Halloween and the Holidays are coming up quickly. That means we'll be stocking up on chocolate for baking, or treats for Trick or Treaters. Make sure to keep these goodies away from curious pets. They love the smell and taste of chocolate, just like we do!!! (I know I do.) They will gorge themselves if given the opportunity.
The main ingredient of chocolate is cocoa, which contains theobromine and caffeine. These substances, depending on the amount ingested, can cause gastrointestinal upset, hyperexcitability, rapid heart rate and, in the worst cases, seizures and death.
Milk chocolate contains a lot of sugar and milk along with cocoa butter, whereas semisweet and baking chocolate have a higher concentration of cocoa. The more cocoa the chocolate contains, the smaller the amount that is needed to cause symptoms. The size of the pet matters, too. A smaller pet eating the same amount of chocolate as a larger one is more likely to become ill.
So, what do you do if you catch Fido with a chocolate grin, and shredded chocolate wrappers all over the floor? A visit to the veterinarian is necessary. We will induce vomitting to retrieve as much of the chocolate (and wrappers) as possible. A stomach coating agent will be administered to minimize absorbtion of the remaining cocoa, and then we will monitor for, and treat toxicity symptoms if they occur.
Another note -- "cocoa mulch", made from shredded cocoa bean shells, has caused toxicity when ingested by pets. It's best not to use this product where pets have access, as the cocoa smell is very tempting.
So, keep the chocolate for yourself, even if they beg !!!!
