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Keep Your Paws off My Chocolate!
With Valentine's Day right around the corner, you can almost smell the chocolate - and so can your pooch! The delicious treat is as tempting to your pet as it is to you, although in your pet's case, it can do more than just damage their waistline! According to the ASPCA's Animal Poison Control Center, this is one of the highest "chocolate calls" times of the year (next to Christmas of course). How many times have you found yourself enjoying a chocolate chip cookie and looked down to see a pair of pathetic puppy dog eyes looking up at you longing for a taste? We've all heard "don't give your dog chocolate it will kill him" but then we think back to a time when we've caught Spot enjoying a little chocolate with no noticeable effect it becomes easier to let him have a taste.
Well don't be fooled, chocolate contains THEOBROMINE an organic compound that is found in coco bean. The amount of theobromine in chocolate is small enough for us to digest, but can be potentially fatal to your dog. A fairly large amount of theobromine can cause restlessness, vomiting and diarrhea within the first few hours of ingestion but after increased absorption of the toxic substance it can cause arrhythmia, increased urination, muscle tremors, seizures, coma and even death.
No, you probably won't have to rush your dog to the emergency clinic because he ate an M&M that fell on the floor, but it is difficult to determine how much chocolate is too much due to the variables involved. The size and age of your dog are two big considerations, followed by the concentration of chocolate and individual animal sensitivity.
Remember, though chocolate may not be harmful to a dog is small quantities, it's safer to avoid it in general. Don't let your pooch acquire a taste for chocolate because like you and me, it will crave more and jump at the opportunity to eat it at any cost. For more information about this, or other issues affecting our pets, visit the ASPCA at www.aspca.org
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