Does chocolate really make dogs sick? Because my dog (at 8 months old) once ate a giant Snickers?

Question

(I didn't give it to him, he opened the cupboard, lol), and he was absolutely fine! I was freaked out thinking we would be at the vets that night, but it didn't even affect him. Is this normal?

Lol! I always heard it was really dangerous too, but I guess my boy's just weird!
You're right, probably because a Snickers doesn't have that much chocolate in it, he was ok.

Answer 1

I think if he has it on a regular basis it could make him sick!! My dog got a hold of some choco. before and it didn't do anything! So, Yeah I just wouldn't let him have more or some on a reg. basis!

Side note...have u ever given ur dog, a piece of ur hamburger or something? The other day we had deer meat...and we gave a piece to my dog!! It made him so sick...I cried, I felt so bad. Here come to find out Wild Game is too hard on a dog's system. I seriously had no idea!!! So, I thought I'd pass that along!!!

Answer 2

Don't feel like a bad mum. It's not the end of the world--kids put everything in their mouths. Is your Yorkie healthy? If so, you have no cause for worry. The things that can be transmitted from dog to human--worms, for the most part--are usually found in dogs which do not receive good vet care. If you're unsure, just take a sample of the dog's stool and ask a vet to check it. The most you can expect would probably be some tummy upset from your son, since he'll have been exposed to intestinal bacteria he probably doesn't have in his own system yet. That shouldn't be a problem, though, because dogs and humans use most of the same kinds of bacteria to help digest food, since they're both omnivores and generally live together.

Answer 3

There's not enough chocolate in a Snickers to do much harm. It depends on the type of chocolate. Milk chocolate like in candies and cookies is so diluted it usually won't do any harm.

If you had pure baking chocolate, now that might cause some problems.

Answer 4

It depends on the type of chocolate it is- compared to the size of your dog. Milk chocolate is the least dangerous- unless of course your dog is 5 pounds. The dark, semi sweet, bitter chocolate is the worst. But it is always a good idea just to call your vet if this should happen.

Answer 5

The good news is that it takes, on average, a fairly large amount of theobromine 100-150 mg/kg to cause a toxic reaction. there are variables to consider like the individual sensitivity, animal size and chocolate concentration.

On average,
Milk chocolate contains 44 mg of theobromine per oz.
Semisweet chocolate contains 150mg/oz.
Baker's chocolate 390mg/oz.

Using a dose of 100 mg/kg as the toxic dose it comes out roughly as:
1 ounce per 1 pound of body weight for Milk chocolate
1 ounce per 3 pounds of body weight for Semisweet chocolate
1 ounce per 9 pounds of body weight for Baker's chocolate.

So, for example, 2 oz. of Baker's chocolate can cause great risk to an 15 lb. dog. Yet, 2 oz. of Milk chocolate usually will only cause digestive problems.

Clinical Signs

Xanthines affect the nervous system, cardiovascular system and peripheral nerves. It has a diuretic effect as well. Clinical signs:

Hyper excitability
Hyper irritability
Increased heart rate
Restlessness
Increased urination
Muscle tremors
Vomiting
Diarrhea

Treatment

Induce vomiting in the first 1-2 hours if the quantity is unknown.activated charcoal may inhibit absorption of the toxin
Milk chocolate will often cause diarrhea 12-24 hours after ingestion.

If you suspect your pet has ingested chocolate contact your Vet immediately! They can help you determine the the proper treatment for your pet.

Answer 6

Chocolate will kill a dog by shutting down his liver and kidneys. However, a large dog would need about 1 pound of baking choc., not milk choc. to get sick. In contrast, one Hershey's kiss may get a toy dog sick.

1 snickers doesn't have a lot of choc., just a coating of milk choc. A solid bar of choc. would be more harmful. However, I would expect that the pup would have gotten diarrhea.

Answer 7

Some dogs can have ten pounds of chocolate and be fine. Then there is the dog that eats a chocolate chip cookie and croaks. Depends on the dog, but from my experience they either can't have it or they can, and quantity doesn't seem to make much difference.

Answer 8

It's supposedly like poison to them,but i had a dog who got into my Easter basket when i was a kid & ate a ton of chocolate & she was fine. I think she puked later, but i would too if i ate that much chocolate!

Answer 9

It depends sometimes it will get sick sometimes it won't. If it was a giant Hershey bar it might have. but a snicker bar is not all chocolate

Answer 10

Though the dog was fine this time chocolate is not good for him. Dogs have trouble metabolizing it and it can cause health problems.