The Dog Training Review

Dogs are probably the most loved pets. Pet owners unaware of the dangerous effect of some people food to animals would share whatever they are eating with the pet. It is really quite perplexing how a perfectly safe food for humans can be poisonous to dogs. Humans and dogs are believed to have many genetic similarities but they differ in many ways as well. One of these differences is the dog’s inability to digest chocolates. Dogs are given bits of chocolate because not many dog owners are aware of the toxic effects of this food on dogs. Humans get a lot of benefits from chocolates. Chocolates + dogs is an equation that can have dangerous results.

The substance theobromine that is found in chocolates is what makes this world’s most loved treat toxic to dogs. Cocoa beans from where chocolates are derived contains the substance theobromine. Theobromine is dangerous to dogs as it acts as stimulant that causes frequent urination, affects heart muscles and the kidneys and the central nervous system. Unlike humans, a dog’s system does not have the ability to digest this substance. Because of the dog’s inability to digest the theobromine substance, continued consumption will cause an accumulation in the dog’s system until a variety of medical concerns happen because increased level of toxicity.

People love chocolates and because dogs are well loved pets, the chocolate bar or the Black Forest cake the dog owner is eating will be shared with the pet. Apparently, a dog will not show signs of poisoning if only a small amount of these kinds of chocolates are consumed. A good news to dog owners that are unaware of the harmful effects of chocolates to the dog is the fact that the toxicity of this food is dose dependent so that the pet has to consume from 100 to 150 milligrams of chocolate per kilogram of body weight before the pet will be affected. The toxicity level would depend on the type of chocolate consumed. Because white chocolates is low in theobromine content, the toxicity level is also low. Because of the low theobromine content, a dog has to consume 200 ounces of white chocolates before clinical signs of poisoning can be noticed. However, this is not so with milk chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate as it contains more of the dangerous theobromine chemical. The baking chocolate is considered to be the most dangerous among all types of chocolates. Althogh a dog owner may not give the dog baking chocolate it is still possible for the dog to ingest substantial amount because the dog’s nose would find where the chocolates are kept and would have an eating spree. If this happens, the dog must be taken to the vet’s at once. It is always good to know what to do if your dog has eaten chocolate.