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Xylitol and Your Dog: Danger, Paws Off

our six-month-old puppy, Hoover, will eat anything Ythat isn’t tied down. Like many dog owners, you know chocolate can be dangerous to your pooch. But you may not know that if Hoover sticks his nose in your handbag and eats a pack of sugarless chewing gum, the consequences could be deadly. Sugarless gum may contain xylitol, a class of sweetener known as sugar alcohol. Xylitol is present in many products and foods for human use, but can have devastating effects on your pet. Over the past several years, the Center for Veterinary Medicine at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received several reports— many of which pertained to chew- ing gum—of dogs being poisoned by xylitol, according to Martine Harto- gensis, a veterinarian at FDA. And you may have seen recent news stories about dogs that have died or become very ill after eating products containing xylitol.

Other Foods Containing Xylitol But gum isn’t the only product con- taining xylitol. Slightly lower in calories than sugar, this sugar sub- stitute is also often used to sweeten sugar-free candy, such as mints and chocolate bars. Other products that

1 / FDA Consumer Health Information / U.S. Food and Drug Administration MAY 2016 Consumer Health Information www.fda.gov/consumer

Symptoms of xylitol poisoning in dogs include vomiting, followed by symptoms associated with the sudden lowering of your dog’s blood sugar, such as decreased activity, weakness, staggering, incoordination, collapse and seizures.

may contain xylitol include: such as decreased activity, weakness, You Can Help FDA by Reporting • breath mints staggering, incoordination, collapse Safety Issues • baked goods and seizures. FDA wants to know if your pet • cough syrup If you think your dog has eaten xyli- encounters safety issues with a prod- • children’s and adult chewable tol, take him to your vet or an emer- uct, and/or unanticipated harmful vitamins gency animal hospital immediately, effects that you believe are related to • mouthwash Hartogensis advises. Because hypo- a product. • toothpaste glycemia and other serious adverse “Timely reporting of problems effects may not occur in some cases enables FDA to take prompt action,” Why is Xylitol Dangerous to Dogs, for up to 12 to 24 hours, your dog may Hartogensis says. Each report is but Not People? need to be monitored. evaluated to determine how serious In both people and dogs, the level (A note to cat owners: The toxicity the problem is and, if necessary, addi- of blood sugar is controlled by the of xylitol for cats has not been docu- tional information may be requested release of insulin from the pancreas. mented. They appear to be spared, from the person who filed the report. In people, xylitol does not stimu- at least in part, by their disdain for You can report problems related to late the release of insulin from the sweets.) both human and pet foods and treats pancreas. However, it’s different in at the Safety Reporting Portal (https:// canines: When dogs eat something What Can You Do to Avoid Xylitol www.safetyreporting.hhs.gov). containing xylitol, the xylitol is more Poisoning in Your Dog? quickly absorbed into the blood- “If you’re concerned about your dog stream, and may result in a potent eating a food or product with xylitol Find this and other Consumer release of insulin from the pancreas. in it, check the label of ingredients. Updates at www.fda.gov/ This rapid release of insulin may If it does, indeed, say that it contains ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates result in a rapid and profound xylitol, make sure your pet can’t get Sign up for free e-mail decrease in the level of blood sugar to it.” Hartogensis says. In addition: subscriptions at www.fda.gov/ (hypoglycemia), an effect that can • Keep products that contain xylitol consumer/consumerenews.html occur within 10 to 60 minutes of eat- (including those you don’t think ing the xylitol. Untreated, this hypo- of as food, such as toothpaste) glycemia can quickly be life-threat- well out of your dog’s reach. ening, Hartogensis says. Remember that some dogs are adept at counter surfing. Symptoms to Look For in • Only use pet toothpaste for pets, Your Dog never human toothpaste. Symptoms of xylitol poisoning in • If you give your dog nut butter dogs include vomiting, followed by as a treat or as a vehicle for pills, symptoms associated with the sudden check the label first to make sure lowering of your dog’s blood sugar, it doesn’t contain xylitol.

2 / FDA Consumer Health Information / U.S. Food and Drug Administration MAY 2016