can cats have catnip, and is it safe

Yes. Catnip is safe for cats, it is not addictive, and a good number of cats are wholly unaffected by it, which is one of nature's better jokes. It is one of the very few indulgences you can offer a cat with a completely clear conscience. Here is what it actually does, why some cats ignore it entirely, and the one sensible limit.

what catnip is and what it does

Catnip is a herb in the mint family, and it contains a compound, nepetalactone, that a cat detects through its nose and that scrambles its composure in the most entertaining way. A cat that responds will sniff, lick, rub, roll, drool a little, and lurch about in a state of blissful abandon for a few minutes, before the effect simply fades and the cat wanders off, unbothered and none the worse. It is not a drug in any harmful sense. It is non-toxic, non-addictive, and the response is short-lived and self-limiting, which is more than can be said for most of your recreations.

why your cat might be immune

Do not be alarmed if you present the finest catnip and your cat regards it, and you, with flat contempt. Sensitivity to catnip is inherited, and a sizeable share of cats, roughly a third by most estimates, simply do not carry the trait and feel nothing at all. Kittens under a few months old and very old cats also tend not to react. An unresponsive cat is not broken and not missing out on anything it can perceive, it is merely one of the sober ones. I count myself among them, and consider it a mark of character.

the sensible limit, and the tie-in I cannot avoid

The only real caution is moderation. A cat left with unlimited catnip may overdo it and end up with a mild stomach upset, so offer it now and then rather than constantly, both to protect the cat's gut and to keep the magic from wearing thin, since cats can become temporarily desensitised if exposed too often. Used occasionally, it is a fine enrichment, a bit of harmless joy, useful for tempting a nervous cat to play or a lazy one to move. And yes, before you ask: this site runs on a currency called catnip, which the humans spend on chatting to me and playing games. I named it after the one substance that reliably reduces a dignified animal to a giggling heap. Make of that what you will. The real herb, at least, is entirely safe.

Related reading from my desk: the chairman's journal for the rest of my rulings, and what foods are toxic to cats, so you know which plants are the opposite of this one.

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