Calathea
Also known as Peacock Plant, Rattlesnake Plant, Prayer Plant, Maranta, Red Veined Prayer. One plant, one grade per pet — the verdicts below are transcribed from primary sources and human-reviewed.
Calathea is non-toxic to cats (S0 Safe): the ASPCA lists the whole genus (Calathea spp.) as safe for cats, dogs, and horses — pattern varieties like rattlesnake and peacock plants included.
FULL VERDICT →Calathea is non-toxic to dogs (S0 Safe): the ASPCA lists the whole genus (Calathea spp.) as safe for dogs, cats, and horses — pattern varieties like rattlesnake and peacock plants included.
FULL VERDICT →Care at a glance
When to call the vet
FAQ
Does the S0 verdict cover every calathea — rattlesnake, peacock, zebra?
Yes, at the level our sources grade: the ASPCA's Calathea entry is genus-wide (Calathea spp., Marantaceae), listed as "Non-Toxic to Dogs, Non-Toxic to Cats, Non-Toxic to Horses" — and its separate Caeroba entry (Calathea insignis, sold as Rattle Snake Plant, Peacock Plant, or Zebra Plant) is non-toxic too. So the popular pattern varieties all fall under the safe verdict. One naming note: several unrelated plants are also sold as 'zebra plant' — see our zebra plant page for how to tell them apart; the flowering one, Aphelandra squarrosa, is graded S0 there as well.
Is a prayer plant (Maranta) covered by this verdict?
Yes, as far as the ASPCA classifies it — and we show our working because the botany and the source do not line up perfectly. The ASPCA has three entries under the names people use for this plant, "Prayer Plant," "Maranta," and "Red Veined Prayer," and all three give the scientific name Calathea insignis with the same verdict: "Non-Toxic to Dogs, Non-Toxic to Cats, Non-Toxic to Horses," toxic principles "Non-toxic." The plant most shops sell as a prayer plant is Maranta leuconeura, which has no separate ASPCA entry under that name; the ASPCA files it here, and so do we, with that caveat stated rather than hidden. Same family (Marantaceae), same record, S0 on this page. If a prayer plant gets chewed, the only thing on record to expect is the stomach upset any large plant meal can cause.