Chocolate Toxicity and Dogs

What’s a Deadly Dose and the Symptoms of Poisoning

© Mia Carter

Chocolate can be a deadly meal. , Morguefile.com
Chocolate can be a potentially deadly dessert for dogs, and the type of chocolate will in part determine what's a deadly dose.

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Chocolate is one of the most commonly known toxins affecting dogs. The toxic ingredient in chocolate is theobromine, and the content of theobromine contained in the chocolate depends on the type of chocolate; baker’s chocolate has the highest content of theobromine, semi-sweet chocolate has a moderate amount, while milk chocolate has the lowest content of theobromine.

What’s a Deadly Dose?

There is no set “toxic dose” when it comes to chocolate. There are certain factors that must be taken into consideration, including:

Generally speaking, there are a few basic formulas for determining what’s a toxic dose of chocolate.

Dr. Michael Levine, DVM, offered the following formula:

Following this formula, a toxic dose is 100 mgs. of chocolate per 1 kg. of body weight. Translated, this equates to the following formula:

What Should I Do if My Dog Eats Chocolate?

If it’s suspected that a pet has consumed chocolate, owners should immediately contact their veterinarian for advice.

“It takes about two hours for the stomach to empty entirely, so if the dog ate the chocolate within the past two hours, vomiting can be induced to bring up a portion of the potentially toxic meal,” Dr. Levine explained.

Unfortunately, even if vomiting is induced immediately after the chocolate is consumed, only between 40 and 70 percent of the chocolate can be brought up by inducing vomiting. Even less will come up as time elapses, as the chocolate will have left the stomach and moved on to the intestines.

Even if a dog does not consume a toxic dose of chocolate, the pet can still fall seriously ill due to the theobromine, combined with the fact that the dog often also consumes paper, plastic and foil wrappers/packaging.

Symptoms of Chocolate Toxicity

The toxins contained in chocolate affect the nervous and cardiovascular systems, among others. Symptoms can include:

Pets who ingest large amounts of chocolate often suffer serious gastrointestinal upset that can last for several days, so supportive care like nutritional supplementation and subcutaneous fluid injections, is often necessary.

Related Reading:

* Toxic Plants for Pets

* How to Induce Vomiting in Pets

* Toxic Foods for Pets


The copyright of the article Chocolate Toxicity and Dogs in Dogs is owned by Mia Carter. Permission to republish Chocolate Toxicity and Dogs in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.


Chocolate can be a deadly meal. , Morguefile.com
       



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