My cat ate moldy food – what should I do?

Updated 2026-09-30 · 1 sources

Based on: Pet Poison Helpline

Call a vet now

Call your vet or the nearest emergency vet right now. Moldy food can contain fungus-produced toxins that cause toxicity.

What to do now

What to do right now

Call your vet or the nearest emergency vet.
Note what your cat ate, how much, and when.
Bring the packaging if available.
Remove what is left and keep your cat calm.

Don't

Do not make your cat vomit unless a vet tells you to.
Do not give any human medicine.

Why it can be dangerous

Ingesting moldy food can put cats at risk of toxicity from fungus-produced toxins called tremorgenic mycotoxins.^[1] These toxins may be found in moldy bread, pasta, cheese, nuts, and other decaying matter such as compost.^[1]

Signs to watch for

Vomiting
Drooling
Tremors
Seizures
Kidney failure
Agitation
Incoordination

Where it is found

Moldy bread
Moldy pasta
Moldy cheese
Moldy nuts
Garbage
Compost or other decaying matter

If your pet is struggling to breathe, has collapsed, is having a seizure or can't stand up: go to the nearest vet now.

Not sure how serious it is?

OkPaw asks a few quick questions about your pet and tells you in 30 seconds whether it can wait. Free on Google Play for Android.

OkPaw is on Android now – an iPhone version is on its way.

Common questions

What should I do now?

Call your vet or the nearest emergency vet right now.

How much moldy food is dangerous?

Call your vet or the nearest emergency vet right now rather than trying to judge the amount.

Why can moldy food be dangerous?

Moldy food can contain fungus-produced toxins called tremorgenic mycotoxins that can cause toxicity in cats.^[1]

Sources

Pet Poison Helpline

How this page was made: written with the help of AI from the sources below, then checked claim by claim against those sources. Urgency levels follow OkPaw’s fixed safety rules. It is guidance, not a diagnosis. How we write our pages

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