dog ate chocolate cake

Tea Tree

medium sized dog ate a small slice of chocolate cake

Google advise ranges from "she'll be grand" to " get her to a vet quick to have her stomach pumped"

I've let her out in the garden as sometimes she eats grass and then pukes it up again... though now when I want her to do that she isnt....

She seems ok. anything I should be looking out for?

Toulouse

Ring your vet.

Leave a message and they'll call you back.

Actually, sorry, I thought from your title it was an entire cake! If it was only a slice then she'll more than likely be okay, just keep an eye on her. But if in any doubt then your vet should be your first port of call.

anniehoo

Would you have an idea of how much chocolate was in a slice? Was it majority chocolate or just an outer coating?

When dogs eat chocolate it can result in theobromine toxicosis and symptoms normally start around 6hrs after ingestion. From the Merck Veterinary manual

wrote:

In general, mild signs (vomiting, diarrhea, polydipsia (drinking a lot) may be seen in dogs ingesting 20 mg/kg, cardiotoxic effects may be seen at 40–50 mg/kg, and seizures may occur at dosages ≥60 mg/kg. One ounce of milk chocolate per pound of body weight is a potentially lethal dose in dogs.

If you can guesstimate the amount of chocolate (dark chocolate having a higher theobromine content) then you would have an idea of the likelihood of him being affected.

My guess would be that a medium sized dog and one slice would be fairly harmless, but your best bet is to ring your vet. They'll be able to reassure you over the phone or tell you to go in straightaway.

Tea Tree

it was kind of a tray bake fudgy thing with choc topping and so really quite small in that the slice wasnt thick or tall . she has a sensitive tummy at the best of times.

I'll ring the vet to be on the safe side (sorry the thread title is misleading:o).

wexie

One ounce of milk chocolate per pound of body weight

Just to put that in perspective, that means for a 20lbs dog (pretty small) it would have to ingest nearly 5 large dairymilk bars.

So unless you've stumbled onto some kind of superduper-blissful-decadent death-by-chocolate cake your dog will probably be okay.

Keep an eye on him though, and like already said if you want some reassurance ring the vet.

Tea Tree

30lb- ish dog. cake being "fudgy" is more dark chocolate than milk but the slice was pretty small.
vets number has gone to out of hours service so I think I'll go the "watch very carefully" route for now.

ZiabR

Given the dogs size and the fact that it is only 1 slice I think you should be ok but all you can do it watch closely.

sambuka41

My dog ate an entire bag of chocolates before (the ones from the €2 shop), took it out the back garden sneakily and ate the whole thing, and she was fine, well the next day there was some messy toileting!! She is 6kg, but my friends Pom ate half an Easter egg and ended up in the vets very ill, but that was almost immediately after eating it.

I think it can depend on the individual dog. I would say will be ok, but be prepared for some mess during the night or tomorrow!

boomerang

sambuka it depends on the size of the dog and the amount of cocoa ingested. It's cocoa that contains the theobromine. Milk chocolate has more sugar and fat, and less cocoa than dark chocolate or cooking chocolate.

Tea Tree

well 4+ hours later and she's still ok been completely normal since and flat out asleep now. she has a dodgy tum at the best of times so I'll expect some reaction tomorrow so will make sure to get up early to let her out early... and bring plenty of bags out on our walk.

wexie

Tea Tree wrote: »

well 4+ hours later and she's still ok been completely normal since and flat out asleep now. she has a dodgy tum at the best of times so I'll expect some reaction tomorrow so will make sure to get up early to let her out early... and bring plenty of bags out on our walk.

Maybe she'll learn not to eat what she shouldn't .....

Naaah who am I kidding....she won't

Would be the first dog ever to stop and think 'should I be eating this?'

sambuka41

boomerang wrote: »

sambuka it depends on the size of the dog and the amount of cocoa ingested. It's cocoa that contains the theobromine. Milk chocolate has more sugar and fat, and less cocoa than dark chocolate or cooking chocolate.

Yeah I realise that, I just think there are individual differences involved as well.

Tea Tree

wexie wrote: »

Maybe she'll learn not to eat what she shouldn't .....

Naaah who am I kidding....she won't

Would be the first dog ever to stop and think 'should I be eating this?'

wouldnt you think they'd learn

I forgot to say I gave her about half her normal amount of her regular food when we came in from walk and sprinkled a small amount of activated charcoal on which might help keep things settled overnight.

Man on Fire

I wouldn't worry my dog ate a whole Easter egg and the 3 bars that wer in it..... And he was fine