A CAUTIONARY TALE

While her owners were busy with holiday festivities, Duchess went counter surfing.

Last year, the 2½-year-old Great Dane stood up against the kitchen counter, grabbed a package of Ice Breakers gum and ate 42 pieces. Amanda Kubarek immediately called her sister, Marni Lind, for advice. Lind, who manages the boarding facility at Superior Animal Hospital, said the gum contains xylitol, and they needed to get the dog to the clinic as quickly as possible.

Duchess arrived at the animal hospital about 45 minutes later, and she was already showing signs of liver failure.

“Duchess is probably 95 pounds,” Lind said. If she had been a smaller dog, “there wouldn’t have been enough time. She ended up spending two days in the emergency clinic being hospitalized.”

Today, Duchess is healthy and happy, and still counter surfs every chance she gets.

“The children all know that everything has to be out of the dog’s reach,” Lind said. “They had a family discussion about that. They all love her, so of course they are trying to be much more careful. Things need to stay out of reach.”

“Corncobs are the perfect intestinal stopper. Owners think: ‘I’ll give this to my dog, and he can chew on it. It will be good for his teeth.’ But corncobs are just the right size; they are high causes of intestinal obstructions. Don’t feed your dogs corncobs.”

— Dr. Pop