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Kalanchoe: toxicity, first aid and care
Kalanchoe (Kalanchoe blossfeldiana): toxic for cats, toxic for dogs, toxic for small children. The toxic principle, the signs, what to do, and how to grow it.
Cats: ToxicDogs: ToxicChildren: Toxic
Also sold as: Flaming Katy, widow's thrill, mother of thousands (K. daigremontiana).
This is a reference table, not a diagnosis and not veterinary or medical advice. It cannot tell you how much of a plant matters for a particular child or a particular animal — that depends on body weight, on the part eaten and on how long ago. If a person or an animal has eaten part of a plant, phone the poison information centre or a clinician; do not wait for symptoms, and do not make anyone vomit unless you are told to.
What is in it
Toxic principle: Bufadienolides (cardiac glycosides) — Cardiac glycosides.
This is the surprise on most people's shelf: a cheap flowering succulent from the supermarket that carries genuine cardiac glycosides. Bufadienolides act on the heart in the same family of ways as digitalis. Most household cases stay at gut upset, but the heart effect is real in larger ingestions and the flowers are richer in the compounds than the leaves.
What it looks like when it goes wrong
Drooling, vomiting and diarrhoea first. In a serious exposure, weakness, a slow or irregular heartbeat and collapse.
What to do
Phone a veterinary clinic and say kalanchoe, because a cardiac-glycoside plant changes what the vet monitors. Grazing on a leaf is usually a gut matter; an animal that has eaten flowers, or that is weak or wobbly, should be seen.
| Country | Poison information centre | Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estonia | Mürgistusteabekeskus (Health Board) | 16662 | Round the clock; 112 for an emergency |
| Finland | Myrkytystietokeskus (HUS) | 0800 147 111 | Free, round the clock |
| Latvia | Saindēšanās un zāļu informācijas centrs | 67042473 | Round the clock |
| Sweden | Giftinformationscentralen | 010-456 67 00 | Non-urgent advice; 112 in an emergency |
| Norway | Giftinformasjonen | 22 59 13 00 | Round the clock |
| Denmark | Giftlinjen (Bispebjerg Hospital) | 82 12 12 12 | Round the clock |
Anywhere in the European Union, 112 reaches emergency services and can put you through. Lithuania's poison information bureau (Apsinuodijimų kontrolės ir informacijos biuras) publishes its own round-the-clock line; if you do not have it to hand, use 112. For an animal, your own veterinary clinic or its out-of-hours service is the first call — human poison centres do not advise on animals in every country.
How to grow it
| Condition | What it wants |
|---|---|
| Light | Bright light including some direct sun |
| Water | Let it dry between waterings — it is a succulent |
| Temperature | 15-24 °C; keep it frost-free |
Sold in flower and usually discarded afterwards, but it will rebloom: it is a short-day plant, so it sets buds when nights are long. Fourteen hours of genuine darkness a day for six weeks in autumn — a cupboard, or a room nobody lights in the evening — brings it back into flower, which is more than most supermarket plants offer.
What it gets confused with
The related "mother of thousands" makes plantlets along its leaf margins that drop off and root wherever they land, including in the pots of other plants. Those plantlets carry the same chemistry, so the plant quietly distributes itself around a flat where a cat lives.
A plant that is not on the toxic lists
If you are deciding what to keep in a home with a cat, a dog or a small child, this one fills a similar role and is not flagged by the veterinary services.
Others that work the same way
Cardiac glycosides — these behave alike, and what you would do about them is alike too.
Foxglove
Cardiac glycosides (digitoxin, digoxin)
Lily of the valley
Cardiac glycosides (convallatoxin)
Oleander
Cardiac glycosides (oleandrin)
Source: ASPCA Animal Poison Control — toxic and non-toxic plants · checked 2026-09-06
Care guidance is standard horticultural practice for a cool-temperate northern climate. Poison-centre numbers are listed on the hub page and are worth confirming against your own country's health service.
Frequently asked questions
Is kalanchoe toxic to cats?
The veterinary lists rate it "toxic" for cats and "toxic" for dogs. The toxic principle is bufadienolides (cardiac glycosides). This is the surprise on most people's shelf: a cheap flowering succulent from the supermarket that carries genuine cardiac glycosides. Bufadienolides act on the heart in the same family of ways as digitalis.
What should I do if my dog eats kalanchoe?
Phone a veterinary clinic and say kalanchoe, because a cardiac-glycoside plant changes what the vet monitors. Grazing on a leaf is usually a gut matter; an animal that has eaten flowers, or that is weak or wobbly, should be seen.
Is kalanchoe dangerous for a small child?
The verdict for a child who chews or swallows part of it is "toxic". Drooling, vomiting and diarrhoea first. In a serious exposure, weakness, a slow or irregular heartbeat and collapse.
How do you care for kalanchoe?
Light: Bright light including some direct sun. Water: Let it dry between waterings — it is a succulent. Temperature: 15-24 °C; keep it frost-free. Sold in flower and usually discarded afterwards, but it will rebloom: it is a short-day plant, so it sets buds when nights are long.
What is kalanchoe confused with?
The related "mother of thousands" makes plantlets along its leaf margins that drop off and root wherever they land, including in the pots of other plants. Those plantlets carry the same chemistry, so the plant quietly distributes itself around a flat where a cat lives.
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