Good for You, Deadly for Your Dog – Xylitol.
A while back I reposted a thread about the dangers of Xylitol for dogs. I find it important to share things like this. This post is very personal because last Wednesday I came home early to find my dog, Maya, had ingested a large amount of Xylitol.
I keep a sealed bucket of egg-white protein powder under my kitchen island. It was a normal day, except that Maya had chewed up one of my flip-flops the day before. I was finished with my last client and heading out with my girlfriend, but something told me, “Go home first and check on the dogs.” Thank GOD I did.
I cam home and found Maya on my bed with Goofy, next to the bed was a 5lb bucket of protein powder and Maya was looking quite suspicious. I went to my computer and check my DropCams (security cameras I always have on). There I found her getting the bucket, chewing off the top and then dragging it around the house and eating it.
See: online dog training
This is a very good tasting protein powder that I’ve used for years. Vanilla flavor, all natural and the second ingredient is Xylitol. I immediately called the vet and they told me to rush her down there.
We immediately induced vomiting by using apomorphine. This is a drug that induces vomiting in dogs quickly. Within 2 minutes she threw up about ½ a gallon of vanilla protein shake. It seems she chased the protein powder with a large bowl of water. I took Goofy down to the vet right after and we induced vomiting in him too, but he hadn’t eaten much (if any).
Now, I’ll tell you that time and my vets good instincts is what saved Maya’s life, that and the fact that she is a big dog. It’s reported that .45gram of Xylitol per pound of bodyweight can prove hypoglycemic and 1 gram per Kilogram of bodyweight can prove fatal. To put it simply, a 10lb dog can be poisoned by one stick of gum. So obviously small dogs suffer far greater.
There are countless products that contain Xylitol including gum, candy, sweeteners, protein powders, baked goods and more. For humans there are countless benefits in Xylitol, but the effects are potentially fatal for your dog.
If your dog ingests even a small amount of Xylitol, it is recommended that you get your dog to a vet immediately, DO NOT WAIT until the morning. Find an emergency vet. If you can get the dog to the vet within an hour they can be made to vomit up the poison, if more time passes the dog will need a sugar IV drip, have their glucose levels checked every 2 hours and liver enzyme testes and blood clotting tests need to be monitored for 48 hours. This was the case with Maya because it had been a large amount that she ingested and it was over an hour before I got her there.
In humans Xylitol is absorbed slowly and has no effect on blood sugar levels. But in dogs Xylitol is absorbed quickly into the bloodstream. It then acts as a strong, dose dependent promoter of insulin release. The makes the dog’s blood sugar crash and can cause death. Liver necropsy and brain damage are common.
If your dog is showing signs such as vomiting, lethargy, weakness, diarrhea, collapse and seizures, he could have Xylitol poisoning. These symptoms can show up 12 hours after ingesting the Xylitol. There is currently no antidote for Xylitol toxicity, so please be careful. Monitor your dog; keep foods and snacks, gum and candy out of reach of your dog. Watch your dog is they sniff through your purse.
I’m happy to say thanks to my amazing vets, Maya is alive and healthy today. The bill is high and I wish I could have prevented this incident, but I am grateful that I got to her in time, moved quickly and had a great support team.
Please educate yourself on the ingredients in your household foods. Many of my friends I mentioned this to had no idea that Xylitol was poisonous and mentioned that they probably would have thought nothing of it if their dog had gotten into some food in their kitchen. PLEASE, err on the side of caution.
