Is Jade plant toxic to cats?
Crassula argentea · Crassulaceae
Yes. Irritating, no death documented.
The loss of coordination is what sets it apart from a simple stomach upset, and the ASPCA lists the responsible substance as unknown.
For a cat
Irritating
For a person
Nobody has documented the risk to a person. That is not the same as safe.
What to watch for
- Vomiting
- Depression
- Loss of coordination
Why, and which parts
Leaves and stems.
Toxic principle: Unknown
The ASPCA lists the responsible substance as unknown, and no study has named it since. What is consistently reported is the picture: vomiting, flatness, and a loss of coordination that does not fit a simple stomach upset. An unexplained wobble after a cat has been at a succulent is worth a call, precisely because nobody can yet say what is causing it.
How to recognize it
A small tree-like succulent with thick, rounded, glossy jade-green leaves, often red-rimmed in strong light, on woody stems that thicken with age.
Sold as: Baby jade, Dwarf rubber plant, Jade tree, Chinese rubber plant. A label on a pot is a trade name, not a botanical one, and the two often disagree.
And for a person?
Not documented for people
Not documented as a significant hazard to people.
A plant's danger to a cat says nothing about its danger to you, and the reverse is just as true. This is a separate question with a separate answer.
This is information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot tell you what is wrong with your cat. Our rule is a simple one: if something is wrong with your cat, call your vet, and call an emergency clinic if it is out of hours. Nothing you read here is a reason to wait.
Worth keeping a paw on
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Other plants at the same level
Same verdict for a cat as Jade plant. The ones sharing its exact toxic principle come first.
