Vet issues warning after home-alone pooch feasts on chocolate

Olive, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, was home alone when she polished off two-and-a-half Terry’s Milk Chocolate Oranges, a plain Terry’s Chocolate Orange and a Thornton’s Cheeky Chocolate Elf, before ripping into a tube of Parma Violets she found wrapped up under the Christmas tree.

The seven-year-old devoured more than 700g of chocolate, which is toxic to dogs as it contains the chemical theobromine that can cause severe vomiting and diarrhoea, hyperactivity, and organ failure. It can be fatal, depending on the dose and size of pet.

Eastfield Veterinary Hospital in North Thoresby, near Grimsby, has praised the owners for their swift response in seeking advice and promptly admitting Olive for treatment after they returned home to find empty wrappers on the floor and Olive looking shamefaced.

Vet Adam Slavicek warned pet owners not to take a ‘wait and see’ approach if they know their dog has consumed any confectionery this Christmas as symptoms can often worsen over time.

Adam gave Olive an injection of apomorphine, a drug to make her vomit up all the chocolate. When she was retching but no longer being sick, she was given further medication to reverse the effects of the drug, followed by activated charcoal which prevents any remaining toxins from being absorbed.

He said: “Apomorphine works very quickly, usually within five to 10 minutes.

"Time is really important. It was good that Olive’s owners did not wait and just brought her in, so we were able to treat her straight away.

“There was a lot of vomit, which was a good sign as it showed that most of the chocolate had still been in her stomach.

"She was lucky. It was definitely a dose that could have caused significant issues.”

Olive was kept under observation for a few hours before returning home, where owner Sharon Legge said she was now back to her usual self.

Sharon said: “I had been out for the morning and when we came back there were chocolate wrappers all around and Olive was looking quite sheepish.

“Staffies have the constitution of an ox. She had no symptoms, but the chocolate was a concern, so we rang Eastfield Vets and took her in as a precaution.

“They checked her over and kept her in for treatment. She was fine by that evening and has made a full recovery.

"She has never done anything like this before, never unwrapped anything, but we won’t be doing that again. All the chocolate is in the cupboard now.”

Eastfield Vets is urging dog owners to keep confectionery away from pets to avoid having to make an emergency visit to the vets during the festivities.

If they do suspect their dog has devoured chocolate, or other hazardous foods such as raisins, currants or sweets which may contain the sweetener xylitol, which is toxic for dogs, they should contact their vet for advice and keep the packaging to check for risky substances.