Halloween is a fun time of year for the whole family, so let’s keep every member safe!
We all know that chocolate can be life threatening to dogs, and other ingredients in candy, such as high amounts of sugar and fat, can also cause severe issues for our pups’ health. If a candy is sugar-free, it may contain a sugar substitute called xylitol, which is extremely toxic and deadly to dogs, even in small amounts.
First thing to do is try to determine what they ate and in what quantity. Different chocolates have different levels of theobromine, the chemical in chocolate that is toxic to dogs. Theobromine, also known as xantheose, is a bitter alkaloid of the cacao plant. If your dog consumed close to or more than 20 mg of theobromine per pound of body weight, they are in the poison danger zone. Even if they just consume a little bit of chocolate, contact your vet to make sure you’re taking the correct steps for your particular dog given their needs. Knowing the signs of chocolate or other poisoning will help you and your vet determine what the best course of action is.
Knowing the signs of chocolate poisoning will help you and your vet determine the best course of action.
Signs of chocolate ingestion and possibly toxicity include:
- vomiting
- panting
- diarrhea
- agitation
- increased thirst
- in severe cases, seizures
If you’re handing out Halloween candy, keep the bowl up in a high spot where your pup cannot reach it or knock it down. If you have children who are trick-or-treating, be sure to explain to them the seriousness of not giving your dog any candy and keeping it out of the dog’s reach.
On days with high candy traffic, be sure to give your pup lots of exercise and a nice meal so they’ll be content instead of curiously sniffing around for some treats. Run Doggy Run Mobile Gym can help!
Information taken from dogtime.com, author Clancy.