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Are ladybugs (japanese beetles) toxic to cats?

Sent to Cat Experts March 19 10:43 AM

Last night my cat started screaming and crying at the top of his lungs. He was very limp, but when a sharp pain came he would flop around on the floor like a fish out of water. We took him to the vet and the vet said he was poisoned. Our cat was indoors only and all of our cleaning supplies are locked up and we only have artificial plants in the house. We noticed in his poop and vomit there were japanese beetles. Could that have poisoned him? Or could he have suffered from something else I need to be aware of? No symptoms preceeded this and he died within 4 - 5 hours of his terrible cry.

Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Status:  Closed   Value: $10
Answer
March 19 11:56 AM (1 hour and 13 minutes and 26 seconds later)
         
REPLIEDCheck Mark
I am very sorry for your loss.

I did some research on this subject. There have been a couple of animals that have had gastroenteritis (vomiting and diarrhea) from eating beetles/ladybugs. I also found 2 reports of dogs that died with no other explanation other than eating the bugs. I didn't find any reports about cats, but I suspect they would also be susceptible. Most people feel these bugs are non-toxic, but it looks like that might not be true if they eat a large amount of them.

One thing you may want to do is have a necropsy (autopsy) done on your cat to see if there were any other reason for his death. Perhaps there was an underlying heart condition that caused the same symptoms?
Dr. Vicky Lamb -- Veterinarian -- 100% Positive Feedback on 117 Cat Accepts
15 years small animal veterinarian
Reply
March 19 6:09 PM (6 hours and 12 minutes and 57 seconds later)
         
Reply to Dr. Vicky Lamb's Post: I do not feel that I was given enough information, such as websites to research, like the testomonies stated. I learned this much for free from our vet.
Customer (name blocked for privacy)
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