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My cat might have eaten an emergency contraceptive pill. Is it toxic?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Siberian | Male | neutered | 3 years and 1 month old | 18 lbs

I dropped an emergency contraceptive pill on the floor and I have three cats. The pill is 1.5 mg levonorgestrel. I couldn't find the pill but I'm trying to be proactive in case one of the cats ingests it. Is it toxic for a cat?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Linda G, MS, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on June 28th, 2018

Hello. I am sorry that your question was not addressed earlier, so I hope you have already taken your cats to the vet for decontamination & supportive care. There is really not very much information about this particular medication being consumed by a cat. It is basically progesterone, & we do know that higher doses can cause sedation, ataxia, anisocoria ( unequal pupils ) & disorientation. I found one documented source of a cat that consumed an unknown amount of progesterone, & all of the symptoms resolved over several hours with supportive care ( not identified, but probably included fluids & possible gastric decontamination with activated charcoal ). So if any of your cats are showing any of these signs, please have the cat examined by your veterinarian as soon as possible. If it has been several hours & everyone is looking & acting well, then you may still find the pill somewhere. But any concerns or doubts, please head out to your veterinarian. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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