A Corpach resident has started a petition calling for changes to the ingredients used in antifreeze after her six-year-old springer spaniel died from a suspected accidental poisoning.
Fiona Campbell, whose dog Lexi was put to sleep on September 18, is asking that manufacturers either replace the sweet tasting toxin ethylene glycol in the product’s formula, or add a bitterant to help dissuade pets and children from drinking the liquid.
The petition has gathered over 10,000 signatures in its first two weeks.
Lexi died three days after she is believed to have ingested antifreeze during her usual walk beside the Caledonian Canal on the afternoon of Friday September 15. The dog had briefly left Fiona’s side to investigate a container collecting fluid from a leaking generator.
“I didn’t really think too much of it at the time – I came home and she was fine,” Fiona said of the incident.
“But I heard her getting up in the middle of the night and drinking a lot of water, and I was like ‘that’s unusual’.
“She got back onto her wee throw on the bed and she was sick. I tidied it all up and put her back down.”
Symptoms of ethylene glycol poisoning initially present similar to being intoxicated, including loss of balance and vomiting. Although victims may briefly appear to recover, as the body breaks down the compound it produces toxic acids that lead to kidney failure.
Fiona describes such problems striking Lexi.
“The next morning it was like she was drunk. She couldn’t coordinate, she kept falling over, so I took her to the vet and said I think she might have eaten something. They gave her some charcoal and things. They were great.
“Later on she seemed to get a little bit better, so I was like ‘come get some chicken’. She jumped down off the couch, came through to the kitchen, and she just had this seizure.”
Bloodwork taken by the vet showed extremely high levels of creatinine, a sign that the animal’s kidneys were struggling.
By Monday, Lexi’s kidneys had failed, leading to her being put to sleep.
The dangers of antifreeze are not restricted to pets.
“There have been a lot of people messaging me about humans being poisoned by this stuff,” Fiona said about the reaction after starting the petition.
“There was a girl who messaged me who said somebody was poisoning her over a period of years. She had 100 admittances to the hospital.
“There have been people spiked in nightclubs from it because it is kind of like you are drunk. Addicts will drink it voluntarily. They will end up with permanent kidney damage.
“And none of this could happen if it didn’t taste sweet.”
Some areas of the world have already enforced the use of bitterants in antifreeze. The US state of Oregon passed this into law as long ago as 1995.
However no law currently exists in the UK.
A petition started in 2012 reached 47,000 signatures. However, petitions need 100,000 signatures to ensure a debate in parliament.
Fiona’s petition is just starting, but she hopes it can be the catalyst for change.
“People can sign it, they can share it to everybody they can possibly think of, every outlet they can on social media, on text, on email. It can be signed pretty much anywhere in the world.
“I just want them to add something, something to make it mandatory for these companies that manufacture it to add something to make it taste unpalatable to dogs, cats and humans.
“It is not a big ask. It really isn’t.”
Fiona’s petition can be found at www.change.org/p/safer-antifreeze-for-our-beloved-pets.