TempoLife › Features › House plants: care and pet toxicity › oleander
Oleander: toxicity, first aid and care
Oleander (Nerium oleander): severe for cats, severe for dogs, severe for small children. The toxic principle, the signs, what to do, and how to grow it.
Cats: SevereDogs: SevereChildren: SevereEmergency risk
Also sold as: Rose bay.
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: Cardiac glycosides (oleandrin) — Cardiac glycosides.
Oleandrin works on the same pump in the heart-muscle cell membrane that digoxin does, and with none of the dose control. Every part of the shrub carries it, including dried leaves swept up in autumn and the smoke from burning prunings. Water that cut stems have stood in carries it too.
What it looks like when it goes wrong
Vomiting, drooling and abdominal pain first, then the heart: a slow or wildly irregular pulse, weakness, cold extremities, collapse. In people, tingling around the mouth and disturbed colour vision are described. Severe cases die of an arrhythmia rather than of the gut signs.
What to do
Emergency care for a person or an animal at any suspected ingestion — poison centre or ambulance for a person, veterinary clinic for an animal — even if they currently look well, because the rhythm disturbance can arrive hours later. Do not make anyone vomit. Never burn the prunings on a garden fire.
| 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 | As much direct sun as you can give it |
| Water | Generous in summer, nearly dry over a cool winter |
| Temperature | Not hardy here; overwinter frost-free at 5-10 °C |
In this region oleander is a patio plant in a tub that comes into a cold bright room, a stairwell or an unheated conservatory for the winter, where it should be kept barely moist and cool. It flowers on the current season's growth, so prune in spring, wearing gloves and long sleeves and washing your hands afterwards.
What it gets confused with
Its reputation as a garden-centre Mediterranean holiday souvenir badly undersells it: this is a genuinely dangerous plant to have at toddler height, and the leathery leaves are not obviously unappetising to a bored dog. Skewers cut from oleander wood have caused poisoning, which tells you how little material is involved.
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)
Kalanchoe
Bufadienolides (cardiac glycosides)
Source: Royal Horticultural Society — potentially harmful garden 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 oleander toxic to cats?
The veterinary lists rate it "severe" for cats and "severe" for dogs. The toxic principle is cardiac glycosides (oleandrin). Oleandrin works on the same pump in the heart-muscle cell membrane that digoxin does, and with none of the dose control. Every part of the shrub carries it, including dried leaves swept up in autumn and the smoke from burning prunings.
What should I do if my dog eats oleander?
Emergency care for a person or an animal at any suspected ingestion — poison centre or ambulance for a person, veterinary clinic for an animal — even if they currently look well, because the rhythm disturbance can arrive hours later. Do not make anyone vomit.
Is oleander dangerous for a small child?
The verdict for a child who chews or swallows part of it is "severe". Vomiting, drooling and abdominal pain first, then the heart: a slow or wildly irregular pulse, weakness, cold extremities, collapse.
How do you care for oleander?
Light: As much direct sun as you can give it. Water: Generous in summer, nearly dry over a cool winter. Temperature: Not hardy here; overwinter frost-free at 5-10 °C. In this region oleander is a patio plant in a tub that comes into a cold bright room, a stairwell or an unheated conservatory for the winter, where it should be kept barely moist and cool.
What is oleander confused with?
Its reputation as a garden-centre Mediterranean holiday souvenir badly undersells it: this is a genuinely dangerous plant to have at toddler height, and the leathery leaves are not obviously unappetising to a bored dog. Skewers cut from oleander wood have caused poisoning, which tells you how little material is involved.
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