Is it safe for my cat to eat ground beef with taco seasoning in it?

Question

I was eating some taco salad with the leftover taco toppings and shells and I accidentally left the bowl of ground beef out for 5 minutes in the kitchen.

When I came back the cat was up on the counter eating it and about half was gone.

Is it safe for my cat to ingest it?


P.S. My cat has some problems with food and he throws up everyday.

Answer 1

There isn't anything deadly toxic in it that would really harm your cat with one feeding. The spices and fat might cause tummy upset. Garlic in regular doses is toxic to cats. It (and onion) has chemicals in it that attack red blood cells causing a deadly condition called Heinz Body Anemia. This won't happen with one small feeding of something that contains garlic/onion, but those foods should be avoided as a precaution. Here's a list of human foods you should avoid feeding your cat.

http://www.feednfarm.com/petsandpoison.html

Answer 2

is it ideal, no. is it safe? well that is very hard to tell. What were the ingredients of the taco seasoning, how much is "half" was it just a few ounces or a couple of pounds?



The beef is just fine, and if the taco seasoning was light then there probably won't be an issue. If it was heavily seasoned, there is a good chance your cat is going to have some digestive upset for a while (vomiting/diarrhea) Keep a good eye on the cat. Watch out for signs of lethargy (lack of energy to do anything) and hiding for the next day.



Garlic is not healthy for cats, but it is not as dire as the "vet" claims it is. Your cat would have to be immunocompromised and eat a lot of it before it started to cause problems. A lot of cat food manufactures actually put garlic in their foods. Now I'm not about to feed those foods to my cats on that one in a million chance my cats might have a problem with it, but that's just me.

Answer 3

Is it going to kill your cat? No. Will it make him throw up? Probably, especially if he throws up when eating his normal food.



If your cat is throwing up food every day have you taken him to a vet to solve this problem? Vomiting every day is not healthy, and can cause damage to the cat. I would make sure this gets resolved, there are special diets you can put cats on if they have sensitive digestive tracts, but a veterinarian is the only person who can help stop this problem.



I wouldn't worry about him eating the meat though, just make sure it doesn't happen often and he will be fine, meat with seasoning will not be toxic to the cat but could upset his stomach.

Answer 4

Well, my husband IS mexican...this is how we cook ground beef for tacos (you are talking about soft corn tortillas, right? Hard taco shells are NOT mexican) Cook salted ground beef in a skillet til it loses its pink color. Add a handful of finely chopped onion, and cook until brown. Add a small diced tomato, a pinch of cumin, a diced serrano chile, and a minced clove of garlic. Add a cup of water, lower heat, and simmer 20 minutes. Top with chopped cilantro, and serve with lime wedges to squirt over tacos before eating. The problem with the "tex mex/ taco bell" seasoning is that it uses TONS of cumin. Mexicans only put a teeny TINY amount of cumin in one BIG recipe.

Answer 5

Keep an eye on your cat, if it gets sick take it to a vet.

Answer 6

is there garlic in it....garlic is deadly to cats...