Made or brewed using roasted coffee beans, coffee is one of the most popular beverages with caffeine as one of its main psychoactive ingredients.
Popular ingredients used in its preparation include milk, vanilla extract, ice cream, sweeteners such as sugar, chocolate syrup, foam, whipped cream, and so on depending on the type.
There are many types of coffee including Irish, cappuccino, Caffé mocha, flat white, cortado, Caffé Americano, Ice, Latte, Caffé macchiato, ristretto, doppio, expression, long black, among many others.
Is coffee bad for cats or can kitties have some?
Yes. Coffee is bad for cats including the ground and coffee beans. You should not allow them to have this beverage. This is because these cats, dogs and other pets have a higher sensitivity to the various effects that caffeine, a methylxanthine as opposed to human beings. Caffeine can also be derived from xanthine.
This applies to any caffeinated drink including soda, tea, guarana, diet pills, energy drinks and so on or even tea bags. These pets are curious and never assume that they will not want to drink some of the caffeinated drinks.
While ingesting a very small amount will not have any detrimental effects, excessive amounts will definitely result in poisoning. According to Pet Poison Helpline, “ingestion of moderate amounts of coffee grounds, tea bags or 1-2 diet pills can easily cause death in small dogs or cats.”
Caffeine toxicity is considered moderate to severe depending on the amount ingested.
Secondly, milk, sugar, ice cream, whipped cream, artificial sweeteners are not good for these pets and if it has chocolate, chocolate has theobromine that is also poisonous.
Symptoms of caffeine poisoning
If you feline ingests anything that has caffeine including ground and coffee beans or even tea, symptoms may begin showing after an hour or two. Common symptoms include:
- Hyperactivity that might be mild to severe
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea and abdominal discomfort
- Increase heart rate and arrhythmia.
- High blood pressure
- A rise in body temperature e
- Nervous signs including tremors, seizures, collapse
Treatment
Once diagnosed, your vet may use give your kitty activate charcoal to adsorb any ingested caffeine from their stomach. There will also be treatments to manage various symptoms such as:
- IVs in case of vomiting to avoid dehydration
- Medication to lower blood pressure as well as treat increased or abnormal heartbeats
- Anti-convulsants in case there are seizures
- Since coffee is acidic, antacids may help reduce stomach pains
- Use of urinary catheter to empty the bladder frequently to avoid caffeine reabsorptions that can occur in the bladder wall.
Prognosis will depend on the symptoms noted. It will be good if there have not been severe symptoms such as seizures or collapse.
Conclusion
Coffee is not good for cats or dogs. If your kitty eats coffee beans or drinks a beverage with caffeine, discuss the matter with your vet as soon as possible.
Also, wipe any spillage of caffeinated drink, cover them and store them well. Also, dispose of these products well as these pets may find its beans on dirt and eat them.
Even if your cat likes coffee, do not allow it to have some sinse it is dangerous to these pets.