Updated: August 10, 2022 by Kristen Chapple
Cats are natural-born hunters. Equipped with sharp sight and hearing senses and hard-wired to detect the slightest motion, cats love to pursue everything that moves around them. They can get into their hunter mode at the slightest sound or sight and enjoy pursuing their prey. Sometimes, the prey can be any kind of bug, because they’re so fun to chase and play with. But what if your cat eats them? Is that safe? Can cats eat insects?
Most of the common insects pose no harm to cats if ingested, but some of them can cause troubles, from stomach issues to even poisoning. Sometimes it’s not even the insects that cause those troubles but the pesticides used for pest control. Let’s find out more about the matter and the risks some insects pose for your furry little friend.
Find out more about what cats shouldn’t eat here.
Can Cats Eat Insects
Cats will probably eat insects either by mistake during their play or maybe even by curiosity, but it’s important to know which ones can cause harm to your feline friend and take the neccessary precautions.
Poisonous Spiders
Most spiders found around our homes cause no harm, but the poisonous ones are a different story. Any spider that can cause harm to us can harm our cat, and the problem here lies in the fact that your feline friend is much smaller in size, which means that the venom can do a lot more damage to her than to you.
The bite from a poisonous spider can cause illnesses or even death. In the case of the Black Widow, for example, paralysis is a common result. In general, if the cat ingests a poisonous spider, the acid in the stomach can cancel out the effects of the venom, but in case of an external bite, things are much worse. In any case, if you suspect any of these situations, get your cat to the vet as soon as possible.
Bees, Wasps and Similar Stingers
A bee buzzing around your cat might end up stinging your little feline friend and the results won’t be too pretty. The stings from bees, wasps and other similar insects are painful and can cause irritations or allergic reactions in cats. Anaphylaxis is not a common reaction in cats, but it’s possible, so if there’s any sign, a trip to the vet should be the first step, as he knows what to administer.
Ants
The majority of the ants are no trouble for cats if they somehow ingest them. Some of them might bite, but without any harm. On the other hand though, there are fire ants, which can cause problems. Fire ant bites are venomous, therefore they’re dangerous for our feline friends. The worst-case scenario in this case is anaphylaxis, but most of the times it will involve only pain and severe allergic reactions.
Another problem with ants are the chemical ant killers we may have in our homes. If you have troubles with ants, make sure you use a pet-safe ant killer product.
Other Insects
Other insects such as moths, butterflies, roaches, grasshoppers, beetles or crickets do no harm to cats if ingested. At the most, some of them can cause some minor gastrointestinal issues, but in general there’s no other danger they pose to our fellow feline friends.
