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The majority of house plants are actually really toxic to pets and to children. So it can be really difficult to try to find some of those plants that are going to accumulate in homes with pets and children that love to just chew on all of those plants. If you have been struggling to try to find plants that are going to work in your home and work in your environment with your pets and your children then this is definitely the list for you!!
Calathea
First up on our list and my personal favorite is Calathea. These are big jungle foliage. They live in tropical rainforests and jungles and are understory plants. Also, their leaves get freaking huge. They are available in a variety of colors. Their stems are usually red or pink, sometimes even a purple back depending on the variety that you get. They are all very beautiful.
Calathea are also known as prayer plants because their leaves will actually move up and down and this is really cool and really fun for you to watch. They are 100% nontoxic for you so you can put them anywhere with pets. They will need more and more space as they grow though so be warned they might take up some of Kitty’s table space. These plants are really fun and because their leaves get so big and bushy; they can be really fun for pets to hide under and kind of play around in. It is also really cool to see the different colors so it’s a win-win for you and your pet.
Fittonia
Fittonia comes in a wide variety of colors. They are very easy to take care of. You just simply lift them up and put them in some water let them soak up the water and then put them back on the shelf whenever you want. They are very easy to care for plants and don’t need a lot of light. If your kitty decides to play with them or if your puppy decides to chew on them they are all nontoxic and safe. So again it’s a win-win for you and for them.
Ferns
Next up we have ferns now there are 20 thousand different varieties of ferns out there. The majority of them are nontoxic. There are some that are toxic so make sure you are looking up the specific names for them. However, the common ones that you are going to find available like Astral Gem Fern, Maidenhair Fern, Blue Star Fern, Rabbit Foot Fern, and Boston Fern are all nontoxic. They are all perfectly safe for you and your pets and whatever little other babies you have running around.
Definitely make sure for the more rare or hard-to-find ferns that you are double checking and researching your plants though. Ferns like the painted lady fern are going to be more toxic. Not necessarily fatal but toxic nevertheless. So definitely double-check your ferns when you’re purchasing them. Just give it a quick Google and then the word toxic and you can see it easily.
The majority of the ferns that you are going to be finding especially if they are of a green variety and don’t have a lot of color to them are nontoxic for you.
Ferns are generally big and bushy they have a lot of fronds with thinner foliage on them. Generally, they need a higher humidity environment. They also like a lot more water the majority of the time though there are desert ferns out there.
Pets absolutely love ferns because they are something that dangles and they can bat at that. They could chew on it a little if they too and you are not really going to notice because there is so much bush. So if you have one of those playful kittens that just wants to run around and get into mischief then maybe a Boston Fern would be good for that.
Regardless of what type of pet you have, I am sure you can find a type of fern that is going to work for your environment and for your pet,
Peperomia
Peperomia is one of the few plants out there that are all nontoxic all across the board. Every single one is nontoxic for you and they come in a lot of different varieties. You can get a bushier variety like a Peperomia obtusifolia. You can get variegated or non-variegated.
They come in a whole variety of colors too! You can get pink ones, red ones, green ones, and even silver ones! You can also get various ones that are going to trail for you. So if you want a trailing plant that’s nontoxic (which is generally pretty difficult to find these days) this species is the one for you. You are definitely going to appreciate this as will your pets if they like dangling plants.
Peperomia Angulata trails nicely or you can get a Peperomia Scandens. Their leaves are actually heart-shaped so they have a very similar vibe to a heartleaf philodendron. Heartleaf Philodendrons are toxic whereas Peperomia is not.
So you can definitely find substitutes and Peperomia have 1500 varieties of plants out there all of which are not toxic so I guarantee that you can find some that are going to work with you.
Spider Plants
Speaking of trailing plants and bushy plants and plants that pets really love… spider plants! Spider Plants are one of the oldest cultivated plants out there. They were one of the first house plants ever and they continue to be popular. Pets love them. People love them. They get big and bushy. They are easy to care for. You can let them dry out. You can hang them or you can put them on tables.
They come in a solid green or you can get a white and green stripe or green and white stripe variety out there. Also, they are actually different looking and one can get more white than the other. They look amazing and they are actually a type of grass believe it or not. Clorophytum.
They are called spider plants because they have these little stems that pop out and they will have little baby spider plants growing directly from them. You can then propagate and plant more.
The reason that pets love them so much though is because they are actually related to catnip and cat grass. So they attract cats. Also, it is quite a bit of fun with their little ribbon strands. They are fun to bat and play and then they have their little spider hanging down which just means even more fun to chew on and bat on. It is totally safe for your pets but I would recommend getting one for you and one for your pet because even the puppies love to play with these.
I highly recommend this plant. It is a very old variety of house plants that have been around for a very long time and with good.
Hopefully this list gives you and your pets a little bit of planty joy and kind of gave you some varieties that are going to work better for you and meet your esthetic needs as well as your pet’s needs.
