Dog owners are being urged not to feed their pups classic Easter treats such as chocolate eggs and hot cross buns, with a stark message that it could kill them.
The warning comes as a survey by Royal Canin found a quarter of British pet owners think food deemed fit for human consumption is safe for their dog.
Ahead of Easter, Vets Now, the pet equivalent of A&E, is gearing up for a 50% surge in calls from owners whose pets have been poisoned by chocolate. There are fears the increase will be bigger than usual, due to the number of puppies bought during lockdown and the fact we’re spending longer at home.
Dave Leicester, responsible for a team at Vets Now’s Video Vet service, said: “We see a big rise in chocolate toxicity cases at Easter and it shows owners can never be too careful, especially those with greedy dogs who will do all they can to eat. Our advice is to keep chocolate treats well away from your dog.
“As long as it’s treated early and there’s been no kidney damage the prognosis for chocolate toxicity is generally good.”
In severe cases, chocolate poisoning in dogs can cause fits and even death.
Two-year-old Chihuahua Bailey needed life-saving treatment after tucking into a milk chocolate Easter egg in 2020. His owner Tracy, from Chatham, Kent, said the tiny pooch became lethargic and “just wasn’t himself”. She then discovered a torn-up Easter egg foil with no chocolate left inside.
“I’m very careful with chocolate around our dogs as I know it’s poisonous for them, but my seven-year-old son had hidden an egg under a pillow thinking Bailey wouldn’t be able to find it,” she said.
The 39-year-old rang PDSA immediately and they advised her to take him in for emergency treatment – he was given medication to induce vomiting in a bid to stop any more of the toxins being absorbed. His small breed size means that even small amounts of chocolate can be deadly.
Senior vet Soo Ming Teoh estimates Bailey had eaten half an Easter egg, which is an “extremely dangerous” amount for a dog of his very stature. Treatment was successful and after a few hours of observation and treatment, he was able to go home.
Keep these away from your pet:
Chocolate – whether white, milk or dark – is bad for dogs as it contains theobromine. Signs a pet might have eaten chocolate can include vomiting, diarrhoea, drinking excessively, shaking and restlessness. The higher the cocoa content of the chocolate, the more dangerous it is, so dark chocolate poses the biggest risk to pets. At higher doses, signs can even progress to an abnormal heart rhythm, raised body temperature, rapid breathing and seizures.
For those who prefer to munch through a bag of sweets at Easter, these can also be a problem as they often contain a sweetener called xylitol, which is toxic to pets.
Meanwhile hot cross buns are dangerous as they contain sultanas and raisins, which are toxic to dogs and can cause kidney failure.
It might be tempting to throw meat on the bone to your pooch, but you’re strongly advised not to. Not only could your dog choke on the bone, but smaller splintered pieces could irritate its gut or in more serious cases puncture the stomach wall.
Ham and lamb are fatty foods which can cause vomiting, bloating, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, dehydration, weakness, lethargy, and fever in dogs if eaten in large enough quantities.
Meanwhile gravy can be problematic as it can contain alcohol and tends to have a high salt content. There’s also a high chance of gravy containing onions which – alongside shallots, garlic, leeks and scallions – are part of the allium family and are dangerous to both dogs and cats.
Sadly the dangers don’t stop there. Traditional springtime flowers such as daffodils and lilies can also be dangerous to pets, so keep these out of reach of prying paws. Or better yet, opt for pet-friendly blooms like roses.
The message for pet owners is simple: store chocolates and other potentially poisonous foods in the same way as medicines – safely and securely.