My dog licked antifreeze.
Minutes matter.
Ethylene glycol antifreeze tastes sweet, and the lethal amount is small: a few tablespoons for a medium dog, a teaspoon-scale exposure for a cat. The antidote is real but the window is hours.
Published guidance treats any suspected ethylene glycol exposure as an immediate emergency because the antidote (fomepizole, or ethanol where unavailable) only works before the body converts the glycol into the acids that destroy the kidneys. That conversion is underway within hours: the effective window is commonly cited as under 8-12 hours for dogs and as little as 3 hours for cats. A garage puddle lick you merely suspect is still worth the trip; the confirmatory test is cheap compared with kidney failure.
Pet Poison Helpline · 855-764-7661 ASPCA Poison Control · 888-426-4435The three-stage timeline
Stage 1 (30 min-12 h): wobbly, "drunk", extreme thirst, vomiting. Stage 2 (12-24 h): the false recovery, the dog looks better while the heart and lungs strain and the kidneys begin to fail. Stage 3 (24-72 h in dogs, 12-24 h in cats): kidney failure: no urine, collapse. Owners who wait through stage 2 arrive in stage 3.
Where exposures actually happen
Radiator drips and flushes, winterized toilets in cabins and RVs, snow-globe leaks (many contain ethylene glycol), and licked paws after walking through a garage puddle. "Pet-safer" propylene-glycol antifreeze is far less toxic but still worth a call, especially in large amounts.
What NOT to do
Do not wait for symptoms or through an apparent recovery. Do not induce vomiting without direction. Do not dose ethanol at home from internet recipes; the margin between antidote and poisoning is a hospital calculation.