With Old Man Winter having arrived in most places, car owners will change or add to the antifreeze in their vehicles. It is also a common agent in Drains or septic tanks of mobile homes or RV’s.

The main ingredient in antifreeze is ethylene glycol, an extremely toxic and lethal poison that causes kidney failure which often leads to death in a few short days.

Antifreeze has a sweet taste that dogs and cats alike are attracted to. A medium sized dog can be killed after ingesting about 2 ounces (3-4 tablespoons ), for cats, as little as 1/4 of an ounce (1-2 teaspoons) can be fatal. More often than not, if they find antifreeze, they will drink it.

If you witness or suspect your dog of ingesting antifreeze, immediately notify your veterinarian, or rush your pet to an emergency vet hospital.

The earlier the treatment is administered, the better chance he animal has of survival. To prevent the ethylene glycol from being absorbed into the liver your veterinarian will administer an IV of ethanol to counter the affect of the deadly ethylene glycol. Once kidney failure develops, most will die.

The symptoms of antifreeze poisoning are time-dependant. They can appear as soon as 30 minutes after the antifreeze has been consumed and may last about 12 hours.

The first symptoms are: depressed behavior (laying still or a lack of interest in the surrounding environment); vomiting; staggering or unsteadiness; tremors or seizures; greatly increased thirst; and frequent urination.

After the early stage, the pet may seem to improve somewhat. However, in a day or two, things will get much worse as the kidney failure sets in. The amount of urine passed will dry up to very little, and at this point, the liver will have broken down the ethylene glycol into more toxic substances.

Further symptoms may not be as obvious, but the irreparable damage may already be occurring. Vomiting may reappear,, as well as loss of appetite, dehydration, the inability to urinate, extreme salivation, seizures, mouth ulcers, coma and eventually, death.

The diagnosis of antifreeze poisoning is made through the examination of blood and urine samples, although some of these tests become negative by the time kidney failure develops.

Pets who suffer kidney failure due to antifreeze poisoning can sometimes have their lives spared with aggressive treatment. Some veterinary practices offer dialysis, which can be used to remove waste not being removed by the damaged kidneys. The hope is that the dialysis will keep the animal alive long enough, and filter out enough toxins, to allow the kidneys to begin repairing themselves.

Unfortunately the kidney damage caused by antifreeze is usually very severe and irreversible. In rare cases, kidney transplants have been performed in dogs and cats but not all are good candidates for this type of surgery, and lack of donor organs is a problem.

When purchasing and using antifreeze, always keep the welfare and health of your pets and children at the top of mind. Keep both new and used antifreeze containers in a sealed location; thoroughly wipe any drips from the sides of the container before storing; properly dispose of all empty antifreeze containers and rags used for wiping; immediately clean up any antifreeze spills on driveways and other hard surfaces, inside or out; antifreeze should never be drained onto the ground where it can form a puddle; be ware of the other source of antifreeze, the decorative “snow globes” popular at Christmas time.

There are also several types of antifreeze on the market now that are propylene glycol based. Propylene glycol, although not entirely non-toxic, is considerably less toxic than the ethylene glycol based solutions. Always keep the safety of those you love on your mind, and you will be able to prevent virtually all serious accidents involving antifreeze or other toxic chemicals.