I've just seen this article on The Daily Puppy and thought I ought to share it with my fellow dog lovers.

Dog owners have something new to worry about, and it’s not chocolate.

It’s called Xylitol, a product used in replacement of sugar, so that companies can label products sugarless. Although Xylitol looks and tastes like regular sugar, it’s effects in dogs can be fatal.

Angel, recovering from Xylitol poisoning

Angel is a 6-pound Ontario dog. On November 24th, 2008, this Shi-tzu, poodle, Bichon mix ate 3 pieces of sugarless gum containing Xylitol. Her owners who’d previously heard of the poison rushed her to the Big Bay Animal Hospital where she was diagnosed with low blood sugar and glucose levels. She was also at risk for liver damage, due to the large volume of Xylitol she’d consumed. According to Dr. Jeffrey Kup, a vet at the Big Bay Animal Hospital, Angel was not yet at a severity where he was unsure whether he could save her. However, due to her small size, it very easily could have become fatal.

She was hooked up to intravenous containing dextrose, also known as glucose, and stomach protectants to help battle her continually decreasing levels. For the next 2 days, the Big Bay Animal Hospital supplied constant monitoring to Angel during the day, while Angel stayed at the overnight animal hospital at night. After 3 days, tests confirmed that Angel’s blood sugar and glucose levels had risen to a safe level, and she was released. Days later, the results came back that Angel was free of liver damage.

Not all dogs come out as easily as Angel did. Speedy discovery and vet care can be what determines a dog’s fate. Dr. Kup says some signs of Xylitol poisoning pet owners can look for include weakness, seizures, and coma. If it’s been 5-15 minutes following consumption, his recommendation is to induce vomiting before rushing the dog to the vet.

The amount of products containing Xylitol is rising, which is why it’s so important for pet owners to read the labels every time. Some products that are known to carry Xylitol are some sugarless gum, sugarless candies, toothpaste and vitamins. Products are regularly having Xylitol added to their ingredient due to the positive effects in humans, and it’s lower price, unfortunately, also raising the occurrences of Xylitol poisoning. Months following Angel’s consumption, a dog in Western Canada, weighing 60 pounds experienced severe toxicity and was in intensive care for 5 days.

Dr. Kup’s advice to dog owners is to keep bags and purses closed and off floors as pets often get in and play with personal toxic items; at times, those may contain Xylitol. It may be unheard of in Canada, but in the United States it’s becoming an epidemic. Dr. Kup, who’d been unaware prior to Angel’s consumption, says that all vets were intrigued by the development.

Dogs don’t know what can harm them, and they don’t know what not to eat. Humans do. It’s up to us to keep our dogs safe. Whether you’re a dog owner or not, you need to spread the word of this often unknown poison, Xylitol and save a dogs life.

Angel struggled, but she survived to spread the word. She can’t do it alone. We need to do it together.

© 2009 Bailey Thompson

You can never be too careful.

I never thought I would ever type this - it sounds ridiculous to people that aren't animal or dog lovers - so i thought where best than to share it here. I lost my dog very unexpectedly just before Christmas and I still get upset when i think about her. We were never an animal loving family - but when we moved to the country I pleaded with my dad to buy me a dog. She became a part of our family instantly. Suddenly our busy schedules were being built around a little black Cocker. She bought so much joy into our home and just her presence seemed to lighten the mood and calm everyone in the house. Since shes passed that tension has crept back into our lives. I could never replace her - the oddest thing for me is that I don't want anything to do with dogs. I was always the one who would spot a dog from miles away and have to take a look. But now my dog is gone I have no interest in anyone elses. Selfish I know but thats the way it is. Anyway the point being our pets touch our lives in so many ways that it's not until they are gone that we understand what they do for us. Getting greeted every morning like its the first time they've met you is expected when it happens everyday for nine years. But when it doesn't its devastating. Love your pets like there's no tomorrow xx

HI,
jsyk i live on a farm nice right?
i have alot of dogs, goats. a hamster, and a cat.
my dog just had puppys so we kept 4 she had 9 one died the rest we gave away. they are border collie, cocker spainle, terrier. (i cannot spell fyi)
oh yea we have alot of chickens 2.

puffy puffy puppys heh heh
thanx

I suppose quite a few people who are in this group will atleast like horses. I am fortunate to have two. Amber and Barty

Now, can anyone tell me, when you leave your home, even for a day, do you miss your horses...? I always miss mine... It's odd. Also from talking with another horse owner recently, I think I may have discovered evidence that horse owners are quite unstable... The person in question burst into tears on one occasion when her horse cut itself. I myself did the same thing when my newest horse was on trial and jumped out of the field one day... Is this some kind of connection horse owners have with their horses, or is it just love?

Any comments of similar experiences would be appreciated

I don't like to think that I'm the only one...

Hello everyone
I'm Clair and I share my house with my dog Pepper. She's 12 years old now but still acts like a puppy and is full of energy.

i have seven cats 2 of which were strays, a japanese akita and a yorkshire terrier, 9 small fish (more to come when i upgrade 2 a 60 litre biorb off ebay, a tank with lots of snails-various apple snails, and trumpet snails etc, a tortoise, a salmon crested molaccan cocatoo, and a hamster! when i get to know how to work this site a little better i will post some gr8 pics of my fur babies! with stories and names to go with them! glad i found you guys, there are so many negative people i speek to who dislike animals or think im wierd because i love them so much...i am frequently rescuing birds etc and taking them to the rspca, im sure they think i am injuring them! x

Last week my dog went to the vet and had a general check up and received her annual booster vaccination. For two or three days she seemed very listless, she was sick a couple of times and wouldn't eat her food. I wasn't unduly worried, thinking it was just a bit of upset from having the jab so I continued with her normal meal routine thinking "she'll eat when she's ready" but a few more days have now passed and although she is a lot brighter in herself, she is still off her food.

Off her own food that is! she has still shown some interest in mine. So this evening I decided that she needs to eat and her self imposed fast had to be broken. Instead of preparing dog food for her I scrambled a couple of eggs and made some toast. I put it on a plate, sat down and ate a couple of mouthfuls then deposited the rest into the dog's dish as if it were leftovers.

Well I got the desired result, she ate it all up and is now lying behind me burping (so I hope that she's not going to be sick) but I also feel a bit like I've been conned, the dog food she normally eats is good quality and not cheap, it is also easier to prepare than scrambled eggs on toast.

So who's fooling who eh? I'd like to know. I hope she gets her taste for dog food back soon, but in the meantime it will probably be weetabix for breakfast

This is Molly, my 2 year old labrador who is expecting her first litter in 2 weeks. So far, plain sailing, but she is still able to jump over our 4' high fencing.

We've got good homes for 6 puppies, but labs can have up to 10 puppies, so we may have to advertise

She's getting tired now, and eating for England. Always usually slim, I really feel like she should have one of those t-shirts 'not fat, just pregnant' or one for me 'yes I do know how to feed my dog properly'

Sorry, thought I'd just share with you my two gorgeous lovely cats... the first one is Cochita. Cooksie [her nickname] is a persian, and was adopted from a feline rescue place - her previous owner was an old lady and she died. The second cat is called Tom... he really only lives in our garden, but he lives there; he was born under our water tank - he used to have a sister [we called her Geri... as in Tom and Jerry] but she got eaten by a dog,... sorry to be frank. The last picture... well, I just think it's funny! It's Cooksie again but she just looks so funny - the picture was a complete accident though, she suddenly moved!

I had a nice walk with the dog this morning, it was dry and sunny so I took the camera with me. I thought I'd share this shot, I wanted a picture of the horse and the dog, but one of them decided to sneak off!

Click on the picture for biggest size