Exotic cats are like two year old children their entire lives. Everything they see will end up in their mouths and a lot of it won’t be good. We had a sick Serval who eventually died from cancer, who we had to force-feed every meal for seven months. It was an all out battle to get good wholesome food into this cat, but one day a volunteer left a bottle of flea dip in the kitchen. You can’t get within ten yards of a cat with flea dip behind your back but this Serval found the bottle of flea dip and chewed the bottle in half and then drank half of the contents before he was discovered. That was nearly the end of him.

VOMITING should NOT be induced if:

1. More than two hours have passed since the poisoning.

2. The cat is comatose or nearly there.

3. The cat has swallowed a petroleum product.

4. The cat has overdosed on tranquilizers.

5. The cat has completely swallowed a sharp object.

6. The cat has swallowed an acid, alkali, solvent or cleaning agent.

OTHERWISE, INDUCE VOMITING by giving three cc’s Hydrogen Peroxide 3% orally, every ten minutes for up to three doses. Hold the mouth shut for a few seconds and then stand back. Or 1/4 teaspoon of salt dropped on the back of the tongue. Whether the poisoning has come from plants, chemicals or poisonous toads, (with the exception of the items listed in DO NOT INDUCE VOMITING) the key to survival is getting the poison out of the body as quickly as possible. After you have induced vomiting, you need to prevent or at least delay the absorption of all traces that may be left in the body. Even if the cat did not swallow, some poison may have already been absorbed through the roof of the mouth. To prevent or delay absorption, mix 5 grams of activated charcoal with 20 cc water and give one teaspoon per two pounds of body weight. Thirty minutes later give one teaspoon of Milk of Magnesia for each five pounds of body weight. If these items are not available you can coat the stomach with milk and vegetable oil and give a warm water enema.