Follow-up on Sweetener Toxicity in Dogs

Dear I wanted to follow-up after an email that I sent the other day. I talked to you about Xylitol toxicity - which is an ingredient in sugar-free gum, candies and baked goods. I wanted to point out this is not just the sugar-free gum but also many of the commercial candies and baked goods also contain this ingredient. I know a lot of pet owners that take a bite of something and give their little friend a piece as well.  This can be dangerous. As I told you the other day - xylitol is toxic. Don't give your dog access to sugar-free gum or feed candies or baked goods with this ingredient. I know it can be fun to give a dog a treat but it really is best if you stick with dog food and dog treats. An emergency vet friend of mine called me last night after she read the xylitol "Is chewing gum toxic" newsletter. She was happy that we are educating pet owners and prevent problems before they happen. I asked her how often she saw xylitol toxicity. She has seen it occasionally but fortunately the ones that she has seen have done okay with treatment. The classic treatment is that they are admitted to the hospital, given intravenous fluids with dextrose (to help keep their blood sugar up since a common side effect of the xylitol is a low blood sugar level) and time.  She said they had one not too long ago that left the hospital after 2 ½ days and did fine. The dogs name was "Sweetie" and had gotten a pack of gum off the coffee table. She came in to the clinic having a seizure caused by a low blood sugar level.   Out of interest - I asked what the final cost was to the owner for this hospital stay - and she told me she thought there final bill was just under $1,500.00. They had checked blood work a couple times because the xylitol can also cause liver damage. Fortunately, the dog was fine. But that is a lot of money for one of those little things that can so commonly happen with dogs. If that is a lot of money to you, please consider pet insurance. It can really help when emergencies like this happen. No one ever thinks this will ever happen to them, but it does. Go to petinsurance.com for a free quote. Until next time, Dr. Jon P.S.  If you want some examples of how dog owners with pet insurance have been reimbursed for treatments. Go to: petinsurance.com