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We have had our hands full and had MANY trips to the vet with our very adorable and VERY naughty miniature wiener dog, Millie. She has eaten an entire pack of sugar-free gum, an entire corn cobb, a tube of Desitin, a bag of popcorn… I could go on. My good friend, Dr Katherine Conlon, is a vet, has seen it all, and generously offered to break down one of the most common and toxic foods our furry BFFs ingest: Chocolate. I hope you learn something helpful and I encourage you all to put the Pet Poison Hotline in your phone, just in case!!

-Traci Clark, PoppieLady

Guest Article by Dr Katherine Conlon

Chocolate is a staple in most households, but is incredibly toxic to dogs when ingested. The severity of symptoms is based on the type of chocolate eaten, amount eaten, the weight of the dog and how long ago the chocolate was eaten. Milk chocolate is the least toxic and baker’s chocolate and unsweetened cocoa powder are the most toxic (the darker and less sweet, the more toxic). Chocolate contains chemicals called methylxanthines (theobromine and caffeine). These chemicals are in higher amounts in darker chocolate so a dog does not need to eat as much baker’s chocolate as milk chocolate to become sick.

A 20 pound dog needs to eat 9 ounces of milk chocolate to potentially have severe signs of toxicity but only needs 0.75 ounce of unsweetened cocoa powder or 1.25 ounces of baker’s chocolate to have the same symptoms. A regular milk chocolate Hershey’s bar is 1.55 ounces.

(For small dog people, that means a 10 pound dog needs 4.5 oz. milk chocolate, 0.37 oz. of unsweetened cocoa powder, or 0.62 oz. of baker’s chocolate to have severe signs of toxicity)

Chocolate ingestion can cause vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, high heart rate, arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythm), tremors, seizures and death, although the more severe symptoms are rare in pets that are decontaminated and treated quickly.

Other considerations after chocolate ingestion include if the dog has any other medical issues, if the dog ate the wrappers that could cause an intestinal obstruction or if there were other items in the chocolate like raisins (can cause kidney failure), xylitol (a sugar free sweetener that can cause low blood sugar or liver failure), coffee or espresso beans (also contain methylxanthines) or macadamia nuts (can cause vomiting, weakness, tremors).

If your dog eats chocolate, the safest thing is to bring your pet to your veterinarian’s office immediately. If that is not possible, you can call your family veterinarian’s office, your local veterinary emergency clinic or one of the national pet poison helplines (ASPCA is 888-426-4435 and the pet poison help line is 855-764-7661). If you call the national helpline, there is a fee; however, the helpline will be able to specifically advise what to do and will give you a case number so if you are instructed to bring your dog to a veterinarian’s office, bring the case number so they can call to get further advice if needed. When in doubt, the best thing to do after your dog eats chocolate is to bring your dog to the veterinarian immediately rather than trying to call for advice. Often an owner does not know how much chocolate a dog has eaten – we always base recommendations on the largest amount that he could have eaten.

• Time is of the essence – if you know your dog ate chocolate, bring him to the veterinarian as soon as possible so we can start decontamination. You do not want to wait for your pet to have symptoms of chocolate toxicity. It is better to treat before the onset of symptoms as early treatment can prevent toxicity!

• If possible, bring wrappers or the box/bottle with you when you go to your veterinarian’s office.

• In most cases, the first thing we will do is induce vomiting with an injectable medication called Apomorphine; however, depending on when your dog ate chocolate and your dog’s condition, this may not be possible (if your dog has already been vomiting at home, we will not induce vomiting. If your dog is seizing or has a decreased mentation, we would not likely induce vomiting for fear that your dog could aspirate (when vomit goes down into the lungs can can cause pneumonia [lung infection]).

• After the initial assessment and/or making your pet vomit, depending on how much and the type of chocolate eaten, your dog’s symptoms and when your dog ate the chocolate, we will recommend either outpatient treatment (giving your dog medications and sending him home) or hospitalization.

Has your pet eaten something else that might be toxic? You can call the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center for a toxicity assessment and they will instruct you if you need to bring your vet into the vet (or emergency vet). A phone consultation fee does apply 888-426-4435 (Save that number in your phone!). They are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Here is more information on common household toxins for animals, including plants and food.

DISCLAIMER

The content of this page is not veterinary advice. A number of factors (amount of substance ingested, size of the animal, allergies, etc.) determine what is toxic to a particular pet. If you think your pet has eaten something potentially toxic, call an animal poison helpline or seek immediate veterinary treatment.