# My cat eats bees, should I worry?



## YellaSam

Hello,

Does anyone know if the 'poison' in a bee can harm a cat when the bee is eaten?

I have two 10 month old cats who have progressed from proudly bringing home leaves and worms to live bees.

Bees are an endangered and important species so we always carefully return them outside.

Many thanks,

YellaSam.....


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## prada

I would worry if it was me. Have they never been stung? Bee or wasp stings in the mouth can have very serious consequences such as restricted breathing caused by swelling, vomiting, fever, rapid heartbeat and shock.


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## hobbs2004

Yes, definitely something that you should somehow prevent from becoming a habit. 

Hobbs used to do the same until he got stung one day right at the back of his throat. Not only that but that bite got infected and he was very poorly for a couple of weeks and had to have treatment for another 4 weeks after that. He has learnt his lesson now but I wish he wouldn't have had to learn the hard way.


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## dagny0823

Henry ate a yellow jacket once when he was younger. I guess he got lucky--it stung him in the side of his mouth, but the entire half of his head swelled up--he looked like he'd been to the dentist. It was almost comical. The vet said not to worry unless he was having problems breathing or with coordination or other bad neurological signs, which he didn't. He didn't learn his lesson, however, and tried to catch and eat more during subsequent seasons. Fortunately he's an indoor cat, so he was only tempted by whatever crept inside the house, but I would worry about your cats being stung.

This makes me wonder--since cats like to catch flying things, how often do they end up eating bees you never know about?


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## YellaSam

dagny0823 said:


> This makes me wonder--since cats like to catch flying things, how often do they end up eating bees you never know about?


I wonder that too. What about the bees caught when I'm at work? There could be a few.

My cats also like birds in trees, I often see them sitting, waiting patiently to pounce on a bird 15 feet higher than them up in a tree!


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## YellaSam

prada said:


> I would worry if it was me. *Have they never been stung?* Bee or wasp stings in the mouth can have very serious consequences such as restricted breathing caused by swelling, vomiting, fever, rapid heartbeat and shock.


I am not sure. Once my girlfriend said Kenneth was 'moving about funny' a few minutes after annoying some bees.

I suppose I can't stop my cats from what they chase outside and am lucky they bring them home to show us before they eat them so I can either take the bees away or keep an eye on our cats should they get stung from any of the signs mentioned here.


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## chillminx

What kind of bees is your cat catching? Some types of bee only sting under extreme provocation, e.g. bumble bees, whereas honey bees sting with very little provocation. At the moment (March) in the UK it is mainly bumble bees that are active. Honey bees, other bees, and wasps come along later. 

Personally I would discourage your cat from chasing bees by discreetly spraying him with a water pistol every time you see him go after a bee. Then he will learn to associate bees with something unpleasant happening to him. Make sure he doesn't see you spraying him, or he won;t associate it with the bees. 

That would be better than him having to learn the hard way, as one of my cats had to when she was stung in the mouth by a wasp and it swelled so badly she couldn't breathe properly and needed emergency vet treatment.


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## YellaSam

chillminx said:


> What kind of bees is your cat catching? Some types of bee only sting under extreme provocation, e.g. bumble bees, whereas honey bees sting with very little provocation. At the moment (March) in the UK it is mainly bumble bees that are active. Honey bees, other bees, and wasps come along later.
> 
> Personally I would discourage your cat from chasing bees by discreetly spraying him with a water pistol every time you see him go after a bee. Then he will learn to associate bees with something unpleasant happening to him. Make sure he doesn't see you spraying him, or he won;t associate it with the bees.
> 
> That would be better than him having to learn the hard way, as one of my cats had to when she was stung in the mouth by a wasp and it swelled so badly she couldn't breathe properly and needed emergency vet treatment.


Thank you for this advice. My girlfriend says they are bumble bees so maybe that is why my cats have not been stung yet.

The water spraying idea is very good, thanks, Im will try that. I am unable to spray them when they are out because we live in a second floor flat but when they come in with the bees I will spray them then.

YellaSam.....


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## prada

If your cat goes into anaphylactic shock after an insect sting in the mouth this is a medical emergency. Rub the gums with honey and rush to the vet. If the sting is on the outside, try to remove a bee stinger. If you know which insect caused the injury apply vinegar to a wasp sting and a bicarbonate of soda paste to a bee sting.


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## YellaSam

prada said:


> If your cat goes into anaphylactic shock after an insect sting in the mouth this is a medical emergency. Rub the gums with honey and rush to the vet. If the sting is on the outside, try to remove a bee stinger. If you know which insect caused the injury apply vinegar to a wasp sting and a bicarbonate of soda paste to a bee sting.


This is excellent advice, thank you Prada and I already have these ingredients at home. I will remember these, they may save my cats life one day.


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## chillminx

YellaSam said:


> Thank you for this advice. My girlfriend says they are bumble bees so maybe that is why my cats have not been stung yet.
> 
> The water spraying idea is very good, thanks, Im will try that. I am unable to spray them when they are out because we live in a second floor flat but when they come in with the bees I will spray them then.
> 
> YellaSam.....


Sorry YellaSam but spraying them when they bring the bees indoors is unlikely to deter your cats from catching them. All it will do (if anything) is deter them from bringing them indoors to you. 

For it to work as a deterrent you would need to be there in the garden with your cats with your water pistol primed and ready and immediately one of them goes after a bee you give the cat a quick squirt of water. That is the only way your cats might learn to associate an unpleasant experience 
(being doused with cold water) with chasing after bees.


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## Paddypaws

I think most cats through a phase of this, until they learn a lesson with a nasty sting.
I know Milo gave me a heart attack last year on more than one occasion by galloping into the house with a bee loudly buzzing _inside his mouth_.
For most cats a sting on the paw or even on the face is nothing to worry about and just teaches them a lesson.....but if the sting is inside the moth then it is potentially far more serious. Hobbs tells us how one of her cats developed an infection after such a sting and of course it is not unknown for a cat to go into anaphylactic shock which could easily be fatal.
After discussion with my vet I make sure to have a packet of regular Piriton on hand, just in case, and he has told me that a dose of 1/4 to 1/2 a tablet would be safe to administer if a crisis did occur. I would of course take my cat straight to the vet as well.


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## YellaSam

Thank you chillminx and Paddypaws. It is during the day that is the major concern for me. When we are out at work our cats can come and go as they please which I think is only right so its if they get stung in the mouth when we are out where a potential problem may occur. Even when we are at home we live in a second floor flat and have no garden, they get the bees from other gardens and carry them home. I don't want to coop them up all the time either. It's a case of risk.


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