Humans aren’t the only ones with a sweet tooth. Dogs often love the smell of chocolate, making it an appealing treat to taste. However, because dogs cannot digest and eliminate the main toxic ingredients – methylxanthine alkaloids theobromine and caffeine – as quickly as humans, they become poisoned when they enjoy sweets. If your dog eats chocolate, whether it’s milk or dark chocolate, treat it as an emergency and call your veterinarian or animal poison control agency immediately.
If your dog eats chocolate, here’s what to do first
If you suspect your dog has eaten chocolate, call your veterinarian or paramedic. ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (888-426-4435) immediately. Do not wait for symptoms to appear before contacting your veterinarian.
Ideally include what type of chocolate your dog ate, how much, and when. Veterinarians Kathy Gerken and Kendon Kuo say to bring a source of chocolate if possible. Both work in small animal emergencies and critical care at Auburn University’s Bailey Small Animal Teaching Hospital in Alabama.
Tina Wismer, senior director of the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center in Urbana, Illinois, said: “Collect any remaining packaging from the chocolate to help your veterinarian determine the type of number. What is that cola and how much your dog may have eaten.” “Be aware that chocolate has any fillings, including raisins or macadamia nuts, as these can also be toxic. If chocolate is unsweetened, it may also contain xylitol, a toxin that can cause hypoglycemia and liver damage in our canine companions.”
Symptoms of Chocolate Intoxication in Dogs
Even if you don’t catch your dog eating chocolate, you can still see clues that something is amiss. Initial signs that your dog may have chocolate poisoning may appear within the first few hours after ingestion, but can also take up to 24 hours, and recovery can take up to three days.
Symptoms of chocolate poisoning in dogs include:
- Vomiting (mild symptoms)
- Diarrhea (mild symptoms)
- Increased thirst (mild symptoms)
- Hyperactivity (mild symptoms)
More serious symptoms include:
- Increased or irregular heart rate or rhythm (including gasping, lethargy, confusion, dizziness, and trouble breathing)
- Body tremors
- Convulsion
“Serious signs include the earlier signs but also affect the central nervous system, leading to seizures, coma, and sometimes death,” says Dr. Gerken and Kuo.
Why is chocolate toxic to dogs?
“Chocolate poisoning is a very common condition and should always be treated as a medical emergency,” Dr. Gerken and Kuo.
When ingested, methylxanthines affect the central nervous system, cardiovascular system, and respiratory system of dogs. Symptoms of chocolate poisoning in dogs can range from mild to severe to fatal.
Although theobromine occurs naturally in cocoa beans, the amount of theobromine in chocolate depends on the type of chocolate as well as the brand and size of the candy.
“The darker the chocolate, the more concentrated the methylxanthines,” says Dr. Gerken and Kuo.
The darker the chocolate, the more toxic to dogs
Here are the most common types of chocolate, from the most dangerous to the least toxic, and the approximate amounts of methylxanthine per ounce of chocolate.
- Cocoa Powder (~800mg/oz)
- Unsweetened Chocolate/Baker’s (~450mg/oz)
- Semi-sweet chocolate (~150-160mg/oz)
- Dark Chocolate (~150-160mg/oz)
- Milk Chocolate (~64mg/oz)
- White chocolate (n/a)
Note: These numbers come from Merck Vet User Manual
An easy way to remember is that the more bitter the chocolate, the more toxic it is to dogs. But they can all have nasty effects on our dogs.
Dr. Gerken and Kuo. “However, eating white chocolate has a higher association with digestive disorders and pancreatitis.”
Understandably, the most common instances of dogs eating chocolate occur during the holidays, including Easter, Halloween, and Christmas. The variety of chocolate that veterinarians feed dogs ranges from candy bars and cookies to chocolate bars and baked goods.
“Typically, most chocolate candies contain milk chocolate or white chocolate,” says Dr. Gerken and Kuo. “Dogs tend to consume these in larger quantities which makes up for their toxicity. With baked goods, chocolate tends to be darker and/or purer cocoa, with a higher concentration of toxins, meaning it is much less toxic to eat. In addition, baked goods may contain other items, such as raisins, macadamia nuts or marijuana that may also pose an additional risk of toxicity.”
How much chocolate is toxic to dogs?
The ASPCA and the Merck Vet Manual both state that 100 to 200 mg of theobromine and caffeine per kilogram of a dog’s weight is a lethal dose.
Dr. Gerken and Kuo. “But 100 mg/kg of either substance (theobromine or caffeine) is essentially fatal. For a 15-pound dog eating 1 ounce of a 72% cocoa chocolate bar, that dog would get about 42 mg/kg of methylxanthines and lead to significant arrhythmias.”
Remember that the dose determines the poison.
“The amount of chocolate that can be toxic to your pet depends on their size and medical history,” says Dr. “Small dogs need much less chocolate than larger dogs”
And while age isn’t a major factor to judge, your dog’s history is important.
“If the dog has a history of gastrointestinal, cardiac, and/or neurological disease, it is likely that a lower toxicity threshold is needed before clinical signs appear,” Dr. Gerken and Kuo.
Chocolate is toxic to dogs by type of candy
According to Statista, a leading provider of consumer and market data, Americans consume a lot of sweets. These are our favorites, according to Statista’s 2020 data. Use this simple chart to find out how many milligrams of theobromine are in one serving of these chocolates, as well as their potential toxicity to dogs.
| Name | Serving size | Theobromine’s Mg |
| 3 Musketeers | bar 1.92oz | ~63mg |
| Hershey’s Milk Chocolate with Almonds | 1.45oz | 75mg |
| butter finger | 1.9oz . bar | ~21mg |
| Hershey’s Milk Chocolate | 1.55oz (43g) bar | 99mg |
| M&M peanuts | 1.74oz (49g) bag | ~58mg |
| Kit Kat sữa Milk Chocolate | 1.5oz bar (42g) | 54.58mg |
| Hershey’s Kiss | 9 pieces (41g) | 74mg |
| Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup | 1.6oz (45g) pack | 35.55 mg |
| giggle | bar 1.86oz | ~48mg |
How to treat dogs with chocolate poisoning?
Your veterinarian will determine a treatment based on the type and amount of chocolate your dog has eaten, along with your pet’s size, age, and medical history, sometimes using stand-alone computer.
“Efforts must be made to get the dog to vomit as quickly as possible,” Dr. Gerken and Kuo, although it is not advisable to induce vomiting at home. “Preferably, this should be done with your veterinarian as we need to make sure it is safe for your dog to vomit. Some dogs already show neurological signs and are unable to protect their airways, putting them at risk of aspiration. Infusion therapy and activated charcoal should be given because chocolate can be recirculated in the dog’s intestines and remain toxic for a longer period of time.”
It is clear that chocolate eating is an emergency situation, but the prognosis is usually good with prompt and appropriate treatment. Death by chocolate is rare for our canine friends, but we’d be wise to keep the sweet stuff inaccessible to them.
