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My cats ate a small amount of garlic and onion powder. Are they okay?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | neutered

My two cats both ate a small ground meat with garlic and onion powder in it should I be concerned and how badly???

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Tomasz Wnuk

Veterinarian

Published on March 24th, 2016

If it was only a small amount of garlic and onion powder your cats should be fine. Garlic and onion are toxic to cats but usually the dose that they can get from eating small amount of powder or seasoning is not toxic. I would suggest you to monitor your cats over the next 24-48hrs for signs of lethargy and inappetance. If they develop any worrying signs you should take them to your local vets.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Rosemary Barber, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on May 15th, 2017

    Hi! Onion and garlic are quite toxic to cats, like you said, but it is unlikely there would be enough to harm her in a few licks. Keep an eye on her for signs of upset stomach (vomiting, loss of appetite), etc. If you want to be on the safe side, you could always phone your vet to ask about having some blood run in 24-48 hours, to see if her red blood cells have been affected by the onion/garlic, but it is unlikely that they would cause significant harm. Or, you could phone the ASPCA Poison Control centre, just to be sure.

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    Answered By Ricardo Fernandez, DVM

    Veterinarian, Veterinary Oncology Resident

    Published on November 25th, 2018

    Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Them having a toxicity by ingesting a very small amount of garlic or onion powder is very low. However, it is difficult to know without knowing exactly what they ingested and a toxicity is still possible. If this happened within the last hour, inducing vomiting by a veterinarian could still be considered to help. If that is not the case, I would recommend you monitor them closely for any of the possible symptoms that could be noted related to gastrointestinal issues and anemia that can be observed with this such as vomiting, diarrhea, inappetence, weakness, pale gums and/or collapse and have them evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment if observed. Best of luck!

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