Skip the Chocolate - or Why Chocolate is Really Bad for Your Dog and Cat

If you're a pet owner like me, you love chocolate, but you've heard chocolate is bad for your pet. If you're savvy, you probably know that something called theobromine is responsible for chocolate's toxicity, but beyond that, you're not particularly sure why. I'm going to explain what's in chocolate that's so bad and why you can gorge on that pound of chocolates with not much more than a sugar and caffeine buzz (not to mention gaining ten pounds) while your pet may get very sick or die.

Chocolate carries two nasty things that pets are particularly sensitive to. One is caffeine (like in your coffee) and the other is theobromine. Humans handle caffeine remarkably well (some can't even live without it), whereas pets don't process caffeine well. Theobromine, the sister to caffeine, is metabolized slowly in dogs and cats, making it dangerous for any pet to ingest. You, on the other hand, are bigger than your pet and can metabolize it easily, thus chocolate isn't dangerous to you.

The first signs of theobromine poisoning are diarrhea, nausea, increased drinking and vomiting. This can progress to seizures, tremors, rapid irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, hyperactivity, respiratory failure, heart attack and death. According to the Merck Veterinary Manual, your dog can experience mild poisoning at 20 mg/kg theobromine per pound of the dog's body weight. Deadly results occur at 40 mg/kg. If your pet ingests any amount of chocolate, you should seek veterinary attention immediately.

The amount of theobromine varies in chocolate, but a general rule is the darker and yummier the chocolate is, the more dangerous it is to your dog and cat. A mere ounce of baker's chocolate will cause symptoms in a 44 pound dog. And even milk chocolate has a sinister side, as one ounce of milk chocolate per pound of dog can be fatal.

Most pet experts talk a lot about dogs getting into chocolate, but cats are susceptible too. The reason we don't talk about cats is that it's assumed they're not attracted to chocolate because they have no sweetness taste receptors in their mouths. But that doesn't mean your cat won't be attracted to chocolate. My own cat, Hailey, will try to snatch any piece of chocolate from me, which suggests that there's more going on in the aromatic department than just sweet. And cats are more susceptible to theobromine poisoning than dogs, so it's a good idea to keep the chocolate far out of reach.

What's more, theobromine isn't just in chocolate. It's in cola drinks, tea and acai, but I haven't heard of an animal succumbing to poisoning with those. Still, it's a good idea to keep those drinks and foods away from your pets. But theobromine can also lurk in your garden as well. The latest rage is cocoa mulch, which is the shells of cocoa beans, which contains-you guessed it-theobromine. Pets have gotten sick and died from ingesting this mulch, so don't use it.

So, this Valentine's Day, bake a bunch of liver treats instead. Your best friend will appreciate that.

References

Merck Veterinary Manual

Margaret H. Bonham, The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Homemade Dog Food, 2007.

Margaret H. Bonham, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Dog Health and Nutrition, 2003.