Doggies love to dine with their parents; that’s how they connect with their owners, due to which they might be at risk of developing a poisoning of some foods that might be dear to you but not for them; well, chocolate tops the list.
You might have heard of different myths about dogs not eating chocolate and some dogs being totally fine with eating it as well; let’s get straight to the chemistry to understand whether your dog can eat chocolate or not.
Chocolate can be the favorite treat for your kids, but it affects your canine companion’s metabolism.
What’s Inside!
WHAT MAKES CHOCOLATE A SWEET POISON: THEOBROMINE.
Chocolate contains
- Cocoa
- Cocoa beans
- Methylxanthines, i.e., Theobromine
- Caffeine
These chemicals, when ingested, follow a certain pathway from their stomach to digestion and metabolism. They all go through a good metabolism except Theobromine, which serves as the main cause of sweet poisoning. Theobromine belongs to the class of methylxanthines that follow a specific ingestion metabolism, comparatively much slower in dogs than in any other species. Therefore, it takes a good amount of time in the doggie’s body to absorb and metabolize Theobromine, which directly means they will be staying in the body more than a required normal time in humans.
The half-life of Theobromine in dogs is approximately 17.5 hours, which means Theobromine will stay half of its amount after 17.5 hours of ingestion; for instance, if the dog is consuming 8 ounces of Theobromine, it will be 4 ounces after 17.5 hours. And 2 ounces after another 17.5 hours.
The more the Theobromine will stay in the body, the more will be its negative effects on your furry friend.
Good to know: Because theobromine’s half-life in dogs is so long, one large ingestion can keep affecting a dog’s heart and nervous system for several days, not just a few hours, according to the Merck Veterinary Manual.
Like Theobromine, the caffeine in chocolate has a much shorter half-life of about 4.5 hours in dogs.
The class of chemicals called methylxanthines also affects body receptors that have a role in our sleeping patterns. Methylxanthines inhibit the receptors that make us tired and sleepy. By inhibiting the receptors, dogs’ sleep affects them badly, which means getting less sleep and more active time. More active time for your Pupster can be a threat to the dog’s health.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF MY DOG EATS CHOCOLATE?
The chemistry won’t make any sense until we know the management of our Pup consumption.
The Pup weight has a lot to do with dog chocolate consumption. Having stated that, Dogs, according to their age and weight, can have some amount of chocolate and won’t get affected by it. For example, if a 10kg dog and a 7kg dog each eat the same amount of chocolate, the smaller 7kg dog receives a higher dose of theobromine per kilogram of body weight and is more likely to show negative effects and symptoms of poisoning, since toxicity is measured in milligrams of theobromine per kilogram of body weight, not a fixed amount for every dog, according to the AKC.
For that, online help is available with just a single click. Online calculators are available that will give you the perfect ratio of the limits till your dogs can consume chocolate and won’t get any negative health impacts; you will be asked certain questions of breed, weight, height, and eating habits before having the final results. Make sure to input the latest vitals in the calculator to have the exact information.
It also depends on the breed and genetic factors that I will discuss in this article later.
RISK FACTORS INVOLVED IN THE CONSUMPTION OF CHOCOLATE.
Understanding the chemistry made it evident that the dose and the components make a chocolate poison for dogs. Therefore, chocolate consumption can make your furry friend nauseous, tired, and your canine might vomit right after the ingestion.
According to the dose, the signs and symptoms will vary.
According to veterinary sources, Dogs will show severe hyperactivity and rapid heartbeat after consuming caffeine in their diet.
Ingesting high doses of chocolate, especially black, can result in your dog facing seizures and tremors or even death; that is an emergency condition and should be taken to the vet as soon as possible.
Fact: Not all chocolate carries the same risk. Per the Merck Veterinary Manual, cocoa powder has about 807 mg of methylxanthines per ounce, unsweetened baking chocolate about 440 mg/oz, dark chocolate 150–160 mg/oz, milk chocolate about 64 mg/oz, and white chocolate only around 1 mg/oz, making it a negligible risk by comparison.
According to veterinary toxicology research, dogs show mild effects of poisoning of Theobromine after 20mg/kg.
Signs start to become evident and a bit severe 40mg/kg.
They will become more severe at 60mg/kg and more.
Your Pup will only be dining with you if he is more than a pet to you. It’s much better to avoid any such food item that might cause any risk involved. It’s much better to avoid chocolate consumption at all than to face the after-effects.
POISON MANAGEMENT:
Avoiding chocolate must be the priority as a dog owner, but IN CASE your Pup has ingested the bar with you or without you knowing it, you can manage it by following these simple steps
See a vet if: your dog has eaten any amount of chocolate. Call your veterinarian immediately, or contact a pet poison helpline for advice, rather than waiting to see if symptoms appear, per the AKC.
- Check the vitals of your PupPup as soon as you get to know that he ingested. Checking vitals includes noticing his hyperactivity, heart rate, and temperature.
- Make sure you take your PupPup to the vet as soon as you notice any health condition changes.
- Vomiting is also the major sign of poisoning of caffeine.
- Gastric decontamination is the major and main process that a qualified vet might do after the ingestion. It’s the process of emptying your stomach by giving your PupPup anything that can make your friend vomit.
- Activated charcoal is given with dog food by the vet. Sometimes repetitive administration is also being done if needed.
- The drug named apomorphine is given via eyes for rapid absorption for gastric decontamination.
INVOLVEMENT OF THE GENETIC FACTOR IN CHOCOLATE POISONING:
Like a lactose intolerance that is innate in some breeds, chocolate poisoning can also be innate and affect the ingestion and metabolism of caffeine and methylxanthines.
Some breeds are at higher risk, and some are not. Therefore, it’s better to be aware of the species and the information related to your furry friend in detail to avoid any risk involvement.
CONCLUSION:
The eating habits of our furry friends entirely depend on us, which comes with the responsibility to take good care of them and their eating and health patterns.
Chocolates can be a sweet poison to them and lead to serious health effects for our furry Pups.
Chocolates have a class of chemicals called methylxanthine, caffeine, and cocoa beans which are not good for our pups due to their metabolism. They take time to properly and completely metabolize from their body and more time causes them hyperactivity, seizures, increased heart rate, and sometimes death.
It also depends on the weight by dose ratio of the chocolate consumption. If the chocolate is consumed without any calculation of the weight and it overburdens the digestive system, your PupPup can be in danger, which might lead to death.
Taking care of the Pup’s health, vitals and eating will make the quality of your Pup’s life better and healthy.
References:
- https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/health/my-dog-ate-chocolate-and-he-was-fine-so-whats-big-deal
- https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/health/what-to-do-if-your-dog-ate-chocolate/
- https://www.vets-now.com/pet-care-advice/dog-eaten-chocolate/
- https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/chocolate-poisoning-in-dogs
- https://www.merckvetmanual.com/toxicology/food-hazards/chocolate
