Chocolate is a favorite sweet snack for most humans, but did you know that it is poisonous to dogs. Chocolate is extremely toxic to dogs because it contains theobromine and caffeine which can speed up a dogs heart rate and cause your dog to become ill or even worse.
Chocolate Is Poisonous To Dogs
While chocolate is poisonous to all dogs, the amount of chocolate has different effects on large and small dogs. A large dog would have to consume a lot more chocolate than a small dog before he would start feeling sick. Also, some chocolates are more toxic to dogs than others. The most toxic is cocoa, cooking chocolate and dark chocolate. Milk chocolate and white chocolate are also poisonous to dogs but both contain lower levels of theobromine and caffeine.
In most cases, a small amount of chocolate would only cause vomiting and/or diarrhea for a dog. However, large amounts of chocolate can cause seizures, a heart attack, internal bleeding, tremors and even death.
Call Your Vet
If your dog has eaten chocolate, call or visit your veterinarian immediately. You can also call the Pet Poison Helpline 24/7 at 855-764-7661 for assistance (a $59 fee applies).
Treatments
To treat chocolate poisoning, your veterinarian may only recommend monitoring your dog depending on the amount of chocolate ingested, the dog’s size and the type of chocolate ingested. In most cases, your vet will try to induce vomiting as a treatment as well as administer activated charcoal which helps remove the toxins from the body. For severe cases, other medications and IV fluids may be necessary.
To avoid chocolate poisoning, keep all chocolate out of reach of your dog and in a container that your dog cannot open. Also, teach your kid’s that chocolate is dangerous for dogs and don’t let them feed chocolate to your pet. If you are going to let your dog run in the yard, check your yard to make sure kids or storms haven’t dropped chocolate in the yard.
Do you have questions about your dog? While our professional dog walkers are not vets, they are very knowledgeable about dogs and can help assist you with your questions. We can also direct you to a vet to help you get your dog the treatments that he needs if he is experiencing any of the symptoms discussed in this article. TAILored Pet Services is here to help you! Give us a call at 425-923-7791 or visit our services pages to learn more about our dog walking and boarding services.
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