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Is catnip poisonous or dangerous if freshly grown and not dried?

My Mom just got some freshly grown catnip from one of those fancy over-expensive organic supermarkets. The cats are going WILD!

Normally, we’d just give them the dried out catnip, which they liked, but nothing like this!

Is it dangerous and/or poisonous to feed fresh-grown catnip to cats? If age matters, one is 8 years old (neutered male) and another is about 6 (spayed female).

Thanks for any advice!

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Answer #1

I dont think its poisonous because one time we bought a plant from petco that i assumed was catnip and our cats are just fine. :)

Answer #2

Not at all, I believe the only reason it mostly comes dried is because it’s easier and lasts longer on the shelves. Also, since your cats are older you may not want to feed them catnip very often. Catnip causes the cats heart to beat faster which could potentially harm them since they are older and could possibly have an underlying heart condition. ( Just something to keep in mind) Hope This Helped!

Answer #3

I’ve grown catnip in my garden for years, mainly to keep the cats away from my other flower beds. But oh how they love rolling around in it and just eating it off the growing plant. That’s the only kind of catnip they’ve had - and it’s very easy to grow. It’s a member of the mint family (Nepeta Cararia is the one that cats love). Many gardeners grow other types of Nepeta that cats don’t seem to care about.

Answer #4

type – that was supposed to say, nepeta cataria

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