Gooseberries aren’t necessarily bad for cats – but they are not that good either. Your cat can have one or two gooseberries as a treat, but remember that cat food should always be its main source of nutrition. As long as you keep the bases covered, a berry won’t hurt.
Keep in mind gooseberries, and most berries in general, are safe for cats to eat, but they can cause stomach trouble if your cat isn’t used to eating them. In a worst-case scenario, your cat will have diarrhea and stomach pain after having gooseberries.
Other than that, there’s no issue with them. On another note, you should know eating fruit is not necessary for a cat. Humans may need variety in their diet, but cats can do pretty well with meat alone. A “balanced” diet that includes fruits and vegetables can harm a cat.
If your cat is eating one too many gooseberries, you need to cut it off. Eating plenty of fruit may be okay for humans, but cats will soon find themselves overweight and with diabetes if they do the same.
Cats can eat gooseberries – but only a few every now and then!
Should I let my cat be around gooseberry trees?
Absolutely not! You should never let your cat be around gooseberry trees. Even though gooseberries aren’t dangerous for cats, the tree has leaves that are poisonous both for cats and humans. A few of those leaves are enough to cause big trouble for an average cat!
Amazingly, this tree produces edible fruit and poisonous leaves. Its leaves are filled with hydrogen cyanide – and enough of a buildup of that chemical can prove deadly. Humans can die from consuming this substance, so imagine how terrible it is for cats.
If you want to eat gooseberries or want to have one or two for your cat to eat, it’s better to buy them somewhere instead of planting such a dangerous tree.
What should I do if my cat eats gooseberries?
There’s not much to do if your cat ate gooseberries. If your cat ate a bag full of them, you should prepare yourself to deal with either diarrhea or vomit – but your cat will be okay after purging. If your cat ate but a few, there’s nothing to worry about.
There’s one important distinction when it comes to gooseberries, you need to make sure your cat didn’t eat one from a tree. As you know, gooseberry trees are extremely dangerous for cats (and for humans as well!).
The leaves and figs of the gooseberry tree contain cyanide – and you don’t want to risk your cat being poisoned. Even if you think your cat ate gooseberries alone, you shouldn’t risk it and leave it to chance.
Why should you take your cat to the vet if it ate gooseberries from a tree? Because you don’t know what else it ate before that. Maybe your cat was smart enough to eat gooseberries alone, maybe it ate some of the leaves too.
When it comes to dangerous things like cyanide, it’s better not to risk it!