It is said that cats have nine lives, meaning that cats are clever pieces of creation who can survive falls from high places with few, if any but minor injuries, such as bloody noses, cracked teeth, or a few broken ribs. It is also true that curiosity killed the cat.

We are surrounded by all kinds of interesting things around us which make us cats so curious that we feel compelled to smell, feel, touch and sometimes even taste them. Most of it is fun, but sometimes being curious can be quite dangerous.

Jolie, the black Persian, jumped up on a boiling pot of milk and got a nasty burn. Why did she do something so silly? Well, the milk smelt nice and perhaps she was too excited to think straight.

Another time she was on the fourth floor terrace with her human. She was running around and would sometimes jump up and sit on the railing. But suddenly she miscalculated and instead of landing on the top of the railing, she went right over it and landed on the ground, with a broken leg. Me-ouch!

Our lives surrounded by dangers, poisons and toxic substances, which can lead to potential illness and death. Let me tell you the difference between poison and toxin, which are both commonly used terms. A toxic substance is anything that causes abnormal body function which could be a big dose of medicine or bad food. Poison is a substance that has no medical use.

The effect of a poison is not always immediate. Some poisons do not cause illness for days, weeks or even years after eating something poisonous but the most common poisons usually result in signs of illness within three to four days. Some poisons are inhaled and a few are absorbed, but the majority is ingested.

If you suspect some kind of poison has entered your cat’s body, you must watch out for sluggishness, vomiting, lack of appetite, stumbling or staggering, difficulty in breathing or seizure which means that the body may become abnormally contracted or trembles.

Whether your cat has eaten or inhaled something poisonous or toxin, a visit to the vet is a must. Sometimes, we are treated based on a strong suspicion of poisoning even without a confirmed diagnosis. Unless you know exactly what your cat has eaten or inhaled, the vet will run a few tests and be able to pin point the problem and treat the cat immediately. Remember, all poisonings should be considered emergencies so call your veterinarian immediately.

You can cat-proof your house by keeping all of the following away that can be disastrous to your cat — much in the same way homes are made child safe. For instance human medicines and vitamin pills, chocolate, garlic, onion, grapes, yeast dough, chicken bones, dental floss, insecticides, cleaners, bleaches and detergents should be out of reach of curious kitties.

Raw chicken bones can carry bacteria but cooked chicken bones can splinter as the cat bites them and can cause damage to the stomach lining or the cat can choke on them. Pixie, the Siamese living across my house love chicken bones and often steals them from the rubbish bag which her human doesn’t know about.

Aside from the tooth decay and obesity problems there is a serious risk here. Chocolate contains a chemical called theobromine, which speeds up the heart rate in dogs and cats. Chocolate poisoning also causes diarrhoea, excessive urination, muscle tremors and vomiting. The problem is that cats and dogs like the taste of chocolate and will try to eat it, so it’s their human’s job to keep them away. If your cat accidentally had a small taste of chocolate sometime in the past and seemed to come out of it okay, it isn’t the end of the world. But chocolate should never be fed to a cat.

For most poisonings, there is not much you can do at home. The best home care is prevention. It is a good idea to keep your cat indoors to prevent exposure to toxic substances, there may not be too much adventure but it is definitely safer.