As much as humans may adore it, chocolate is a very toxic food to dogs. If it is ingested, especially in large quantities, it can cause serious illness and disease to our four-legged friends.
Chocolate contains certain substances that are toxic to dogs’ organism, as they cannot digest them. Let’s find out why dogs cannot eat this food and how to recognise the clinical symptoms and take action.
Dogs cannot eat chocolate: why?
The relationship between dogs and chocolate is as dangerous as it is irresistible. Cocoa in particular contains two substances that are highly harmful to dogs: theobromine and caffeine. The difficulty dogs have in metabolising these substances means that they remain in their bodies for a far longer period of time than in humans.
Intake of chocolate in dogs does not necessarily result in immediate symptoms. In fact, theobromine intoxication can occur up to 10 hours after ingesting chocolate and can be quite acute, even lethal in the most extreme cases.
Clinical signs in dogs after chocolate intake
Dogs are greedy animals with a gluttonous appetite for food. Chocolate, however, is very detrimental to their health and the symptoms resulting from chocolate intake are very serious. Among the most frequent are vomiting, diarrhoea, widespread tremors throughout the body, accelerated heartbeat and difficulty breathing. Theobromine and caffeine together are a harmful mix for the gastrointestinal tract, kidneys, heart and nervous system.
Symptoms can of course vary depending on the amount of chocolate ingested by the dog and also on the type of chocolate itself. Dark chocolate and cocoa are in fact the two most harmful foods, as they contain a very high percentage of theobromine.
Dog ate chocolate: what to do?
Given the serious problems that chocolate intake can cause in dogs, if you realise that your pet has ingested even a small amount, you should contact your vet immediately. It is absolutely not advisable to wait until symptoms occur to become alarmed, but instead to act promptly to avoid any kind of health problems for your pet.
If you realise, therefore, that your dog has ingested chocolate, but does not yet show any symptoms, you can try to induce vomiting. There are several techniques, one of which is to make him drink water that has been previously salted.
In any case, it is always necessary to contact the veterinary, who will administer medication to bring the animal to the point of vomiting or, in more problematic cases, a gastric lavage and medication against poisoning.
Dogs and chocolate don’t mix. Keep all your favourite treats under lock and key and don’t let their eyes beg for a piece!