Cat ate onion

Hi

What should I do? Cat got into fridge as I prepared food for her. Ate a sandwich with few bits of red onion in it. She finished the sandwich before I noticed she was too quiet.

Its been a few years since I have been on the forum. This forum helped me get missy in remission. I measure correct amount of food at spaced out intervals, from can that was on the recommended list. Doing same thing for years. I add lots of water to keep her well hydrated. No urine infections since doing all this. Weight seems to be within norms for while bc food monitored.

She just ate the full sandwich. She ignored her usual feed then went back for it. Now what? Help please

Can I just monitor and look out for certain symptoms or is this an emergency already.
She curled up and sleeping peacefully

 

https://www.dvm360.com/view/toxicology-brief-allium-species-poisoning-dogs-and-cats

Call your vet immediately. Sometimes symptoms do not show up for days. It takes a very small amount. The article states 5 grams of onion per kilogram of cat's weight.

 

I am going to borrow neighbour scale bc mine broken
I don’t know her weight but she didn’t get more then 5g total based on what was in sandwich. I measured amount that was used to prepare egg salad and divided portions. 5 grams seems most it would be.

 

Onion can damage the red blood cells.
Second the opinion to call your vet.

Anemia, diarrhea, not as much oxygen carried by the blood. So issues breathing.

Second article states 1 gram of onion per 5 pounds of body weight.

Symptoms of Onion Toxicity in Cats
The symptoms associated with onion toxicity in cats are paired with those found in an allergic reaction caused by an ingested agent. Common clinical signs noted after a feline has ingested onion includes: Panting Elevated heart rate Weakness Hematuria (blood in the urine) Hemolytic anemia (breakdown of red blood cells) Heinz body anemia (breakdown of red blood cells) Vomiting Gastrointestinal upset Asthmatic attacks Allergic reaction Liver damage Diarrhea Decreased appetite Lethargy Contact dermatitis (skin exposure) Fainting

Read more at: https://wagwalking.com/cat/condition/onion-toxicity

https://www.dvm360.com/view/pungent-poisoning-onion-toxicosis-cat

Emergency vet may be required.

 

She weighs 9.2lb which is 4.17kilo
Not most accurate scale. I tried it 3 times now and same weight.
Could not have ingested more then 5g of onion. So what does that mean with the 1g per 5 lb weight.

I called low cost vet mobile that I used to use and was told if no symptoms nothing to do.

I am still worried. Hard to focus on deep breathing to prevent shaking. All the memories of past diabetes crisis flooding and my body reacting to it.

is there anyone who can say based on the numbers above more info on risk with that body weight?

if anyone in brooklyn has a low cost local vet I can use back up Incase we have emergency? That vet mobile only has select hours and waiting outdoors to be seen. She is a disaster by vet and needs sedating. She growls hisses at dogs and even sometimes me when around other animals and on train home. Only calm when at home with only locked up turtles as other pets. I welcome advice Incase it doesn’t go well.

 

If you have an emergency vet in you area, call them to confirm that you do not need to do anything. I would not wait until she shows any symptoms.

 

We had a scare with our doggo when he ate half a package of onion buns. (He was fine) We learned it really depends on the amount ingested. If the vet said not to worry, then your cat probably didn't eat enough to harm her. Just keep an eye on her for any symptoms. Of course take her to a vet if you see anything, or simply don't want to worry about it. I remember the panic all too well when Louis gobbled up those onion buns. I hadn't thought such a short legged doggo could reach them. And you might want to check her blood sugar levels if she ate the bread and just be careful it doesn't effect her remission.

 

How long since your cat ate the onion?
If it is more than a couple of hours there is nothing much they can do at this point. If they are going to make the cat vomit it needs to be within a certain time. I’d ring the ER /vet and ask

I recently had the same thing happen when Harry ate some stir fry with onion in it. I took him to the ER where they tried to get him to vomit. But he didn’t vomit. So they took a baseline blood test ( PCV/TP) and said to have it retested in around 5 or 6 days. I had to watch for lethargy, breathlessness, and bruising.

I had him retested and he was ok.
I was unsure how much he ate.
Do you know how much onion was on the sandwich?

 

Bron, she said earlier in the thread it was a small amount, less than 5g.

 

You have to have eyes in the back of your head with some cats!
My Harry is a shocker at getting into things he shouldn't.
If it was less than 5 grams she should be ok but I would get vet advice on that.
They thought Harry would be OK but I couldn't say how much he ate....just that he got up and ate a good amount. The vet said he had onion breath.
It takes days for the onion to cause issues which it does by destroying red blood cells.
All you could probably do now if it is a few hours after the onion was eaten, is to get a baseline PCV/TP test done and repeat in a week.

 

Thanks everyone

week gone by and yet again another bullet dodged. She is amazing at surviving. Amount was small enough I guess. Phew

 

Maybe too late now but for things like this always check the litter box for anything unusual.
If this is a contest Andrew once swallowed a staple! We think it fell from the insulation above the litterbox, he cleaned his paws and there it was on a x-ray for a totally unrelated matter. He pooped it out. And Hannah the dog had a real thing for Tums, multi colored dog poo!
This is why we don't have kids. Anyone seen my watch battery?

 

Been doing that. Over years Found parts of balloons, disposable gloves, and other fun dangerous bits. More and more locked up items as we went along. No rubber or silicone allowed out. No cooler bags or computer bags with padding that resembles cooler in any way. She has a field day with those just for fun.

That’s how I noticed when she ate onion bc fridge was not locked, open and too empty on shelf. She has a fun garbling noise that alerts me in time when she gets into unlocked pantry. It’s adorable. If family forget she sure reminds us to keep on our toes. The day she got into fridge it was bc I had taken out her food and gone to other room to get her bowl.