Dogs are great to have around the house. They alert you to the presence of strangers, they’re fun to play with, and they offer unconditional love. Pet owners know all about those wonderful benefits of caring for a four-legged friend.
Still, there are some downsides to being a pet owner as well. One such downside is that you have to be more careful about your food.
Some dogs may not be able to resist their instincts and just chow down on any food in front of them. Your dog eating your food is bad enough. Things only get worse if the food they ate could harm them.
In this article, we’ll discuss what could happen if your dog eats chocolate muffins. Keep the contents of this article in mind as you store your food.
Can Dogs Eat Chocolate Muffins?
We love our dogs. Because of that, we want to share everything we can with them. Food is not an exception.
It’s hard to say no when your dog puts on their best sad face as they ask for a bite. Unfortunately, you have to do that sometimes.
Some of the foods we eat are not safe for our canine companions. Notable examples of foods that are bad for dogs include grapes, raisins, and avocadoes.
Of course, we cannot forget about chocolate. Chocolate muffins are not safe for your pet precisely because of that flavoring agent.
According to the American Kennel Club, chocolate is harmful to dogs because it contains caffeine and theobromine. Both of those substances can increase your dog’s heart rate to extreme levels. Even their nervous system could end up affected by the aforementioned substances.
Chocolate muffins can be especially toxic for dogs because of the type of chocolate they contain.
Many chocolate muffin recipes instruct people to use cocoa powder and baker’s chocolate. Those happen to be the types of chocolate that contain the highest amounts of theobromine. Your dog will be seriously affected by the theobromine in those muffins.
What Happens if a Dog Eats a Chocolate Muffin?
Your pet dog chomping down on chocolate is not good.
Not long after they ate the chocolate, your pet will exhibit the symptoms of chocolate poisoning. We’ll get into what those symptoms are in a bit, but they will be very unpleasant for your dog to experience.
Dogs will fall ill after eating chocolate. They can get sick to the point where a visit to the veterinarian is necessary.
Could your pet dog die from eating chocolate muffins? That is a possibility as well. However, you should know that dogs rarely die from that.
Your dog would have to eat a lot of chocolate to reach the point where it endangers their life. On top of that, you would have to ignore the clear symptoms for your dog to die from chocolate poisoning. As long as you take action reasonably quickly, your dog will not die from eating those chocolate muffins.
What Signs to Look For?
After seeing the partially eaten chocolate muffin on the floor, you may already suspect that your dog got to it. Seeing the symptoms of chocolate poisoning emerge in your dog can confirm your suspicions.
We’ve detailed those symptoms below.
Vomiting
Your dog is going to start vomiting not long after eating the chocolate muffin. This is among the most common signs of chocolate poisoning. Watch out for vomit on the ground as you go to your dog.
Excessive Urination
The theobromine and caffeine can wreak plenty of havoc inside your dog’s body. Your pet may react by urinating more often.
Diarrhea
Diarrhea is another unpleasant and uncomfortable symptom of chocolate poisoning in dogs. You can imagine the difficulty your pet is having as they have to deal with all the things coming out of their body.
Dehydration
Given the fact that chocolate poisoning can cause vomiting, excessive urination, and diarrhea, you cannot be surprised that dehydration is another one of its symptoms. Dogs tend to get very thirsty after eating chocolate so make sure they drink plenty of water.
Restlessness
The contents of the chocolate muffin may also cause your pet dog to grow restless. They will move around a lot as the excess energy is coursing through the body.
Shaking
Approach your dog and you may feel their body shaking. You are not imagining things. That shaking is yet another symptom of chocolate poisoning.
Collapse
A dog who ate chocolate may collapse after some time if they are not treated. You should never let the situation get to that point because there’s a possibility that your pet might die.
What to Do if My Dog Eats a Chocolate Muffin?
Finding out that your dog ate a chocolate muffin is troubling. Your mind may immediately go to the worst-case scenario.
Do not allow yourself to fall into that trap. Your dog needs you more than ever during that time so get ready to care for them.
Outlined below are the steps you must take if your dog has eaten chocolate.
Step 1: Avoid Panicking
The sight of a leftover chocolate muffin can strike fear into the heart of any pet owner. The last thing you want to do in that situation is to give in to the fear.
Avoid panicking and approach the situation with a clear mind. Doing so is necessary if you want to help your pet dog as much as possible.
Panicking can affect your dog as well. They may get stressed out by your panicked response and their condition may deteriorate further.
Step 2: Call Your Veterinarian
The next thing you need to do is call your veterinarian. Relay as much information as you can to the veterinarian.
Tell them about the chocolate used in the muffin, how much of the muffin your dog ate, and when you believe your dog ate the muffin. The veterinarian may also ask you about the size of your dog and their age. Providing those details will help the veterinarian determine what the next course of action should be.
Step 3: Heed the Veterinarian’s Advice
Depending on the details you provide, your veterinarian may advise you to either stay at home or bring your pet to the clinic. If they advise you to do the latter, you should follow them. Your veterinarian can take over your dog’s treatment at that point.
Step 4: Monitor Your Dog
Your dog is not out of the woods yet even if the veterinarian advises you to stay at home. Although their bout of chocolate poisoning may not be life-threatening, your pet will still experience its uncomfortable symptoms.
Monitor your dog closely during that time to see how their condition develops. Don’t assume that your dog is fine if they don’t show symptoms immediately. Some symptoms may not emerge until 12 hours after your dog first ate the muffin.
The symptoms can also last up to 72 hours after your dog ingested the chocolate. Keep watching them until that much time has passed.