Lethal Doses of Chocolate

[Amaze]

Many people are under the misconception that white chocolate is not dangerous for dogs-this is NOT TRUE! It can be very harmful to them and their systems, especially their livers! Here is some information on the dangers of chocolate-keep in mind that you should get emergancy attention for your pet if they consume ANY chocolate-often inducing vomitting within an hour of consumption can save a dog's life and should be done under medical supervision.

What most people don't know is that chocolate contains theobromine and is one of the deadly ingredients that make it toxic to cats and dogs. The estimated lethal dose is 45 or more milligrams per pound of body weight.

Here are some typical chocolates and their dangerous dose levels:

Lethal Dose Lethal Dose Lethal Dose
Theobromine mg/g 20 lb. dog 50 lb. dog 80 lb. dog

Cocoa: 1.6 ounces 3.9 ounces 6.3 ounces
Unsweetened
Baking Chocolate: 2.5 ounces 6.2 ounces 9.9 ounces
Fudge: 4.9 ounces 12.3 ounces 19.7 ounces
Semi-sweet
Chocolate: 5.7 ounces 14.3 ounces 22.9 ounces
Milk chocolate: 21.4 ounces 53.4 ounces 84.3 ounces

[Romans Mom]

Thanks for posting this info on chocolate and the white chocolate. Although I never give a sweet like that to my dogs anyway, during my candy making days I was told there was no chocolate in white chocolate, but there must be some shared ingredient then. Thanks.


There are also chocolate drops, chocolate cookies, and other chocolate candies sold in pet stores and on the internet for dogs. People think this is safe since it's packaged for dogs. It is not safe either.

Whenever I get an icecream cone, I make sure it's not chocolate since dogs are attracted to chocolate despite the toxicity. They love vanilla or strawberry. :razz:

[Hercules Momma]

Oh Barb, I didn't know that about the dog products that where chocolate flavor. I had gotten some pup lillilops at Christmas that were carob flavor. Eeekk I hope it didn't hurt the SS that I sent one too.

[Romans Mom]

Renata, there's no chocolate in carob, but I found some difference that theobromine can be added to carob sometimes in trace amounts.
some places I got this info:

foodreference.com

paulypaws.com says carob is safe for dogs

Carob does not contain cholesterol, caffeine, theobromine, and oxalic acid, as chocolate does.

Carob comes from the pods of the carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua). The pods contain the chocolate substitute, saccharine (NOT the same as the sweetener, Saccharin). Carob does not contain caffeine.

Carob is nontoxic and ingestion of a small amount in food such as carob chip cookies, is not expected to cause problems in birds.

Does Carob contain caffeine?
Carob itself does not contain any caffeine. However, it does contain traces of theobromine and theobromine is occasionally added to carob.
Theobromine is related to caffeine, but it is a milder stimulant. It is the stimulant found in chocolate.
(One hundred grams of carob contains no caffeine and only three milligrams of theobromine; 100 grams of chocolate contains 180 milligrams of caffeine and 2,320 milligrams of theobromine.)
Because of the small amounts of the caffeine related theobromine, and because carob is sometimes used in combination with chocolate, most sources call carob a low caffeine alternative to be on the safe side.



CAFFEINE CONTENT - CHOCOLATE
White chocolate 3ounce bar or 1 cup chips
Caffeine 0.0 mg
Theobromine 0.0 mg

Baking chocolate, unsweetened 1 ounce
Caffeine 57.120 mg
Theobromine 346.360 mg

Semisweet chocolate 1 ounce (chocolate chips)
Caffeine 17.577 mg
Theobromine 137.781mg

Milk Chocolate 1.55 ounce bar
Caffeine 11.440 mg
Theobromine 74.360 mg

Cocoa mix 1 envelope/3 heaping tsp
Caffeine 5.040 mg
Theobromine 169.680 mg

Cocoa powder, unsweetened 1 tbsp
Caffeine 12.420 mg
Theobromine 111.078 mg

[Capri]

Raw onions are bad, grapes and raisons are bad too. Some say it's the grape and some say it's pesticides on the grape. Either way, I don't need to feed my dog grapes. There are a few more things I can't remember right now.