Will Chocolate Kill Your Dog? | COLOSSAL QUESTIONS

If there's one thing dog owners have heard over and over again, it's that dogs can't have chocolate. But why? Is it just something your mom says? Or can chocolate really hurt man's best friend? Let's find out on today's episode of Colossal Questions. Okay, let's start with the basics. Humans have cultivated the cacao beans for at least 3,500 years. The Olmecs of Southern Mexico were probably the first people to grind and roast the beans for food and drinks. But before your mouth starts watering, it was nothing like the chocolate we eat today. The Aztecs called chocolate chocolato, which means sour or bitter drink. Today, chocolate tastes so good because we add lots of sugar to make it sweet and tasty. So it's no wonder that people everywhere wanna share it with their pets. But beware, because what they say is true. Chocolate definitely is toxic to dogs. That's because chocolate contains caffeine and a chemical called theobromine. When humans eat these chemicals, we just get a little jolt of energy because we can process them quickly. Dogs, however, aren't quite as lucky. They process these chemicals slowly, which makes the effects much stronger. If a canine eats too much chocolate, they can have diarrhea, vomiting, muscle spasms, excessive panting, hyperactive behavior, and even seizures. Okay, so chocolate is bad for dogs, but is it toxic enough to kill them? Well, in severe cases, they can overheat, have trouble breathing, or even experience an irregular heartbeat, all of which can cause death. So how much chocolate is too much for a pooch? Well, it depends on the size of the dog and the kind of chocolate. Smaller dogs will have more severe reactions, and the amount of caffeine and theobromine in chocolate varies. Cocoa powder has the most, then unsweetened baker's chocolate, then dark chocolate, then milk chocolate. That means it would take around two and a half regular-sized chocolate bars to hurt a dog the size of a chocolate lab. You might be surprised how many other common foods are dangerous for dogs. You should never feed your dog avocados, onions, garlic, coffee, grapes, macadamia nuts, or overly salty or sugary foods. But don't worry, you can still give your best friend some human food treats. Just stick to unseasoned lean meats, like turkey, fruits without seeds or stems, and a few vegetables, like carrots, green beans, and cucumber. You know, like your mom eats. So, can chocolate kill your canine? Yeah, it can, especially if it gets into cocoa powder. But regular old chocolate bars will probably just give them a bad stomach ache. That is, unless they really pig out. In other words, just don't take your puppy trick-or-treating.