Expert: Charlotte Sherrell, DVM - 2/27/2009

Question
A friend of mine has an overweight (9lb.) Yorkie that she feeds chocolate to as a treat.  I keep telling her this is bad, but her response is, "yes, but he likes it and I'm only giving him a tiny bit."  I doubt she ever feeds him a lethal dose in one day, but I'm wondering if there's a cumulative effect?  A chocolate-chip cookie today, a pinch of chocolate bar two days later... Could the dog drop dead from long-term exposure to small amounts of chocolate?

Answer
Babette -

I am not able to find information that indicate that feeding chocolate has cumulative effects.  If your friend is feeding her pet chocolate that is milk chocolate, then there is only a low potential for toxicity.  Semisweet chocolate has a moderate potential for toxicity and baking chocolate has a severe potential for toxicity.  

Theobromine is the active ingredient in chocolate.  Baking chocolate has the highest concentration of theobromine; dogs that get 100-150mg of theobromine can potentially suffer severe  effects on the heart muscle as it tends to overstimulate skeletal and cardiac muscle.


Additionally, feeding chocolate cannot be good for her teeth.  Ask your friend to consider that while she may be trying to please her pet there is a good chance that she may be a contributing factor in its poor oral health.

Best Regards,

Charlotte Sherrell, DVM