Tinsel, Ribbon and Christmas Lights: Keeping Cats Safe
Short answer. The decorations that worry vets most with cats are the long, thin ones. Pet Poison Helpline says tinsel is a common cause of bowel blockage in cats and that ribbon causes an especially dangerous string-type blockage; a cat that has chewed a light cord should see a vet straight away. If your cat may have swallowed tinsel, ribbon or string, phone your vet, even if it is still eating. Not veterinary advice.
On this page (7 sections)
Tinsel, ribbon and string
Pet Poison Helpline says tinsel is a common cause of bowel obstruction in cats, cannot pass through the intestines once swallowed, and usually means surgery. It calls ribbon especially dangerous because it causes a linear, string-type obstruction that can saw against the intestinal wall, and suggests keeping wrapped presents away until the day and avoiding long or wire-edged ribbon. Cats Protection says swallowed tinsel can cause serious illness, sometimes fatal. Sources: Pet Poison Helpline, Cats and Christmas trees (Catherine Angle, DVM); Cats Protection, Cats and Christmas.
Lights and cables
Pet Poison Helpline says cats that chew light strands risk electrocution, and that a cat with a chewed cord should go to the vet immediately; it lists difficulty breathing and burns in the mouth as signs. Cats Protection suggests covering cables to the tree with plastic or cardboard tubes and switching lights off at the mains when you go out. Sources: Pet Poison Helpline, Cats and Christmas trees (Catherine Angle, DVM); Cats Protection, Cats and Christmas.
Baubles
Cats Protection says hanging baubles look like toys to cats, that glass baubles shatter easily, and that decorations that break easily are best kept off the tree. Source: Cats Protection, Cats and Christmas.
The tree itself
Pet Poison Helpline says cats are sensitive to pine oils, advises keeping them away from the water in the tree stand, and says needles can cause nausea, vomiting, skin irritation or stomach injury; it suggests washing sap off a cat's fur straight away, because the cat will groom it off and swallow it. More: are Christmas trees poisonous to cats and dogs. Source: Pet Poison Helpline, Cats and Christmas trees (Catherine Angle, DVM).
Signs to know
Pet Poison Helpline warns that cats with a string-type blockage can hide illness and keep eating and drinking for some time, so a normal appetite does not mean all is well. If you saw your cat swallow tinsel, ribbon or string, or find a chewed end, phone your vet; do not pull at string you can see. Source: Pet Poison Helpline, Cats and Christmas trees (Catherine Angle, DVM). More: my cat ate something.
A cat-friendly set-up
- Skip tinsel, or hang it high and count it back into the box.
- Presents under the tree on the day, not before; curling ribbon goes straight in the bin.
- Shatterproof baubles on the lower branches, nothing glass within paw reach.
- Cables in tubes, lights off at the plug when nobody is home.
- A heavy base or weights so a climbing cat cannot pull the tree over.
Sources
- Pet Poison Helpline, Cats and Christmas trees (Catherine Angle, DVM), read 7 November 2026.
- Cats Protection, Cats and Christmas, read 7 November 2026.
Related pages
Christmas pet safety, holly, mistletoe and amaryllis, lilies and cats and everything for cat owners.
