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.

Spotted Water Hemlock (Cicuta maculata), a wetland Apiaceae plant with hollow branching stems, divided sharply toothed leaves, umbrella-like clusters of small white flowers, and highly poisonous chambered root crowns.

Water Hemlock

Cicuta maculata L.
Apiaceae
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White heads or ranger’s buttons (Angelica capitellata) growing as a tall wet-meadow perennial with stout upright stems, large divided leaves, and compound umbels ending in dense round clusters of tiny white fuzzy-looking flowers.

White Heads

Angelica capitellata (A.Gray) Spalik, Reduron & S.R.Downie
Apiaceae — Carrot, Parsley, Celery, or Umbellifer Family
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White snakeroot (Ageratina altissima) with upright branching stems, paired long-stalked pointed oval leaves with coarse sharp teeth, and broad flat-topped clusters of small fuzzy white flower heads.

White Snakeroot

Ageratina altissima (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob.
Asteraceae
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White, black, and Indian mustard plants with upright branching green stems, lobed lower leaves, clusters of four-petaled yellow flowers, and long narrow seed pods developing above the foliage.

White/Black/Yellow Indian Mustard

This common-name title covers several mustard plants rather than one botanical species.
Brassicaceae — Mustard or Crucifer Family
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Wild arum or Palestine arum (Arum palaestinum) with broad dark green arrow-shaped leaves, a deep purple-black finger-like spadix enclosed by a dark reddish-purple hooded spathe, and later clusters of oblong orange-red berries.

Wild Arum

Arum palaestinum Boiss.
Araceae
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Wild carnation or clove pink (Dianthus caryophyllus) with slender upright stems, narrow opposite blue-green leaves, and fragrant pink flowers with five deeply toothed or fringed petals held above a long tubular green calyx.

Wild Carnation

Dianthus caryophyllus L.
Caryophyllaceae
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Wild coffee or geranium-leaf aralia (Polyscias guilfoylei) growing as an upright evergreen shrub with long pinnately compound leaves, paired oval to elliptical coarsely toothed leaflets, and cream-white variegated leaf margins.

Wild Coffee

Polyscias guilfoylei (W.Bull) L.H.Bailey
Araliaceae — Ginseng, Ivy, Aralia, and Schefflera Family
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Wild Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum) with coarse lobed hairy leaves, branching bristly stems, four-petaled white to pale-yellow flowers marked by dark purple veins, and narrow beaked seed pods constricted into distinct joints between the seeds.

Wild Radish

Raphanus raphanistrum L.
Brassicaceae
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Winter cherry or Jerusalem cherry (Solanum pseudocapsicum), a compact bushy nightshade with dark green slightly wavy leaves, small white star-shaped flowers with yellow anthers, and round fruits ripening from green through yellow and orange to glossy red.

Winter Cherry

Solanum pseudocapsicum L.
Solanaceae — Nightshade, Potato, Tomato, Pepper, Eggplant, and Tobacco Family
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Winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata), a deciduous wetland shrub with alternate finely toothed oval leaves and dense clusters of round bright red fruits attached directly along bare gray branches in winter.

Winterberry

Ilex verticillata (L.) A.Gray
Aquifoliaceae
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American wintercress (Barbarea orthoceras) with stiff upright branching stems, lobed basal leaves, smaller divided upper leaves, clusters of small four-petaled yellow flowers, and narrow straight seed pods held erect or strongly ascending.

Wintercress

Barbarea orthoceras Ledeb.
Brassicaceae
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Wisteria vine with twisting woody stems, pinnately compound green leaves, long hanging clusters of violet pea-shaped flowers, and velvety brown bean-like seed pods containing large flat seeds.

Wisteria

Wisteria spp.
Fabaceae — Legume, Pea, or Bean Family
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Wood lily (Lilium philadelphicum) with a single upright stem, narrow lance-shaped leaves arranged in whorls, and one to several erect red-orange six-tepaled flowers marked with dark purple or brown spots near the center.

Wood Lily

Lilium philadelphicum L.
Liliaceae — True Lily Family
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Wormseed mustard or wormseed wallflower (Erysimum cheiranthoides), an erect annual or biennial mustard with narrow lance-shaped leaves, small four-petaled bright yellow flowers in an elongating terminal cluster, and numerous slender upright seed pods.

Wormseed Mustard

Erysimum cheiranthoides L.
Brassicaceae
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Wormseed or epazote (Dysphania ambrosioides), an upright strongly aromatic branching herb with alternate irregularly toothed lance-shaped green leaves and many tiny green flowers arranged in dense leafy terminal and axillary clusters.

Wormseed

Dysphania ambrosioides (L.) Mosyakin & Clemants
Amaranthaceae — Amaranth, Goosefoot, Beet, Spinach, Lambsquarters, Pigweed, and Saltbush Family
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Common yarrow, Achillea millefolium, with aromatic finely divided fernlike leaves and dense flat-topped clusters of tiny white flower heads.

Yarrow

Achillea millefolium L.
Asteraceae — Aster, Daisy, or Sunflower Family
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Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria), an evergreen shrub or small tree with smooth pale gray bark, dense slender branches, small glossy oval leaves with rounded scalloped margins, inconspicuous white flowers, and clusters of small bright red berries on a female plant.

Yaupon

Ilex vomitoria Aiton
Aquifoliaceae — Holly Family
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Yellow oleander or lucky-nut tree (Cascabela thevetia, formerly Thevetia peruviana) with narrow glossy willow-like leaves, milky sap, clusters of yellow funnel-shaped flowers, and angular green fruits that mature to dark brown or black and contain highly poisonous seeds.

Yellow Oleander

Cascabela thevetia (L.) Lippold
Apocynaceae
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Yellowrocket or wintercress (Barbarea vulgaris) with a glossy dark-green basal rosette of deeply lobed leaves, upright branching stems, small four-petaled bright yellow flowers, clasping upper leaves, and slender ascending seedpods.

Yellowrocket

Barbarea vulgaris W.T.Aiton
Brassicaceae — Mustard, Cabbage, Cress, Rocket, Turnip, Canola, and Crucifer Family
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Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow identified as Brunfelsia uniflora, a slender evergreen manacá shrub with glossy elliptic leaves and solitary terminal tubular flowers that open purple or lilac and gradually fade to pale lavender, white, or yellowish white.

Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

Brunfelsia uniflora (Pohl) D.Don
Solanaceae
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Japanese yew (Taxus cuspidata), a dense evergreen shrub or small tree with flat dark-green pointed needles arranged in two apparent rows along slender twigs and female branches bearing open fleshy red arils that expose a single highly poisonous seed.

Yew

Taxus cuspidata Siebold & Zucc.
Taxaceae — Yew Family
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Yucca plant with a dense rosette of long stiff sword-shaped green leaves, fibrous leaf margins, sharp terminal points, and a tall central flowering stalk bearing clusters of large cream-white bell-shaped flowers.

Yucca

Yucca spp.
Asparagaceae
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Potted ZZ Plant or Zamioculcas zamiifolia with numerous thick upright compound leaves bearing pairs of glossy oval dark green leaflets and swollen succulent petiole bases emerging from the soil.

ZZ Plant

Zamioculcas zamiifolia (G.Lodd.) Engl.
Araceae — Aroid or Arum Family
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