Your vet might make your dog throw it all up.
If not too much time has passed since your dog ingested the chocolate, the vet might induce vomiting to get as much out as possible, then administer activated charcoal, which absorbs the toxins so they can be expelled from the body. “The patient will typically be given intravenous fluid therapy at a fairly high rate to try to increase the rapidity of the elimination of the chocolate,” Dr. Fausel explains.
Take-home message: • Chocolate is poisonous to dogs mostly because of its theobromine content, which dogs are unable to metabolize effectively. •The amount of chocolate a dog can eat without showing symptoms varies drastically with their weight • If your dog eats chocolate, you should monitor them closely and seek veterinary attention if they show any symptoms, or if they are very young, pregnant or have other health concerns.
According to the ASPCA mild effects of theobromine poisoning can be seen at a dose of 20 mg/kg. Severe signs begin at about 40 mg/kg and seizures can begin at 60 mg/kg. A median lethal dose (LD50) is the dose of a toxin required to kill half of a sample population. It’s a common way of measuring a lethal dose of a substance in toxicological research, and for theobromine, the LD50 is 100-200 mg/kg.
If you ask a dog owner what dogs cannot eat, they’ll list some foods like onions, garlic, rhubarb, grapes and chocolate. (As an aside, if they say grains, don’t listen to them.) Dogs inability to safely consume chocolate is common knowledge, but thanks to their proclivity for eating anything they can get their mouths on, many dogs are nonetheless treated for ingesting chocolate every year.
Next, a vet will administer activated charcoal, a finely powdered material capable of binding a variety of drugs and chemicals. Activated charcoal is most effective if given immediately after ingestion of the toxin and is usually given by mixing it with wet dog food (beware: it will turn your dog’s poop black). In some cases, repeat administrations of charcoal are necessary, but in others, just one dose will do it.
As it turns out, cats are actually more susceptible to theobromine poisoning than dogs, but we don’t ever hear about a cat getting sick from eating chocolate. Why is that?
What Happens if a Dog Eats Chocolate?
It depends on your dogs size and how much chocolate theyve consumed.
If you have a medium or large dog who consumes only a small amount of chocolate, then you may only notice signs associated with an upset stomach, such as vomiting or diarrhea.
But if your dog consumes a large amount of chocolate or if you have a small dog who consumes chocolate, then they may develop the following signs of chocolate toxicity:
These signs are usually proceeded by an onset of extreme excitement.
Why Can’t Dogs Eat Chocolate?
Most of us have heard that chocolate is not good for dogs, but just how bad is it? And what happens if dogs eat chocolate? It actually depends on how much and what type of chocolate a dog eats. (Yes, some types of chocolate are actually worse for dogs than others.) Read on to find out everything you need to know about dogs and chocolate toxicity.