My eyes and ears are always open for toxins in food and everyday used items. This has been a way of life for me for the past 30 years with my pets. After all, the animals can't read and don't know enough spoken words to understand news stories about what to eat or what is dangerous. By the way the picture is me with my best dog friend Tara.
One thing many pet lovers might not think about is xylitol, a popular sweetener used in sugar-free gums, mints and oral care products. Xylitol is an all-natural sugar substitute derived from beets, birch tree bark, corncobs and other natural sources.
Xylitol is used in cookies, candies, cupcakes and other sweets developed for people who have diabetes. It's also sold in bags of crystals for baking. Because of its bacteria-killing properties, it is put into some oral care products, including Oxyfresh, Tom's All Natural and Biotene toothpastes.
It's also used in Jello sugar-free puddings and a wide variety of sugar-free gums, including Trident, Orbit, Stride, Icebreakers and Altoids.
Some sugar-free chewing gums are as much as 70 percent xylitol, depending on the brand and whether the product is used as a primary sweetener.
A 22-pound dog who consumes 1 gram of xylitol should be treated. This can equate to 3 to 4 pieces of some gum products.
The number of xylitol-related pet poisonings is on the rise, partly because of increased awareness, but more so because xylitol is being used in more products.
Keep your furry friend safe - keep all products, food, gum, mints and oral care products with xylitol out of reach. Dogs really do have a sweet tooth and can dig through a bag to find the gum or mints - so please dog proof your sugar-free products.
Visit ASPCA for more info.
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I'm not extremely enthusiastic about consuming xylitol myself, not to mention pets.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Robin for posting this article. We don't eat xylitol anymore (I ate enough for a lifetime when I did the South Beach Diet, years ago), but we do have dogs who will eat anything they find, including things like chocolate and grapes. We'll definitely add this to the watch out list.
ReplyDeleteThanks again!
Yes Michelle I echo your feelings. I would never willing give my dogs anything made with xylitol. I hope pet lovers who read this keep all sugar-free products away from pets. Michelle thanks for visiting.
ReplyDeleteHi MetroKnow - I'm glad you gained something from this post. I love my pets so much and can't imagine how I would feel if they got into something that caused harm. One of my dogs has developed a bad habit of stealing food if it's left too close to the edge of the counter. So far it's been healthy food, maybe he is learning from me wat to eat and what not to.
Thanks for visiting MetroKnow