Dogs and chocolate

QuestionEdit

I just discovered a small amount of foil wrapping from an old Cadbury chocolate egg laying on the floor. My 16 pound, 2 year old dachshund has chocolate breath. After he coughed I saw a tiny piece of foil on his nose. I've always heard that chocolate is very bad for dogs. Is it toxic and should I be worried? What should I watch for?

AnswerEdit

That would depend on how much chocolate he has eaten. If it's just a few pieces, the most he might get is some bad diarrhea for a few days.A whole box is another story. The amount of chocolate compared to sugar is another concern. Dark chocolates are worse as they have more of what makes them sick in it. Watch his stool, keep the rest of the chocolate higher up and watch his weight too. If he gets diarrhea use a childs dose of pepto bismol for a couple of days and feed him some boiled rice with his food.