Animals are a man’s (or woman’s) best friend, they come in all shapes and sizes and have just as much personality as your average Joe, if not more!

Millions of us own pets and for the most part, we’ve all come across our pets chewing something they shouldn’t be. While dogs chew on anything, cats will scratch almost anything. And plants—whether in the garden, in the house or in the wild—provide a tempting attraction for pets and can cause serious harm.

Many common garden plants are highly toxic and can seriously harm or possibly kill pets. It is advisable to have a good look around the garden to check for harmful plants before getting a new pet, and it’s important to check out new plants before adding them to as garden as well.

Always check whether a plant is poisonous to animals when buying plants for the house. Some plants may not be poisonous to pets, but the cuts they can cause pets can be irritated if sap, or sap-like substances get in the animal’s wounds.

It’s a little bit harder when we’re talking about the great outdoors. Keep an eye on pets when taking them out. If their behavior becomes erratic, sluggish or starts to display symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, difficult breathing, abnormal color or amount of urine, excessive salivation, weakness or any other strange behavior, take your pet to the vet. It’s possible your pet has become poisoned, and you should call a veterinarian immediately.

If you’re a cat owner, things gets a lot harder. Though most cats know which plants to avoid, this isn’t always necessarily true. But if you see any of the symptoms above, it’s better to be safe than sorry!

The infographic below has been compiled from information available from the ASPCA, University of California: Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the Californian Poison Control System. It includes 30 common plants, their toxicity and how harmful they are to dogs, cats, horses and even humans. While this list only contains some of the more common plants, a full list can be found on the ASPCA website.

Author: Daniel Turner

Editor: Evan Yerburgh

Image: Used with permussion from www.helpucover.co.uk.