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White stuff on cheese: Is it mold or calcium lactate? Safe for my cat?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | spayed | 7 years and 5 months old | 7 lbs

Not sure if you can answer this, an sorry for wasting your time. But can you tell me if this is mould or Calcium lactate? I was eating some cheese, I got about 3 pieces in when my cat wanted me to share. I went to give her a small piece (lactose doesnt bother her) when I actually saw the white stuff. It tasted fine by but it did have "enjoy within 5 days of opening for maximum freshness" on the package when I got to actually looking. When will/What signs appear if it's mold and will we get sick?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Dr. Strydom, DVM

Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on November 30th, 2017

It appears to be calcium lactate. Mold is "fuzzier" and usually has some green spots in with the white. I am sure it is fine that you and your cat ingested it. Really, don't worry about it at all.

If your cat does get sick (vomiting or diarrhea) it is likely from the cheese itself as cat's really cannot process dairy products. They lack the correct enzymes so it is really not recommended to feed dairy products to cats. Just for future reference.

http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/whats-the-deal-with-cats-and-milk

Hope this helps.
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