There is only one setback to being a dog. You can’t eat chocolate.
While chocolate is a source of delight to most modern Americans, it can be a deadly substance when eaten by our canine friends. That’s because chocolate contains a substance called “theobromine,” a caffeine-like substance that can accelerate the heartbeat, cause vomiting, diarrhea, and seizures, and, in some instances, lead to death.
In this country, we celebrate every holiday with chocolate, from Valentines and Easter to Halloween and Christmas. So dogs are more exposed than ever to the temptations of this sumptious treat. How much chocolate does it take to harm or kill your dog?
• Three-ounces of dark chocolate could cause a 50-pound dog to vomit
• Seizures and tremors could result when an 110-pound dog ingests only 5 ounces of baking chocolate
• Just two ounces of dark chocolate can lead to potential death in a dog as small as a Yorkshire Terrier
Notice I mentioned different weights of dogs and different types of chocolate. When it comes to chocolate, the size of the dog (the smaller the dog the more likely the chocolate consumption will be fatal) and the type of chocolate — semi-sweet, baker’s chocolate, and cocoa are at the worst — are what matters. What that means is, it takes very little ingestion of these richer chocolates to produce illness and potentially fatal symptoms in a smaller dog. But all dogs are still at risk.
I found this interactive page on the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC website that charts the harmful effects of canine chocolate consumption. This chart tracks dog sizes, from a three-pound doberman pinscher puppy to a 190-pound Mastiff, showing a dog’s specific response to chocolate ingestion based on the dog’s weight and the type of chocolate consumed. As you will see, it only takes a little bit of the darker chocolates to cause ill-effects.
There is also a page at the website that shows a dog’s reaction to other types of human food that your dog shouldn’t be eating. This is something worthy of passing along to your friends, as some of these seemingly benign foods, like as few as nine raisins or grapes, can cause serious problems for dogs.