Pet Safety / Compounds / Lilies (Lilium spp.)

Is Lilies (Lilium spp.) safe for dogs and cats?

Low risk for pets

Lilium and Hemerocallis species do not cause renal failure in dogs. Minor GI upset (vomiting, diarrhea) may occur if large amounts are ingested. Calla lily and peace lily (Spathiphyllum, Zantedeschia) cause oral irritation in dogs but are not Lilium species. True Lilium toxicity is a cat-specific emergency.

What is lilies (lilium spp.)?

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Risk for dogs

Low risk

Lilium and Hemerocallis species do not cause renal failure in dogs. Minor GI upset (vomiting, diarrhea) may occur if large amounts are ingested. Calla lily and peace lily (Spathiphyllum, Zantedeschia) cause oral irritation in dogs but are not Lilium species. True Lilium toxicity is a cat-specific emergency.

Risk for cats

Extreme risk

All parts of Lilium and Hemerocallis species are highly toxic to cats; pollen, petals, leaves, stem, and vase water have all caused acute renal failure. Exposure as small as a few pollen grains or leaves is sufficient. Untreated, fatality rates approach 50% within 18–72 hours. Easter, Tiger, Asiatic, Stargazer, and daylilies are equally dangerous. Immediate aggressive veterinary treatment (IV fluids, decontamination) within 18 hours may be life-saving.

Regulatory consensus

1 regulatory bodyhas classified Lilies (Lilium spp.).

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
Unknown——

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where pets encounter lilies (lilium spp.)

  • Industrial Facilities — Manufacturing plants, Chemical storage areas, Waste treatment sites
  • Occupational Environments — Factories, Warehouses, Transportation vehicles

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Lilies (Lilium spp.):

  • Safer process chemistry; Green chemistry alternatives; Exposure controls
    Trade-offs: Requires R&D investment to redesign synthesis routes; may reduce yield or throughput initially; long-term benefits include reduced waste treatment costs, regulatory compliance, and worker safety; 12 Principles of Green Chemistry framework available.
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

Is lilies (lilium spp.) safe for pets?

Lilium and Hemerocallis species do not cause renal failure in dogs. Minor GI upset (vomiting, diarrhea) may occur if large amounts are ingested. Calla lily and peace lily (Spathiphyllum, Zantedeschia) cause oral irritation in dogs but are not Lilium species. True Lilium toxicity is a cat-specific emergency.

What products contain lilies (lilium spp.)?

Lilies (Lilium spp.) appears in: Manufacturing plants (Industrial facilities); Chemical storage areas (Industrial facilities); Factories (Occupational environments); Warehouses (Occupational environments).

See Lilies (Lilium spp.) in the pets app

Look up products containing lilies (lilium spp.), compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

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Sources (2)
  1. ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center: Lily Toxicity in Cats (2021) — report
  2. Langston CE: Acute renal failure caused by lily ingestion in six cats. J Vet Intern Med 16(5):599–602 (2002) — journal

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →