Do you give your dog any chocolate ever?

time lord

I'm forever telling and am a bore about it, to never give dogs chocolate. I talked around on elderly lady recently to stop and she switched to club goldgrain!
A bit of science behind this article.
http://www.theinternetpetvet.com/dogs-chocolate-2/

muddypaws

No, I don't but one of my old dogs managed to eat a tray load of Roses at Christmas once, left the wrappers, which you have to admit is very impressive. He survived, but definitely not something I would do by choice.

mosi

No, never.
I remember one time a few months back when I was out with the dogs and I got talking to an old man. He pulled a bag of chocolate raisins out of his pocket to give to the dogs :eek: Needless to say, I politely declined.

boomerang

No, never ever. Not just because of the theobromine. So bad for their teeth, and empty calories!

TooManyDogs

When we were much younger we used to train the family dogs with cadbury buttons :eek: We didn't know then that chocolate was bad.

One of my JRTs age a box of butlers dark chocolates when he was about 12 weeks old, we were freaked out but he was ok thankfully

boomerang

My auntie's dog snaffled a four pack of Cadbury's Flake... Had terrible diarrhoea and was bouncing off the walls for hours afterwards. It was horrible for her! Thankfully it was milk chocolate, not the dark stuff or it could have been a lot worse.

maggiepip

A while back two of mine came racing down the stairs with a whole half an easter each in their mouths....they had robbed an open egg from the window ledge. But the crazy thing about it was they legged it downstairs to me delighted with themselves but hadnt even taken a nibble off it. It still baffles me. Maybe they knew.....!

meoklmrk91

Never, if he is getting any human food it's veg, maybe some spud, tins of sardines, meat etc, never anything sweet.

He did once get into a bag of Easter treats though, ate whole lot, I was taking a nap and woke up to a psycho dog, he was literally bouncing off the wall, his pupils were huge, he must a have drank about 3-4 litres of water in about 2 hours, he was panting like you have never seen a dog pant and he was really hot I had to ring the vet as it was out of hours vet just said to keep an eye on him as it was cheap milk chocolate and he was probably reacting to the sugar more than anything. Honestly he was like someone after taking a load of drugs, think of the most hyper dog you have ever met and multiply that by ten, it was crazy!

The Sweeper

I think we've had this discussion on here before and ascertained that there's probably not a lot of theobromine in the cadburys dairy milk type chocolate bars and subsequently if a medium to large dog stole a bar of generic milk chocolate and scarfed it, they'd be a bit sick and a bit sugar-hyper but probably not in danger of death.

Family member told me a story last week, however, about a pup being babysat for a few hours and it stole a single-serve bar of green and blacks 70% cocoa. Thankfully the sitters quite rightly called the vet who said 'come in, please' and had to give the pup an emetic and a saline drip plus an overnight hospital stay. That was one expensive chocolate bar...

DeVore

2Bn was spent on tobacco related illnesses in the HSE last year (4bn on booze related, 400m on all other drugs combined... but yeah, fncking junkies eh?). We ALL pay for those tax (Duty on cigs was only 1.3Bn) but only smokers COST them.

Smokers clog the queues for lung transplants which leaves others to die on the list.

And still I would defend smokers right to smoke... all I'm saying is "meet us half way". Go outside for your cig yeah? Its not much to ask.

Heroditas

DeVore wrote: »

2Bn was spent on tobacco related illnesses in the HSE last year (4bn on booze related, 400m on all other drugs combined... but yeah, fncking junkies eh?). We ALL pay for those tax (Duty on cigs was only 1.3Bn) but only smokers COST them.

Smokers clog the queues for lung transplants which leaves others to die on the list.

And still I would defend smokers right to smoke... all I'm saying is "meet us half way". Go outside for your cig yeah? Its not much to ask.

Ehhhh.....

DeVore

DeVore wrote: »

2Bn was spent on tobacco related illnesses in the HSE last year (4bn on booze related, 400m on all other drugs combined... but yeah, fncking junkies eh?). We ALL pay for those tax (Duty on cigs was only 1.3Bn) but only smokers COST them.

Smokers clog the queues for lung transplants which leaves others to die on the list.

And still I would defend smokers right to smoke... all I'm saying is "meet us half way". Go outside for your cig yeah? Its not much to ask.

There there

wandatowell

My old man ate the doggy chocolate we got our dog for christmass

ekevosu

DeVore wrote: »

2Bn was spent on tobacco related illnesses in the HSE last year (4bn on booze related, 400m on all other drugs combined... but yeah, fncking junkies eh?). We ALL pay for those tax (Duty on cigs was only 1.3Bn) but only smokers COST them.

Smokers clog the queues for lung transplants which leaves others to die on the list.

And still I would defend smokers right to smoke... all I'm saying is "meet us half way". Go outside for your cig yeah? Its not much to ask.

Did you post on right thread?

DBB

ekevosu wrote: »

Did you post on right thread?

Feck... Do you think this was aimed at Josh? :-o

DeV, is Josh SMOKING? :-o

ekevosu

DBB wrote: »

Feck... Do you think this was aimed at Josh? :-o

DeV, is Josh SMOKING? :-o

Do you give your dog any cigarettes, ever?

DBB

I'm sure I've posted before about my beloved old Westie... He was an Olympic gold medallist in the "Find the Chocolate" event, even climbing up sheer book-cases to get the 1lb box of Milk Tray that was on top, waving at him, calling him, tantalising him.
I came home to several pools of chocovomit on the floor, and a very sorry-for-himself, sugar-filled Westie, chocolate smeared all over his beard like the nun in Father Ted who stole the Easter egg.
He'd eaten every last sweet, bar one. The only one I won't eat... Turkish Delight. It appears we had similar tastes. But that didn't stop the little fecker from sucking all the chocolate off the Turkish Delight before spitting it out.
Ahhh.... Gotta love Westies.
:-D

DBB

ekevosu wrote: »

Do you give your dog any cigarettes, ever?

I don't allow it, but how do I know what they get up to behind the bike shed?!

Stheno

DBB wrote: »

I'm sure I've posted before about my beloved old Westie... He was an Olympic gold medallist in the "Find the Chocolate" event, even climbing up sheer book-cases to get the 1lb box of Milk Tray that was on top, waving at him, calling him, tantalising him.
I came home to several pools of chocovomit on the floor, and a very sorry-for-himself, sugar-filled Westie, chocolate smeared all over his beard like the nun in Father Ted who stole the Easter egg.
He'd eaten every last sweet, bar one. The only one I won't eat... Turkish Delight. It appears we had similar tastes. But that didn't stop the little fecker from sucking all the chocolate off the Turkish Delight before spitting it out.
Ahhh.... Gotta love Westies.
:-D

I met someone once who also had a red setter, as did I at the time.

Her dog was called Raffles after the "gentleman thief"

Now one christmas when I was overcome with a surfeit of Christmas spirit, we came down with a fit of madness, and despite having piles of dogs, put up a tree with those chocolate covered trees.

A couple of days later we noticed they looked a bit limp.

The red setter had sneakily devoured all the chocolate overnight.

TBH I'd not worry about a couple of chocolates of the normal variety, I'd be very concerned if a dog ate a bar of 85% dark chocolate tho!

THe higher the quality of chocolate, the worse it is, it's like potatoes etc.

DeVore

D'OH

I was going to post about how Josh seems to dislike "doggie chocolate" but then got annoyed with a thread about smoking in AH. ngggh.

Josh actually hates smoke and barks like mad at even the neighbours chimneys!

Hmm.. I may have train-wrecked this thread

DBB

Stheno wrote: »

TBH I'd not worry about a couple of chocolates of the normal variety, I'd be very concerned if a dog ate a bar of 85% dark chocolate tho!

Don't get me wrong, I can laugh about it now (just as well, because "The Milk Tray Incident" was not the last), but on the night, my vet got a hysterical, tearful call from me. But yeah, whilst it's not good for them, milk choc is not dangerous to an otherwise healthy dog other than causing a big tummy ache, but the high quality, cocoa-rich choc is dangerous and needs immediate vet attention.
This thread is giving me the munchies :-D

Stheno

DBB wrote: »

Don't get me wrong, I can laugh about it now (just as well, because "The Milk Tray Incident" was not the last), but on the night, my vet got a hysterical, tearful call from me. But yeah, whilst it's not good for them, milk choc is not dangerous to an otherwise healthy dog other than causing a big tummy ache, but the high quality, cocoa-rich choc is dangerous and needs immediate vet attention.
This thread is giving me the munchies :-D

I'd the same and learned a good lesson.

Lock up the good choc!
I've a bar of Lilys 85% cocoa here if you are stuck

IvySlayer

DBB wrote: »

I'm sure I've posted before about my beloved old Westie... He was an Olympic gold medallist in the "Find the Chocolate" event, even climbing up sheer book-cases to get the 1lb box of Milk Tray that was on top, waving at him, calling him, tantalising him.
I came home to several pools of chocovomit on the floor, and a very sorry-for-himself, sugar-filled Westie, chocolate smeared all over his beard like the nun in Father Ted who stole the Easter egg.
He'd eaten every last sweet, bar one. The only one I won't eat... Turkish Delight. It appears we had similar tastes. But that didn't stop the little fecker from sucking all the chocolate off the Turkish Delight before spitting it out.
Ahhh.... Gotta love Westies.
:-D

You will never understand what it's like to have a Westie unless you own one. Their personalities are amazing.

They have no fear, they are extremely headstrong, stubborn and much more intelligent that people give them credit for.

Last Easter I could see it in my Sams eyes he was going to go for my Easter Egg at one stage or another. I had it in the press in the sitting room, he sniffed it out easily, and was trying to figure out how to open it. Sat there growling until someone came over to him and opened it, eventually had to put it in the fridge and dogs aren't allowed near the fridge in my kitchen, I still reckon he tries to open it to get at the ham

frecklier

My dad's a vet, and when we were growing up, our dog ate anything we ate. The only thing we couldn't give him was small bones. Dog lived til age 15.

Rosier

Our dogs are safe; I cannot afford chocolate of any kind...kind person just gave me a wee bar of Cadbury but no way will the dogs even see it,...it is sitting by my bed being "enjoyed" in my mind!

name0123

we have a bichon and she loves chocolate, often when she gets out on us the only way to get her back in is to go outside with the biscuit tin and she will come running back, as soon as she sees someone going to the treat press she is over waiting for some,

gimmick

As a general rule, no, but he has been known to get half a malteaser now and then. Of course he has known a full bag of malteasers as well - I was lying on the couch watching telly, and the little jerk snook up - "YOINK" and away he went, delighted with himself.

jack presley

When I was a kid our dog at home used to get all the coconut and coffee sweets out of the Roses and Quality Street tins at Christmas as we all hated them. Poor fella must have thought they were the only ones in the box.

gimmick

Christmas day a few years ago, the box of celebrations were on the floor. My Sis in laws Japanese Spitz took a few trips to the box, and pick out a bounty every single time.

Must be a strong smell from them.

borderlinemeath

My pair will sit and drool if there's any human chocolate around but they never get it, and luckily we're the household that prefers the cadburys/galaxy milky milk chocolate rather than the high percentage cocoa pure stuff! Although when offered they will refuse those doggie choc drops, and it takes a lot for my rescue boy to refuse treats. They never manage to pilfer any either, I have a human here that I have to hide the chocolate from so it ends up in the most unlikely of places or hidden in the freezer (I love frozen chocolate)

My sisters boss always used to feed her dog cadburys buttons as treats. The dog lived til she was 16/17 but maybe it was all the meat and fresh cod that the dog was also fed;).

Our kiki loved maltesers, she went mental for them. Generally don't give them any choc or raisins though
Special doggy chocolate sure or the beef treats or bacon, they loooove that

aonb

my dogs would swop every bone, teddy, chew, kong, sirloin steak for a doggie choc! Ditto for a real choc, but they dont get those - the expression on their faces when we eat chocolate but dont give them the last corner as we do with everything else is heartbreaking!

(Our dogs get the dinner plates to lick every night - before going in the dishwasher - top dog gets the extra plate as 'seconds' - I swear that dog can count!!)

angeldaisy

this thread made me chuckle - much needed today!

Rusty my 11 yr old collie has never been interested in food, he just eats to live, never stole anything - once it was not on the floor! - anything on the floor automatically gets hoovered - usually spat back out again...

Tara on the other hand is uncivilised, last christmas (we'd only had her a couple of months) and unused to food stealing behaviour, left advent calenders on the shelf at the back of the couch. came home to find them destroyed! she seeks out sweets from hidden places, steals my sons breakfast if he leaves it for more than a minute. Last night she stole his half eaten muller yoghurt and licked it clean - toffee hoops!
But people never learn in my house I never leave my chocolate where anyone else can find it!! Usually the freezer - cos I'm the only one who uses it!

DeVore

The more serious side of chocolate scoffing is called Theobromine poisoning. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theobromine_poisoning

For the non-scientist out there: LD50 is what you need to look at. Its the "Lethal Dose 50%" number, ie the amount at which 50% of the test subjects died from exposure.

In dogs thats 0.3 grams per kilogram of dog.

So how much chocolate is that? Well it depends how dark it is basically, and how big the dog. But a descent sized bar of 85% dark chocolate is enough to seriously endanger most dogs.

Its half-life (that is, the time it takes to halve its presence in the body) is 17.5 hours. Thats very long because say you start with 100 units of Theobromine in the dog.
17.5 hours later, its down to 50 units.
35 hours later its halved again to 25 units
52.5 hours later its down to 12.5 units.
70 hours later, its down to 6 units.

So, three days later, theres still 6 units left. Thats significant traces of the original dose. If you give the dog chocolate every day or every second day, they arent processing it out of their systems sufficently before they get the next dose. Long term they will build up to a toxic level ...

Bottom line, smoking is bad for humans and chocolate is bad for dogs.

bluecherry74

I don't ever give my dogs chocolate, in fact I'm completely obsessive about what treats I give them and when they get them. They never, ever, ever get a bit of something I'm eating when I'm eating it - so no bits of dinner off my plate and no sneaky crisps or biccies when I'm slobbing in front of the TV. Some of my friends think I'm being mean and am too strict and maybe I am, but the result is that both dogs more or less ignore me when I'm eating.

I do of course save them a bit of my dinner and give it to them afterwards.

nala2012

I don't give it to her but she has sneaked a few things, the most recent being half a packet of oreos. She hides the empty wrapper but i always know cos she gets a big guilty look on her face or hides behind her paws

wandatowell

wandatowell wrote: »

My old man ate the doggy chocolate we got our dog for christmass

Funniest bit was when he turned to mam and said the chocolate tasted funny.

Alun

I used to pinch our dog's "Good Boy" doggie chocolate drops when I was a nipper I thought they were quite nice at the time, mind you I also used to eat the occasional Bonio ... I was an odd child

murria

bluecherry74 wrote: »

I don't ever give my dogs chocolate, in fact I'm completely obsessive about what treats I give them and when they get them. They never, ever, ever get a bit of something I'm eating when I'm eating it - so no bits of dinner off my plate and no sneaky crisps or biccies when I'm slobbing in front of the TV. Some of my friends think I'm being mean and am too strict and maybe I am, but the result is that both dogs more or less ignore me when I'm eating.

I do of course save them a bit of my dinner and give it to them afterwards.

I was just thinking what a meanie you were but you redeemed yourself with the last sentence.

I'm such a bad mammy, I give my dog my last Rollo and the chocolate at the end of my Cornetto. I can't resist his beautiful big brown eyes.

RSpookee

We used to give our old dog quite a bit of chocolate, before we knew the dangers.. she lived to an old age, extremely healthy till her last two weeks! That being said, I would not give any of our other dogs chocolate, I just stick to the proper dog treats. All of our dogs hated those fake chocolate treats

BillyMitchel

Anything my little nephew has he always shares with the dog. Once or twice I caught him sharing some chocolate biscuits! Nothing happened but the dog is 100lb so that's probably why.

Rosier

RSpookee wrote: »

We used to give our old dog quite a bit of chocolate, before we knew the dangers.. she lived to an old age, extremely healthy till her last two weeks! That being said, I would not give any of our other dogs chocolate, I just stick to the proper dog treats. All of our dogs hated those fake chocolate treats

I never give treats.. just never have done. partly cost as I am on a tiny pension but they have never known any different. My cats get more odd bits then they do; cheese mostly as one loves it and has the most beseeching face you ever saw.

fatmammycat

I often share treats with my dog, always have done. Same with my last dog, never made him unwell. This guy neither.

Gael23

A small bit as a treat every so often doesn't hurt. Wouldn't be too often though because chocolate is not good for dogs.

Setun

gimmick wrote: »

As a general rule, no, but he has been known to get half a malteaser now and then. Of course he has known a full bag of malteasers as well - I was lying on the couch watching telly, and the little jerk snook up - "YOINK" and away he went, delighted with himself.

Ha! I left a bag of maltesers on my desk the other day while I went out to do the bins or something. Came back, Tigger back in his bed like nothing had happened - except for the maltesers packet torn open sitting beside him. Luckily there were only two or three left. Still learning with that lad, he certainly keeps me on my toes.

aonb

bluecherry74 wrote: »

I don't ever give my dogs chocolate, in fact I'm completely obsessive about what treats I give them and when they get them. They never, ever, ever get a bit of something I'm eating when I'm eating it - so no bits of dinner off my plate and no sneaky crisps or biccies when I'm slobbing in front of the TV. Some of my friends think I'm being mean and am too strict and maybe I am, but the result is that both dogs more or less ignore me when I'm eating.

I do of course save them a bit of my dinner and give it to them afterwards.

Our dogs always get the plates to lick after dinner (the softies in our family dont scrape the plates too clean :rolleyes:) and we have always given them a corner of toast or whatever. Now they are total nuisances at meal times or having a biccie/coffee - one will start whining when we are eating something, shoving his chin on your lap. One will sit up and beg, with his chocolate brown eyes - hard to resist, but Ive sworn we'll never let any new dogs get in to the habit