PAWS Pet Poison Reference Library

Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants for Pets

PAWS was built to be one of the most detailed plant-safety references for pet owners, veterinarians, rescues, boarding facilities, and animal-care professionals. Browse 359 in-depth plant-safety guides for dogs, cats, horses, livestock, rabbits, birds, reptiles, and other animals. Each guide is built as a practical pet-poison reference, with plant identification, scientific names, toxic compounds, poisoning symptoms, first aid, veterinary treatment, prognosis, prevention, and research citations.

Ranger’s button, Angelica capitellata, with tall hollow stems, divided leaves, and compound umbels ending in distinctive round white woolly flower heads.

Ranger's Button

Angelica capitellata (A.Gray) Spalik, Reduron & S.R.Downie
Apiaceae — Carrot, Parsley, or Celery Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Rayless goldenrod, Isocoma pluriflora, with upright woody-based stems, narrow sticky leaves, and clusters of small yellow rayless flower heads at the stem tips.

Rayless Goldenrod

Isocoma pluriflora Greene
Asteraceae — Aster, Daisy, or Sunflower Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Red Emerald philodendron with glossy deep-green heart-shaped leaves, vivid red petioles and stems, and lime-green new foliage climbing a support.

Red Emerald

Philodendron erubescens K.Koch & Augustin ‘Red Emerald’
Araceae — Arum or Aroid Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Red lily, Lilium philadelphicum, with an upright orange-red flower, six dark-spotted tepals, prominent stamens, and narrow leaves arranged along an erect stem.

Red Lily

Lilium philadelphicum L.
Liliaceae — True Lily Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Red maple, Acer rubrum, with opposite three- to five-lobed serrated leaves, red petioles, pale leaf undersides, and paired winged samaras.

Red Maple

Acer rubrum L.
Sapindaceae Juss. — Soapberry Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Red Princess philodendron with glossy dark green to burgundy foliage, reddish petioles and stems.

Red Princess

Philodendron ‘Red Princess’
Araceae — Arum or Aroid Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Red-margined dracaena with slender woody canes topped by rosettes of long narrow green leaves edged in dark red.

Red-Marginated Dracaena

Dracaena reflexa var. angustifolia Baker
Asparagaceae — Asparagus Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Rhododendron shrub with leathery evergreen leaves and rounded clusters of large funnel-shaped pink flowers.

Rhododendron

Rhododendron spp.
Ericaceae
View Plant Safety Guide
Mature rhubarb, Rheum rhabarbarum, with a dense crown of very large crinkled triangular green leaf blades on thick red and green fleshy petioles and a tall branching flower stalk bearing clusters of small greenish-white flowers.

Rhubarb

Rheum rhabarbarum L.
Polygonaceae — Buckwheat, Knotweed, Smartweed, or Dock Family;
View Plant Safety Guide
Ribbon plant or lucky bamboo, Dracaena sanderiana, with upright segmented green canes and narrow lance-shaped leaves growing in a water-filled container with pebbles.

Ribbon Plant

Dracaena sanderiana Mast.
Asparagaceae — Asparagus Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Ridderstjerne or cultivated Hippeastrum with a large exposed bulb, broad strap-shaped green leaves, a thick leafless flower stalk, and several trumpet-shaped red flowers.

Ridderstjerne

Hippeastrum spp. and cultivated Hippeastrum hybrids
Amaryllidaceae — Amaryllis Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Roman chamomile, Chamaemelum nobile, forming a low mat of finely divided aromatic green leaves with small white daisy-like flower heads surrounding yellow centers.

Roman Chamomile

Chamaemelum nobile (L.) All.
Asteraceae — Aster, Daisy, or Sunflower Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Rosebay rhododendron, Rhododendron maximum, forming a large evergreen thicket with long leathery dark-green leaves and terminal clusters of pale pink to white bell-shaped flowers.

Rosebay

Rhododendron maximum L.
Ericaceae — Heath or Heather Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Potted Rubber Plant or Ficus elastica with a thick upright stem, large glossy oval dark green leaves, prominent pale midribs, and a reddish sheath enclosing the newest leaf.

Rubber Plant / Rubber Tree

Ficus elastica Roxb. ex Hornem.
Moraceae — Fig or Mulberry Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Rubrum lily, Lilium speciosum ‘Rubrum’, with fragrant downward-facing flowers, strongly recurved white-edged raspberry-pink tepals, dark crimson spots, prominent stamens, and narrow leaves along an upright stem.

Rubrum Lily

Lilium speciosum Thunb.
Liliaceae — True Lily Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Russian thistle, Salsola tragus, growing as a rounded many-branched annual with narrow spine-tipped leaves, reddish-striped stems, and tiny green flowers, beside a mature dry plant detached as a tumbleweed.

Russian Thistle

Salsola tragus L.
Amaranthaceae — Amaranth Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Sabi Star or Desert Rose, Adenium obesum, with a thick swollen caudex, smooth gray branching stems, clusters of leathery green leaves, and trumpet-shaped pink flowers with pale centers.

Sabi Star

Adenium obesum (Forssk.) Roem. & Schult.
Apocynaceae — Dogbane Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Sacred bamboo or heavenly bamboo, Nandina domestica, with upright cane-like stems, finely divided compound leaves, clusters of small white flowers, and hanging bunches of bright red berries.

Sacred Bamboo

Nandina domestica Thunb.
Berberidaceae — Barberry Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Saddle Leaf or Horsehead Philodendron, Philodendron bipennifolium, climbing a support with thick aerial roots and large glossy leathery green leaves divided into a narrow central blade and broad side lobes resembling a horse’s head or violin.

Saddle Leaf

Philodendron bipennifolium Schott
Araceae — Arum Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Satin pothos (Scindapsus pictus), a trailing tropical vine with matte heart-shaped dark green leaves marked by shimmering silver-gray spots, blotches, and margins.

Satin Pothos

Scindapsus pictus Hassk.
Araceae
View Plant Safety Guide
Scarlet Leatherflower vine with opposite compound leaves, twining leaf stalks, and hanging scarlet-red urn-shaped flowers formed by four thick leathery sepals.

Scarlet Leatherflower

Clematis texensis Buckley
Ranunculaceae — Buttercup Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Dwarf schefflera (Heptapleurum arboricola), an evergreen shrub with glossy palmately compound leaves divided into seven to nine oval leaflets radiating like umbrella spokes.

Schefflera

Heptapleurum arboricola Hayata
Araliaceae
View Plant Safety Guide
Showy fleabane, Erigeron speciosus, forming a leafy perennial clump with branching upright stems and clusters of large lavender-blue daisy-like flower heads with narrow rays surrounding yellow-orange centers.

Seaside Daisy

Erigeron speciosus (Lindl.) DC.
Asteraceae — Aster, Daisy, or Sunflower Family
View Plant Safety Guide
Purple and green Oxalis shamrock plants with triangular or heart-shaped leaflets, delicate five-petaled white and pink flowers, slender leaf stalks, and small underground bulbs or rhizomes.

Shamrock / Oxalis

Oxalis spp.
Oxalidaceae — Wood Sorrel Family
View Plant Safety Guide