Well that hiatus was brief:)
Callie came to me as a rescue animal from the Humane Society. Usually rescue dogs come with a ton of baggage. Callie had only excessive energy that needed an outlet. Otherwise, she was an almost perfect dog that some one had patiently worked with.
Immaculately house broken--check. Responds quickly to commands--check. A soft "No" will stop her in her tracks. I can leave my meal unattended on the coffee table that she can easily reach and she leaves it alone. Never an issue. She just sits and watches. However as soon as I pick up my dishes and go to the kitchen, she will Hoover up any crumbs that may have found the table or floor.
Thus I was a bit stunned yesterday morning after I had cleared my breakfast dishes and had settled in for my treat for the day of a small Dove dark chocolate square.
You are right, chocolate is not good for dogs and can be fatal. Dark chocolate is one of the worst. It was too early to call my vet (5 AM) so I hit the Internet. Gosh, I love Google. I found this helpful site. You might want to bookmark the site if you or perhaps a family member have a pet that might someday get into some chocolate. The site provided a formula to determine if Callie was in any danger.
The whole bag had 8 oz of chocolate and there were 30 pieces. She is a 24 pound dog and I figured she ate .25 of an oz of the dark chocolate. I multiplied the 1/4 oz by 130 and then divided that by her weight giving me a roundup total of 1.35. Since close to 20 is an emergency, I knew she was quite safe. The only symptom to appear was that she got a little jacked up on the caffeine. Barely noticeable in a normally hyper dog.
I know it was my fault for she had learned that anything left on the table after the plates were removed was fair game and actually part of her cleanup duty. Bad Patti. I tossed the rest of the candies in the trash. Neither one of us needed them.
We have both learned from that experience. Hope you never need it but if you have a dog and chocolate in the same house, that site could be helpful in determining any danger.
My public service announcement for the month. You're welcome.
I'm glad Callie is okay. As someone without a dog, and not likely to ever own one, I had no idea dogs were allergic to chocolate. Now I know!
ReplyDeleteJoey,
DeleteIt is toxic to dogs in large doses. Knowing what is a large dose is the question for pet owners.
Thanks, Patti. Having had cats for years and years, we're still on a learning curve with our little dog.
ReplyDeleteMarty,
DeleteYep they are different. A cat would just bat the piece around the house like a play thing. A dog will scarf it up in an instant.
We had a "junk-yard-dog" named Mickey. He was acquired as a puppy and was supposed to be a Cocker spaniel. He grew and grew into a very large mutt but we loved him. What I am about to tell you is the truth. Once Mickey ate and entire chocolate Birthday cake. Next Mickey ate an entire 2 lb bag of M&Ms. Of course Mickey also ate belts and shoes but the real kicker was when Mickey ate 200 Ibuprofen tablets. Mickey lived to the age of 11 and did outgrow his days of eating terror. He never seemed affected by the chocolate or anything else.
ReplyDeleteAnnie,
DeleteHoly moly, Mickey had one tough system. That he made it past all the candy was impressive but the 200 tablets would have put a horse to the ground.
Whew, sure am glad Callie and you dodged the bullet on this one. We had a St. Bernard named Willow, who was the sweetest dog ever, but not very bright. She ate; Christmas lights, the metal trim around our back door, the posts that held up the back patio, rocks, bricks, and loved candy. I spent many hours at the vets with her getting x-rays. She was a chomping machine but I loved her so very much and miss her antics. Everytime I take our current pups out to do their business in the backyard, I see Willow's handiwork and am moved.
ReplyDeleteHappy Fat Tuesday dear Patti. Always great to read you. xoxo Oma Linda
Linda,
DeleteGreat to see you here. I think your Willow and Annie's Mickey had similar systems though yours ate the hard stuff. I know about those vet bills. Once had to have a series of x-rays for my Great Dane that ate a throw pillow--not a piece but the whole thing. They do challenge us don't they:)
Thanks. I bookmarked the site. Last year called the poison center and they did the math for me and Levi was fine after getting a bite of chocolate cake. Remember the snowman I built on my deck earlier this winter and used Dove Dark Chocolate for the eyes and nose. Well when it melted I found two of them but the third as buried in frozen ice. I forgot about it until Levi was on the deck later on and he dug it out and it was gone before I could stop him. That stuff must really smell good to dogs. I called the poison center. Again. He weighs 29 pounds and was safe. But it's scary how quickly they could get in trouble because of our carelessness. I couldn't have thrown the bag away. You are my new hero.
ReplyDeleteJean,
DeleteIt is a handy site and really helped me. Did the poison control charge you for the info? I read they charged like $65 for the help and wondered if that was true.
Ha ha, don't be too impressed, there were only 5 pieces left.
Nope, no charge at the site I called and he was on the phone with me a good ten minutes.
DeleteJean
DeleteGood to know. Thanks.
Glad you are feeling ok, and I'm equally glad that the wonderdog is feeling ok too. No more chocolate for me too.
ReplyDeleteMage,
DeleteThank you from us both. We are getting there.
I love those Dove bars, but I think you did the right thing by throwing out the lot of them. :-)
ReplyDeleteDjan,
DeleteAren't they great? They had to go for a repeat was possible.
My Buddy is a snatcher. Anything he can reach he tries to get. He's pretty good except for that. Hence the reason he has back fat!
ReplyDeleteBarbara,
DeleteThey really can be quicker than the eye. Callie mistook the candy for a crumb that she is allowed. Can't blame her at all.
My granddog is a notorious chocolate/sweets thief. With 4 kids in the house, there is always something for that dog to get into. So far so good. The only thing that almost killed her is a poisonous mushroom she ate in their back yard. Glad Callie is fine and so are you!
ReplyDeleteBarb,
DeleteI did learn that while it is quite toxic, it takes a lot to do damage. That mushroom had to be scary. Hard to account for every thing in the yard.
We love chocolate, especially dark chocolate. And yes, it can be toxic to both dogs and cats. But over the years, some have gotten into it, but never enough to cause a problem. Think they need to eat a lot for it to be a worry. But of course it does depend on the size of the animal. What we have to worry about with our one cat is his affinity to grape vines and bleach...?
ReplyDeleteRain,
DeleteI did learn it takes quite a bit to make them sick. Bleach?? Goodness that is new to me. You would think the smell alone would be deterrent enough. We do have to be on our toes don't we?
It was strange to me too when we first noticed it. But even after I've been cleaning something with bleach and have washed my hands thoroughly, Tux will go crazy trying to lick my hands which retain the smell of the bleach???
DeleteNow, what I don't understand about this story is nibbling a Dove chocolate?? I pop the whole thing in my mouth and savor the melting.
ReplyDeleteDitto. Who nibbles?
DeleteOlga,
DeleteI keep mine in the refridgerator so it takes some nibbling to get it going. I eat smaller pieces(makes it last longer) and let them melt also. Delightful.
That is good to know! I always have a Dove dark chocolate piece every day after lunch. So far, Boston has never bothered the candy dish, but I will be more careful.
ReplyDeleteSally,
DeleteMy one piece was after breakfast and was such a treat. If Boston does sneak some, the site will let you do the math to make sure he is safe.
I never had a dog that could resist any food left alone for even a minute.
ReplyDeleteJoeh,
DeleteI know, that is normal. Who ever had Callie before me really worked carefully with her as she has impeccable manners around food. She just took the dish removal as signal to scarf up the "crumb" of candy.
I don't blame Callie for wanting to snitch a piece of yummy chocolate and I'm glad there was only just the one small piece. If it was my plate, there would have been more, I'm afraid. lol! I love my chocolate, but am trying hard to stay away from it due to the diabetes. Hope you're feeling well, Patti, and Happy Valentine's Day to you!
ReplyDeleteNo dogs, so I'll keep my chocolate!
ReplyDeleteLinda,
DeleteEat and enjoy threat free.
So glad Callie is OK! I remember when our lab ate one of those small round ant traps. We called poison control and they reassured us that while the poison was deadly for an ant, it was insignificant for a dog. Whew!
ReplyDeleteLove, love, love the Dove dark chocolate. If dark chocolate is in the house, I eat it! So I have to be careful what goes into my grocery cart :-)
Carole,
DeleteMe too on dark chocolate. Love it but will quit buying it. That ant trap had to be scary. Glad you found help.
I figured one small square of chocolate wouldn't have hurt Callie, the whole box would be a different story, or if she got chocolate on a regular basis. Our dog got chocolate every Easter when he licked the kids hands after they'd been eating Easter Eggs.
ReplyDeleteRiver,
DeletePretty sure just licking is not harmful. It evidently takes a lot to make a dog sick.
Glad that all worked out and Callie did not get enough chocolate to hurt her. My hubby loved chocolate and I had to keep an eye out to make sure he did not leave any lying around the pets could partake of...which happened quite often. I am allergic to chocolate so I no longer have to be concerned about the pets getting any. My coffee is what I have to watch...it is not good for them and can be dangerous to them. Chancy will drink coffee if he gets the chance that was an issue with my hubby and him too. You are about dark chocolate like I am with ice cream. :) Hugs and give Callie nose kisses and tummy rubs for me.
ReplyDeleteMaggie,
DeleteWow, never heard of a dog drinking coffee. It is the caffeine in both coffee and chocolate that dogs have a hard time with. Sadly ice cream came off my wish list when in my 70's I became lactose intolerant. No fair.
The whole world loves chocolate (except weird old me). I hated it as a child too. And today is the big chocolate day. ta dum
ReplyDeleteBelva,
DeleteLucky you. The good thing for you is that the coming chocolate shortage in the future won't affect you at all. Don't feel badly, I don't like pizza which makes me a bit weird or as I prefer, original.
Lucky you for getting a mostly well behaved rescue. Our Lily had live wild for an unknown and she is almost perfect except for a tendency to want to kill other dogs. She is mostly my wife's first "house dog" and seems to be very content to stay inside all winter with her new "pack"...:)
ReplyDeleteRay,
ReplyDeleteWell that tendency should keep you on your toes. Callie's previous owner was a man who evidently spent a lot of time training her. She had been mauled by a pack of dogs so she is a bit defensive around strange dogs.
If we ever get a dog, I will remember this. We are chocolate eaters here, and it would be such a bummer to expose our little furry companion to such dangers. Thank you for the info and hurray for Callie for being okay.
ReplyDeleteOur cat never sneaks or tries to eat our stuff. Buddy can quietly make my half a cup of coffee go to empty when I’m not nearby lol.
ReplyDelete