Close Call for Cat with Caffeine Poisoning

18-month-old cat Max is currently on a diet, having been a little greedy eating his brother Johnnie’s food.

As Bengals, they are both typical of the breed – strong and muscular – but Max is the dominant one and is developing a bit of a tum! However, Tim Frederick and his family are only glad he’s well after things took a nasty turn, and the cheeky kitten’s appetite landed him in trouble.

Poor condition

After finding the kittens on a classified ads website, Tim wasn’t at all happy when, upon collection, he discovered the condition they were being kept in. The lady selling them wouldn’t let Tim inside, instead bringing the smelly kittens out in a box.

“I know you shouldn’t encourage people like this to breed animals, but I couldn’t send them back in there!” Tim said.

He took them straight to the vet - where they were thankfully given a clean bill of health. The vet also offered Tim five weeks of free insurance, a policy courtesy of Agria.

Banana trees

At home, the kittens were given free reign of the garden. “I’m not keen on keeping such athletic animals indoors. My garden backs onto a private orchard, meaning they have plenty of safe space to exercise. We also have some banana trees, which I suspect is where the trouble began.”

Panting and panicking

One Sunday morning Max was on the grass. “He looked a bit funny, panting and being strange,” said Tim. “In between heavy pants he was meowing very loudly, and looking panicked.”

After researching Max’s symptoms online, Tim’s wife decided that he should be taken straight to the nearest out-of-hours vet. Usually, Max meows non-stop in the car, but this time he was very subdued, as his panting continued.

Low body temperature

Max’s panting, combined with hypothermia, suggested that he had gone into shock, and the vet suspected an allergic reaction. His symptoms were so concerning that he was put on a drip and into a veterinary incubator, to carefully raise his body temperature, with an oxygen supply and antihistamine medication administered. With close monitoring, Max was starting to recover by the evening, and on Monday morning Tim was able to take him home.

Caffeine poisoning

It was only once they were all home that Tim realised, given Max’s considerable appetite, it’s possible that he had eaten the coffee grounds used to feed to the banana plants. Caffeine is highly toxic to cats and in severe cases, ingestion can be fatal.

“I’m just so glad that I had that insurance. It was all very clear and easy to claim – the vet even started the process for us. After such a positive experience and some online research, I’ve now converted my five weeks’ free insurance to a Lifetime Policy, in case Max gets into trouble again! Although of course we’ve removed the coffee grounds from the garden as well!”

About the Author

Sam Khan shares her woodland home with Junior, the cat, Gully, the dog and bunnies Hugo & Billy, sometimes playing the family’s ‘favourite’ game with the tortoise – “Where’s Churchill?” She loves writing for Agria, sharing our passion for animal welfare, protecting biodiversity and the environment. When not writing or illustrating, she will be making something, reading a book or swimming in the lake at the bottom of her lane.