SUBWAY AVIAN FLU IS NO AD
Penni’s Sugar-Free Scare A Poisonous Pick
Hello to my cat comrades and friendly human readers! June marks the official start of summer, which is exciting for me and other pets. Unfortunately, there’s a risk that having too much fun this season could get us very sick. Not too long ago, some feline friends of mine warned me that a predominantly outdoor domestic cat in Hamilton County tested positive for H5N1 HPAI, otherwise known as avian influenza or bird flu. Never one to just believe rumors (especially since cats can be, well, catty with their gossip), I sought out some information from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. (If you think that name is a mouthful, just imagine what it was like for me to type it all into Google somehow!) I uncovered many facts and suggestions to help your cats and dogs stay safe this summer.
Penni is a sweet 7-year-old mountain cur mix whose owner contacted Petersen Pet Hospital after coming home to discover that she had eaten an entire package of Ice Breakers gum. After a quick product search, Dr. Conrad determined that the gum contained xylitol. Penni’s owner was instructed to bring her in immediately. Xylitol is a sugar substitute that is toxic to dogs. It causes hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) and liver injury, which can lead to seizures, coma, liver failure, and death. Xylitol is often found in reduced-sugar or sugar-free gum, candies, breath mints, baked goods, pudding snacks, peanut butter, over-the-counter and prescription medications, toothpaste, and many other products. Once Penni arrived at Petersen Pet Hospital, Dr. Conrad performed a thorough exam.
Thankfully, Penni was not yet exhibiting signs of toxicity. Dr. Conrad and her team then gave Penni medicine to induce vomiting. She vomited many pieces of gum, but since they were chewed up, it was difficult to determine if all the gum was removed. Additionally, since her owners weren’t home when she ingested it, they didn’t know how long the gum had been in her stomach. This meant she may have absorbed some of the xylitol before the gum was vomited out. It was decided to keep her in the hospital to start her on IV fluids and run bloodwork to monitor for subclinical changes. While Penni’s blood sugar was normal, one of her liver values was starting to increase. She also had concerning electrolyte abnormalities, indicating that she had absorbed too much of the xylitol. Dr. Conrad recommended that Penni be
First, pet owners should discourage their animal companions from hunting, killing, and eating wildlife of any kind. Keep us away from potentially diseased wild birds or animals, particularly livestock and dairy cattle. Don’t feed us raw, undercooked, unpasteurized, frozen, or freeze-dried milk, eggs,
meat, or organs, and always cook our food at the proper temperature. If you interact with livestock, please wash
transferred to BluePearl Hospital for 24-hour
treatment and monitoring. She responded
well to her treatments and was able to be released with a liver supplement a couple days later.
A week later, Penni returned to Petersen Pet Hospital for a follow-up exam and bloodwork. She did great on the exam, and her bloodwork revealed that all her values had normalized and she had fully recovered from her xylitol toxicity. Penni’s owners did a great job of getting her veterinary attention quickly, which prevented her from developing much more serious symptoms from which she may not have recovered. Penni’s experience reminds all pet parents that it’s always important to seek veterinary advice whenever an animal companion ingests something not intended for them. —Dr. Justina Conrad
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