Being as aggressive as our cat Boots is, I had not thought about offering him catnip, as he has plenty of energy and wild cat moods as it is without adding icing to the cake. However, recently I had been tossing around the idea of getting him a catnip toy to play with to see how he would behave.
One of my best friend's has several cats and she is always telling me how down-right funny cats can behave when given catnip flakes to smell and roll in, other than having the normal catnip stuffed toys. So I decided next time I was at a pet store I would get Boots some catnip.
Before I had a chance to pick some up however, my friend called me in a panic. One of her cats had been very sick and she knew now the catnip had caused the problem. It seems she had sprinkled some on her porch so that her cats and the neighbors cats, could roll in it and she could enjoy watching the goofy behavior that the chemical produces in felines.
Later that night, one of her cats became extremely lethargic, and the next day it experienced bouts of diarrhea and vomiting. The cat refused to eat food or drink water the entire day. A quick trip to her vet confirmed that her cat had suffered an allergic reaction to the catnip. With the help of her vet, the cat recovered well and made a speedy recovery. Her other cats did not become ill by the catnip.
After hearing her story I decided Boots, has enough safe toys to play with and although, the chance may be slim, the bad trip that catnip can induce in some cats, is not worth the risk of him having an allergic reaction that could make him a very sick cat or worse kill him.
