I'm sure you get this question a lot, but I want to know more about chocolate and dogs. My Labrador ate a couple of Hershey's Kisses so I called the veterinarian and he said to watch her but such a little amount of chocolate wouldn't hurt her. She weighs 80 pounds. He also said milk chocolate isn't as bad as dark chocolate, but just to be safe and keep her out of all chocolate. I'm curious now about why some chocolate is OK and some isn't.
When it comes to chocolate, the issue can be confusing when you consider all the different types of chocolate -- milk, dark, unsweetened, semi-sweet and white -- so it is one that comes up fairly often.
The Animal Poison Control Center of the American Association for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (̶p̶e̶t̶p̶o̶i̶s̶o̶n̶h̶e̶l̶p̶l̶i̶n̶e̶.̶c̶o̶m̶)̶ (aspca.org/apcc.)* says chocolate contains substances known as methylxanthines -- primarily caffeine and theobromine -- that can sicken or kill a dog. How much is too much depends on the size and overall health of your dog as well as the amount of methylxanthines he eats, which is why you get what seems to be conflicting or confusing information about chocolate and dogs.
The rule of thumb to keep in mind is that the darker and more bitter the chocolate, the higher the risk of poisoning. Unsweetened baker's chocolate contains the highest amount of methylxanthines, while white chocolate contains the least. White chocolate, by the way, is merely a "chocolate derivative" because it contains an insignificant amount of methylxanthines; the ingredient that gives it a chocolate designation is cocoa butter instead of cacao beans, vetmedicine.about.com explains.
When comparing milk chocolate to dark chocolate, unsweetened baker's chocolate has about eight to 10 times the amount of theobromine as found in the equivalent amount of milk chocolate. Semisweet chocolate falls somewhere between the two varieties.
You don't have to remember all of this on your own, however. PetMD.com has a handy Dog Chocolate Toxicity Meter at tinyurl.com/ojbrtkf where you can enter your dog's weight, type of chocolate and the amount eaten. The meter then reveals how harmful that amount of chocolate could be. If an 80-pound dog were to eat a 3.5-ounce bar of dark chocolate, for example, the possibility of poisoning would be very mild. But if a dog eats the same amount of cocoa powder, the level of toxicity rises to severe. White chocolate, on the other hand, poses no danger whether the dog weighs 10 pounds or 80 pounds, according to the meter. Semisweet chocolate hits the level of very mild risk for a large dog and severe for a smaller one.
My 10-pound dog once ate about two-thirds of a candy bar that was 85 percent cocoa, which is extremely dark chocolate. Entering that data into the meter reveals that she was at severe risk of poisoning. When the incident occurred, I didn't have a meter to check but I knew that chocolate was bad for dogs so I called her veterinarian immediately. He recommended that I give her hydrogen peroxide to purge her system of the chocolate. The peroxide worked almost instantly and she didn't seem to suffer any ill effects. Since I had caught her in the act of eating, her system hadn't absorbed any of the toxins.
When it comes to dogs and chocolate, owners don't always know how much the dog ate or even when he ate it. Calling a veterinarian if you suspect the dog has gotten into chocolate is always a good idea. The vet can tell you if it's something you can handle yourself or if the situation requires a trip to the animal hospital. If you can't reach your veterinarian, the pet poison control helpline, (855) 764-7661, is available round the clock. The service costs $49 per incident.
Family on 09/02/2015
*CORRECTION: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals' website with information on pet poisonings is aspca.org/apcc. The wrong website was given.