Fda Issues Warning To Dog Owners About The Dangers Of Xylitol

[LTS3]

Paws Off Xylitol; It's Dangerous for Dogs

The FDA warning also says that xylitol is not toxic to cats but it's on the ASPCA's list of toxic things for pets. Best to be cautious and keep xylitol away from cats, too.

 

[Willowy]

Yeah, they're starting to use it in a lot of things now so the danger is getting worse.

Cats don't usually eat a lot of nonsense like dogs do, so even if it is toxic to them they aren't as likely to be affected. I've never heard of a cat who scarfed down a pack of gum or a tube of toothpaste!

 

[Kflowers]

I think that they put it in some peanut butter. I know some cats like peanut butter. It really seems as though you have to read the ingredients on everything every time you buy it. If I find a product I have used in the past is adding it, I write a letter to company that I won't be buying their product again until they stop using it. So far no one's impressed.

I did tell the company we get the cat's food from that the first thing I did was empty the food out of the death traps they package it in. The email receiver said she would mention it to the board.

 

[Willowy]

I did tell the company we get the cat's food from that the first thing I did was empty the food out of the death traps they package it in.

How is the food packaged? I'm thinking of 6-pack rings (evil things) but I've never seen cat food in that kind of packaging. My grandma's cat (who now lives with my mom) was originally a feral that got thoroughly stuck in a 6-pack ring, so we had to trap her to get it off, plus took the chance to spay and vaccinate her too. So I don't like them and always make sure to cut them into a bunch of small pieces whenever I encounter one.

I don't think manufacturers need to stop making food with xylitol. Some people do need sugar-free foods, and at least it's natural. And it has some cavity-fighting properties too. Lots of things are toxic to pets. But I wish they'd label it more clearly. Nice big letters "now with xylitol!" and a disclaimer on the label saying it's toxic to pets would be nice.

 

[Kflowers]

Food is packaged in the same material that's used for chips and other snacks that will form a suction around a dog or cat's head if they stick it inside the package. I haven't seen anyone talking about it with pet food but there are posts about being certain you keep the chip packaging away from pets and cut it into stripes. The pet food company said they use the packaging to keep the food really fresh. As soon as it arrives I divide it into sealable sandwich bags, which the company said wouldn't keep it as fresh as their bags. Don't care, super fresh food is no use to a dead pet.

Will let you know if anything happens with the company but I'm not
expecting much.

Other foods our cat won't throw up have the same packaging.

 

[Willowy]

Oh, yikes, I remember that. And for a while I was tearing up my chip bags. But I've forgotten and was just throwing them away whole. Thanks for the reminder!

 

[Kflowers]

Xylitol poisonings up by 108% in the last five years.

"
National Poison Prevention Week is the third full week of March every year, or March 21-27, 2021. Pet Poison Helpline chose to highlight the dangers of xylitol during this annual educational campaign due to the staggering number of products using this popular sugar substitute. In addition to candy and other sweets, xylitol is now being used in peanut butter, nasal sprays, sleep aids, shampoo, deodorant, multivitamins, prescription sedatives and medications, antacids, stool softeners, make-up remover, smoking cessation gums and much, much more."

More at link -

Xylitol Now Found in Hundreds of Products From Peanut Butter to Shampoo - The Dogington Post

“This post contains affiliate links, and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.” Many people are cutting back on sugar, which has led to an enormous increase in the number of products that contain xylitol, a lower-calorie sugar substitute with a low glycemic...

www.dogingtonpost.com

 

[Kflowers]

Some pharmaceutical companies are now substituting Xylitol for sugar in gabapentin. be sure to check before you give it to your pet. It is also dangerous for cats.

Meds to Manage Seizures in Cats

Get information about managing the medications that are used to treat seizures and epilepsy in felines.

www.thesprucepets.com

Gabapentin For Dogs: Uses, Side Effects, Dosage & More

Many vets prescribe gabapentin to treat chronic pain and seizures. But is this human medication really safe for dogs?

www.caninejournal.com

 

[fionasmom]

K Kflowers that happened years ago to a Dalmatian who belonged to a friend of my husband. They brought the dog home from being fixed, wearing a cone. That night when the owner finished his usual bag of chips that he ate while watching TV, he left it on the sofa. The dog got it during the night, inserted his head, and suffocated.

 

[Kflowers]

I've complained to many pet food companies, okay, if I can find their chat line or email addy, I complain to them about this. Putting the pet food in the fatal trap is wrong on so many levels. Their response is they have no trouble, keep the bags away from the pets and seal them up again. Right, that works. Long before these 'super wonderful killer bags' our year old kitten, and his older friends, pulled the cat food bag out of the cabinet and ripped it open. In the morning we found the kitten asleep in the bag. Completely well, and safe, if over fed, because the companies weren't totally into pr screw you at the time.


It's bad enough that the human snack food people don't care, that the pet food people don't is beyond words. Yes, I know the first thought is why would they kill their customers, but the answer is cold. They know most people who own pets will get another after their pet dies and there is an endless supply of homeless cats, dogs, and others. So, they have nothing to lose if your pet dies. Particularly, if it is something they are all doing. Packaging fixing, not unlike price fixing.