Black locust poisoning can often have a rapid onset, producing some fairly obvious symptoms. If these signs are observed, owners should take their pet straight to a vet, as the condition can often become life-threatening.
Vomiting: Soon after eating part of the black locust plant, the cat will start to appear nauseous (i.e. refusing food and attempting to seclude itself). This will quickly transform into gagging, retching and eventually outright vomiting. Although often written off as a fairly usual sign of food poisoning, continued vomiting can be surprisingly dangerous to the health of the cat. This is because of the large amount of liquid that can be thrown up in a short space of time, thereby exposing the animal to the risk of developing dehydration and its associated problems.
Diarrhea: Alongside the vomiting, owners may notice that their cat will lose control of its bowels, as its body attempts to further purge the black locust toxin from the digestive system. In a similar fashion to vomiting, diarrhea can cause a sudden and dramatic loss of fluid from the body. In creatures as small of cats, this can quickly result in the onset of dehydration. To avoid this, owners should make extra water available to the cat as soon as possible, ensuring that they can replenish the lost fluids in ample time.
Apathy: A somewhat distinctive sign of black locust poisoning is a change in the cat's behavior. Although digestive discomfort can lead to a degree of inactivity, owners may also notice that the cat may become unusually sedentary and seemingly unaware of its surroundings. This is often combined with a noticeable measure of weakness, as the cat starts to have trouble scaling objects and generally moving around. They may also appear apathetic to being touched or may even ignore behavior by other pets that would usually elicit a violent response.
Breathing Difficulties: Owners may also notice that their cat starts to have trouble breathing. The most obvious sign of this will be the deeper breaths and gasping noises the cat makes as it attempts to get more oxygen. This is one of the first signs that there is something seriously wrong with the animal and should prompt the owner to seek veterinary assistance.
Arrhythmia: Black locust poisoning can also have an effect on the cat's heartbeat. As the cat's condition worsens, their heart will start to beat out of time. Although not visible to the naked eye, owners can check their cat's pulse by laying their fingers flat against the rear of the animal's torso in order to feel their heartbeat. Arrhythmia may present either as a distinct uncoordinated beat of the heart, or as a 'fluttery' sensation as one ventricle beats out of time with the rest. Left untreated, this can lead to serious consequences such as bad circulation and even congestive heart failure.
Kidney Damage: One of the major consequences of black locust poisoning is its propensity to cause serious damage to the kidneys. As the organs fail, they produce some fairly distinctive symptoms, the most famous of which is yellow tinted skin and eyes caused by certain chemicals no longer being filtered out of the blood stream. Owners can additionally detect kidney damage by checking for blood in their cat's feces (which may simply turn it a much darker shade of brown).