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My puppy swallowed hard candy. Should I be worried about xylitol?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

My 9 week old lab puppy got ahold of a hard candy and swallowed it whole. Do I need to be concerned? Or can she digest it?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on January 4th, 2017

It is likely this hard candy will be broken down in her stomach by the stomach acid, but the sugar from it may give her a tummy ache. I would check the ingredients of the hard candy to make sure there is no xylitol in it. That's because xylitol is highly toxic to dogs, and if it does have that ingredient, she will need to see a vet immediately. Xylitol ingestion can be fatal. Otherwise, she should be fine aside from the chance of GI upset in the form of vomiting and/or diarrhea. Should you see that, withhold food for 12-24 hours, then feed a bland diet of boiled white meat chicken (no bones) and white rice in small amounts several times a day for a couple of days. Then slowly add back in her normal diet.

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