Spoiler alert! I survived and kicked xylitol’s pants!

Can’t believe it, but back in 2014… I almost died! But I knew it wasn’t my time to cross the rainbow bridge. I got so close to crossing it, but when Momma came to visit me in the puppy ICU, I knew what I needed to do. So when I was near the bridge I turned around and barked at the top of my lungs “NO, not today rainbow bridge! I’ve got so much more living to do, and Momma needs me!”

Like when I say she needs me, I mean who is going to protect her from life’s every day dangers? From tasting her food to make sure it’s not poisoned or just plain yucky, to laying on her lap to keep a small part of her leg protected from the cold, to barking at the leaves that fly by at a crazy speed. I mean one of those leaves could dive bomb her and take her eye out! Then there’s all the dogs taking their humans for walks or Steve the Squirrel that gives me the evil eye every time he runs across the power lines between yards!

But most of all I must absolutely protect her from this super sketchy guy that wears the same outfit every day and comes up to the door. I mean how sketchy is that? It’s the same outfit every day! Even I have different outfits.

Don’t you think thats kind of weird? He never changes! I mean, whats his deal? So I decided to fight like a BIG BAD POMERANIAN and kick the pants off the gum that almost took me out!

Here is the Story of My Scary Trip to the Vet

9 years ago, I was a little puppy. Like really little. But no, I mean big, too. Anyway, Dad went to go run some errands and me and Mille told him to go do his thing and we would entertain ourselves. We decided to practice being big bad Pomeranians and accidentally knocked down a weird little container and needed to see what was on the inside. It smelled minty and yummy, but dawg we were so wrong! Dead wrong!

Ice Breaker Cube Gum was in the container and one of the ingredients is called xylitol. It’s a common ingredient in a lot of sugarless gums, and now it’s even in some peanut butters. We didn’t know it until later, but xylitol is very toxic to dogs, especially 5 pounds of pure fluffy pants!

Dad got home and noticed I wasn’t acting like the big bad Pomeranian that you all know and love today. I won’t get into the yucky details… but let me tell you… Dad quickly figured out I wasn’t feeling good because I tossed my cookies all over the house and it smelled like peppermint! *To this day, Dad gets nauseous when he smells peppermint*

Dad knew he needed to act fast, so we jumped in the car and were off to the BluePearl Pet Hospital (back then it was called the Fox Valley Animal Referral Center). Mille came along, too, but she wasn’t showing signs like me. She probably ate like 6 pieces to my maybe half piece, or maybe I just licked it!

At the Emergency Vet

When the Vet started to examine me and explain to Dad what they were worried about, I could tell Dada was getting super scared. I tried to stay strong, but between you and me… I was super scared) but I knew I was in good paws with the amazing people at the Referral Center. They took such great care of me!

They told Dad that it was going to cost quite a bit for the care they needed to give to me to save my life. Dad didn’t hesitate when he said “do whatever you need to do to save his life, we have pet insurance” The relief on everyone’s faces helped keep me calm. The Vet even said that not many people know about pet insurance and the talk doesn’t always end the way our talk did. Not another word was spoke and they got down to saving my life!

The xylitol I ate is super toxic and the Vet was worried that my kidneys or liver would shut down, so they monitored me super closely! Later Dad told me that the Vet said I had a 50/50 chance of living through the first night. But like I said at the beginning of my story, I was not ready to go cross that rainbow bridge, so I told the doctors “Let’s kick this in the pants and get me better!”

Every few hours they would check on me and make sure I was comfortable and see if I needed anything. I asked for ear scratches and popcorn, but they said no to the popcorn, something about only being able to eat bland nummies. They weren’t even very nummy. I told them okay, but Momma would make me the biggest bowl of popcorn when I got home! Side note, Momma totally did make me that HUGE bowl of my favorite nummies!

After the First Night

I made it through the first night, but still had to stay at the puppy ICU for almost a week. Dad came to visit me every day, but Momma had to work at two jobs so she couldn’t come see me as often as Dad did. When he was with me, I made sure Dad sent a pic to Momma to show how brave and strong I was doing!

It was a scary time for everyone, especially me! They made me stay at a place I didn’t know, poked and prodded me, took my blood to check my liver and kidney levels and they made me wear the CONE OF SHAME!!! But I knew I needed my mom and she needed me more, so I pulled all the strength I could and got better!

About a year later (or maybe 4 or 5 days, woof I’m a dog, I can’t tell time) I got to go home. As soon as we walked in the door, Mille came to give me a good sniff and like the best big sister she is, she never left my side. We snuggled for hours, if not DAYS. Or maybe it was years. Woof!

This is not an ad by any means, but if you want to have peace of mind to not have to make the decision of life and death because of medical bills, go check out pet insurance.

So to all my dawgs out there, make sure you hug your loved ones tonight! Life is too short, so don’t forget to smell the roses.

But don’t eat gum! Like, seriously stay away from the gum cause it could kill you!