BELLAIRE • MEMORIAL • RIVER OAKS • TANGLEWOOD • WEST UNIVERSITY

Xylitol Can Kill Animals

By Andrew Marvin, age 13 | August 1, 2015

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Andrew Marvin, a seventh grader at Presbyterian School, came home one afternoon to find that his beloved dog, Zoe, couldn’t stand up.

I was greatly startled when I returned home from school one day in April, and our dog, Zoe, a yellow Labrador retriever, could not stand up. I immediately knew something was wrong. I picked her up and put her in my mom’s car. We started to drive her to our vet at Meyerland Animal Clinic. As we were getting on the highway, she started to have seizures. By the time we got to the clinic, 10 minutes later, she was unconscious.

The staff carried her in and started to stabilize her. We were not sure if she would make it. Ten minutes later, she was fully stabilized by Dr. Christina White.

It turned out that she had eaten a package of gum that contained a chemical called xylitol. This sugar substitute can cause a major drop in blood sugar in some animals. The normal blood-sugar level in most animals is 60. They usually start having seizures and become unconscious at 30, and experience brain damage at 20. Zoe’s blood sugar level had dropped to 21.

Over the next several days, Zoe was monitored 24 hours a day as they attempted to stabilize her blood sugar and monitor her liver functions. When we went to pick her up to come home, we got some bad news. Her liver was incredibly damaged, and she had a 10 percent chance of surviving.

We drove her to Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists, and they started care on Zoe right away. She stayed in I.C.U. for three days. After that, she came back home. We were told that GCVS had one other dog before Zoe come in with xylitol poisoning. He did not make it.

Today Zoe is back to normal. While many dogs don’t survive after eating xylitol, Zoe was brought immediately to a veterinarian who was able to treat her.

Xylitol is an artificial sweetener used in many products, including sugar-free gum, breath mints, toothpaste and coffee sweeteners. Many companies make and use this chemical. Xylitol can be deadly to some animals. So remember, keep items with this chemical away from your furry companion.

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