How to Poison Your Dog

Dog owners, take note.

With fewer calories than sugar, Xylitol is a natural sweetener that is harmless to humans but deadly to dogs. It's used in sugar-free gum, breath mints, muffins, candy, Jell-O, ice cream and other products.

Dogs metabolize xylitol differently from humans.

[Xylitol] can send canine blood sugar plummeting to life-threatening lows in just minutes, followed within 12 to 24 hours by liver failure, which is often fatal. In fact, it's so deadly that as few as three pieces of xylitol-sweetened sugar-free gum can kill a 20-pound dog.

Because dogs love sweets and can sniff out food better than almost any other mammal, dogs owners need to be extremely careful to keep xylitol out of dogs' reach.

Cats, reportedly are not affected by xylitol. Ferrets and rabbits, maybe. In any event, check all labels.