts their brain and stimulates vomiting as it can sense the extreme danger.

However, it will all depend on the amount that your cat has ingested.

THE TOXIC LEVELS CAN BE VERY SURPRISING

Nicotine dangers in cats and the actual toxic or lethal levels of nicotine may surprise or even shock you as they are actually very small.

A toxic level to your cat is between one half and one milligram per pound of body weight and a lethal level is 4 milligrams per pound.

But to fully grasp what this means, it helps to understand what the levels of nicotine are in each tobacco product.

It is also helpful to understand that a cigarette butt, even though it has been smoked, still contains a large amount of nicotine.

It can contain four to eight grams depending on the size of the butt and the brand.

One cigarette will contain between fifteen and twenty five milligrams and a cigar can go as high as forty milligrams.

Nicotine gum, which is very attractive to cats, contains up to 4 milligrams per piece, while a nicotine inhaler contains 100 milligrams per bottle, or about one half milligram per spray.

Nicotine patches are also very attractive to cats and especially dangerous, as they can contain as high as 114 milligrams of nicotine.

However, the most attractive of all of the products to cats, chewing tobacco and pipe tobacco, contains between six and eight milligrams per gram weight.

Snuff is an alarming seventeen milligrams per gram weight.

An average 10 pound cat can become sick very easily by ingesting any of these forms of nicotine, and it does not take a lot for it to become lethal.

SECOND HAND SMOKE

However, nicotine dangers in cats do not end there, as there is also a huge risk for your pet to be around second hand smoke.

Several recent studies, including a seven year study on the effects of second hand smoke and cats from the Tufts School of Veterinary Medicine, produced some very startling results.

These studies suggested that cats that are around second hand smoke with one smoker are at twice the risk of developing malignant lymphoma than cats that are not exposed.

If there are two smokers in the house, it soars to four times the risk.

This is a very aggressive form of cancer that affects your pet’s lymph nodes, and is usually fatal.

In fact, over seventy five percent of cats die after one year of contracting this form of cancer.

Squamous cell carcinoma, which affects your cat’s mouth causing cancer plagues, is also greatly increased by second hand smoke.

But by far and away the greatest risk to your cat from second hand smoke is Asthma.

They are not only more susceptible to Asthma, they also more likely to get both viral infections as well as pneumonia.

Nicotine dangers in cats are real and can range from very serious conditions to potentially lethal situations.

Using any type of a nicotine product is a personal choice, but if you do, there are some safety precautions that you can take.

Summary

Never leave any type of a nicotine product, new or used, anywhere that your curious cat might venture. You understand the potential hazards, but they do not have a clue what nicotine is.

The flavored tobacco is an accident waiting to happen with your cat.

Utilizing air filter systems and cleaning your cat regularly, can also greatly reduce the effects of second hand smoke.

But above all, watch for any symptoms of nicotine poisoning, especially drooling. Cats do not drool unless something is wrong with them.

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