Which chocolate is the most dangerous
What harms a dog is not the chocolate itself but the theobromine and caffeine in it: a dog's body breaks these substances down very slowly, so they act on the heart and nervous system for a long time. The more cocoa, the more of them. Cocoa powder and baking chocolate hold the most, bitter and dark chocolate less, milk chocolate less again.
White chocolate holds almost no theobromine, but it is high in fat and sugar, which can irritate the gut and the pancreas, so it must not be given to a dog either.
| Chocolate | Theobromine | Caffeine |
|---|---|---|
| Cocoa powder | 2 630 mg | 78 mg |
| Baking | 1 300 mg | 80 mg |
| Bitter (extra dark) | 802 mg | 80 mg |
| Dark | 493 mg | 43 mg |
| Milk | 205 mg | 20 mg |
| White | 0 mg | 0 mg |
Cocoa is not only in chocolate
Cocoa is in cakes, biscuits, chocolate sweets, cocoa drinks and icing. In the garden, cocoa shell mulch can be a danger: it smells of chocolate, so a dog may eat it.
Holidays are when a home holds the most sweets, so keep chocolate eggs, Christmas sweets and presents where your dog cannot reach them.
Sugar-free sweets: xylitol
Sugar-free chewing gum, sweets and baked goods can contain xylitol. It is a separate and very serious danger: in a dog it makes the blood sugar drop suddenly and can damage the liver. This calculator does not estimate it, so if your dog ate anything with xylitol, contact a vet straight away.