As a dog owner, you need to do whatever is in your power to ensure your dog grows old gracefully and enjoys a long and healthy lifespan. You buy premium commercial dog food and ensure that it gets plenty of exercise, so how could something like chocolate be potentially dangerous for dogs? Knowing how much chocolate is dangerous for a dog is more about health than weight gain or anything like that. Chocolate is considered dangerous for dogs because it contains caffeine and theobromine.
Chocolate is one of the most dangerous foods for pets. Because dogs are not able to process theobromine, a compound found in cocoa beans, they can become very sick or even die from eating chocolate.
The amount of chocolate that can be harmful to your pet depends on his size and weight, as well as how much he has eaten. Generally speaking, a small (1-pound) dog can eat up to 1 ounce of chocolate without experiencing any adverse effects; however, it’s best to keep them away from all types of candy and chocolate altogether.
If you suspect that your dog has eaten chocolate, call your veterinarian immediately.
How much chocolate is dangerous for a dog
Theobromine is toxic to dogs, and the signs can be scary.
Theobromine is a stimulant found in chocolate, and it’s toxic to dogs. Theobromine is not toxic to humans, but it can be dangerous for your dog. Theobromine is more toxic to dogs than humans—a smaller amount of theobromine in an animal like a dog can be more dangerous than a larger amount in an adult human.
Vomiting, diarrhea and dehydration are the most common signs of theobromine poisoning.
Vomiting and diarrhea are the most common signs of theobromine poisoning. Dehydration, which can be caused by diarrhea, is one of the most serious complications of chocolate toxicity in dogs. In addition to vomiting and diarrhea, other symptoms include muscle twitching and tremors or hyperactivity in some dogs; increased heart rate in others; panting (excessive panting can be a sign of pain); irregular heart rhythms that may lead to an abnormal electrocardiogram (ECG), or even death.
Severely affected dogs might also have tremors or muscle twitches.
Severely affected dogs might also have tremors or muscle twitches.
Some dogs with chocolate poisoning develop a condition called Heinz body anemia, where red blood cells clump together.
If your dog shows any signs of chocolate poisoning, you should take him to the vet immediately for treatment. In many cases, the treatment for chocolate ingestion is similar to that for other types of poisoning: make sure your dog gets plenty of fluids so that he doesn’t get dehydrated from vomiting and diarrhea, give him activated charcoal if it’s available (and only under veterinary supervision), and keep him calm and quiet so he doesn’t cause further damage if his muscles are spasming.
If your dog has eaten chocolate, you should induce vomiting.
If your dog has eaten chocolate, you should induce vomiting. This will help to remove any remaining toxins.
- Milk chocolate: 0.9-1.7 mg/ounce (30-50 mg/kg)
- Semisweet chocolate: 0.5-1.2 mg/ounce (20-40 mg/kg)
- Baking chocolate: 0.3-0.8 mg/ounce (10-30 mg/kg)
Even if your dog hasn’t actually eaten any chocolate, you need to get him to a veterinarian.
Even if your dog hasn’t actually eaten any chocolate, you need to get him to a veterinarian. The vet will want to check for signs of theobromine poisoning and make sure your dog is hydrated. They might also want to do blood tests, which can help them determine if your pup needs any treatment.
How much chocolate is bad for a dog? It can vary greatly from dog to dog.
How much chocolate is dangerous to a dog? It depends.
While the average amount of milk chocolate that can be toxic to a 10-pound dog is 1 ounce (28 grams) per pound of body weight, it’s not uncommon for dogs to accidentally eat much larger amounts before they realize what’s happening. A 50-pound dog like a Labrador Retriever consuming two ounces of milk chocolate would only need to ingest about 2% of his body weight in order for him to develop signs of toxicity—and this is just one species out of dozens!
Dogs who ingest chocolate may develop vomiting and diarrhea, panting, excessive thirst and urination, hyperactivity, abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia), tremors, seizures and even death. The severity of these signs depends on several factors:
All forms of chocolate contain theobromine.
Theobromine is a chemical compound that occurs naturally in cocoa beans and cocoa powder. It’s also found in chocolate products such as milk chocolate, dark chocolate, baking chocolates and white chocolate. Chocolate toxicity in dogs can occur when a dog eats a large amount of chocolate at one time or regularly consumes small amounts over time.
Theobromine is toxic to dogs because they process it differently than humans do. Unlike humans who break down theobromine using an enzyme called fumarate reductase, dogs lack this enzyme and cannot metabolize theobromine as quickly as we do. As such, their bodies are unable to remove the drug from their system as easily as ours do on average!
Unsweetened baking chocolate is the most dangerous form of chocolate for dogs.
Unsweetened baking chocolate is the most dangerous form for dogs. White chocolate, on the other hand, contains so little theobromine that it’s not even considered harmful to dogs. This doesn’t mean you should feed your dog a bar of white chocolate every day—just don’t worry about it if Fido gets into your small stash now and then.
The amount of theobromine in various chocolates varies widely by type: unsweetened baking chocolate has around 600 mg per 1 ounce (28 g), bittersweet has 42–350 mg per 1 ounce (28 g), semisweet has 24–120 mg per 1 ounce (28 g), milk chocolate has 3–35 mg per 1 ounce (28 g), and white chocolate has 0–5 mg per 1 ounce (28 g). Keep in mind that these values are for 100 grams or about 3.5 ounces; the exact amount in an individual piece will vary depending on its size and weight from different brands, but you can use this information as a rough guide when choosing which types to avoid feeding your dog.
According to the American Kennel Club, Theobromine is 10 times more poisonous to dogs than caffeine.
Theobromine is a stimulant, meaning that it can have adverse effects on your dog’s heart rate and blood pressure. Theobromine also has diuretic properties, meaning that it increases the amount of urine produced by your dog. As a result, dogs who consume large amounts of chocolate may experience dehydration and even develop kidney failure.
Fortunately for lovers of chocolate everywhere, most people don’t eat enough cocoa powder or beans to cause their pets serious harm—but they should still be careful not to feed their dogs any amount of chocolate at all.