[Bionic]

Please tell every dog or cat owner you know. Even if you don't have a pet, please pass this to those who do.
 Over the weekend, the doting owner of two young lab... mixes purchased Cocoa Mulch from Target to use in their garden. The dogs loved the way it smelled and it was advertised to keep cats away from their garden. Their dog (Calypso) decided the mulch smelled good enough to eat and devoured a large helping. She vomited a few times which was typical when she eats something new but wasn't acting lethargic in any way. The next day, Mom woke up and took Calypso out for her morning walk. Halfway through the walk, she had a seizure and died instantly.
 
 Although the mulch had NO warnings printed on the label, upon further investigation on the company's web site,
 
 This product is HIGHLY toxic to dogs and cats.
 
 Cocoa Mulch is manufactured by Hershey's, and they claim that "It is true that studies have shown that 50% of the dogs that eat Cocoa Mulch can suffer physical harm to a variety of degrees (depending on each individual dog). However, 98% of all dogs won't eat it."
 
 *Snopes site gives the following information: http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp .asp>
 
 Cocoa Mulch, which is sold by Home Depot, Foreman's Garden Supply and other garden supply stores contains a lethal ingredient called 'Theobromine'. It is lethal to dogs and cats. It smells like chocolate and it really attracts dogs. They will ingest this stuff and die. Several deaths already occurred in the last 2-3 weeks.
 
 Theobromine is in all chocolate, especially dark or baker's chocolate which is toxic to dogs. Cocoa bean shells contain potentially toxic quantities of theobromine, a xanthine compound similar in effects to caffeine and theophylline. A dog that ingested a lethal quantity of garden mulch made from cacao bean shells developed severe convulsions and died 17 hours later. Analysis of the stomach contents and the ingested cacao bean shells revealed the presence of lethal amounts of theobromine.

[sabrina]

OMG

[jaykay]

That's it, the same stuff that makes chocolate so poisonous to dogs.

How irresponsible to sell something for a garden that can kill very common inhabitants of said gardens! It defies belief that they're allowed to.

That poor family 

[SallyintNorth]

I can't believe they're allowed to sell this.  Ok, if you use it in your own garden and are the kind of person who reads all the small print, you can keep your own dog(s) off it for a few weeks, after which it apparently isn't attractive to them.

But what about dogs passing by?  If a non-dog-owner uses this on a street-facing bed... 

(Almost) speechless.

[Backinwellies]

Have put this on my facebook page.

[colliewobbles]

I have heard this before but it never hurts to be reminded

[Rosemary]

Plant nurseries should put on labels if plants are poisonous - laburnum, laurel, rhododendron - never anything on the label.

[Shropshirelass]

Yes its not good the chemical you mentioned above  "Theobromine" was first noticed as poisonous to certain species all though I think it can happen in all species not 100% in cattle feed after studies found the chemical in some feeds years ago & its really addictive & causes the animals to go really hyperactive & then fit & die of a heart attack. I think this has also been seen in humans after eating way to much chocolate!

If your dog consumes chocolate then call a vet & take them to the vets imediatley - even small amounts can kill.

Other common poisons to look out for are:
Grapes - 
Lillies-
Antifreeze - (Their attracted to the smell & taste as it tastes sweet - but can cause acute severe liver failure.
Rat poisen (Warfarin) - This is an anti-coagulant it can affect any animals if ingested & causes the blood to stop clotting & animals will essentially bleed to death if not given the antidote by a vet soon after!

I'm sure there are many others but those & chocolate or anything with cocoa in are the most common poisons we see treated in the vets (Don't mean to scare anyone but it helps to make people aware) x
 

[xnbacon]

I've known people feed grapes to their dogs with no apparent ill effects.  Is it a 'sometimes' poison or just a matter of amount?
Also whilst on the subject, have read onions and garlic are poisonous to dogs, yet garlic seems to feature in most recipes for home made treats.  Not sure what to believe there either !

[colliewobbles]

My dog Meggy did a whole box of Green & Blacks chocolate once when she was only 6 months old and a tiny scrap of a thing.  We took her to the vets who did everything possible to make her sick but she was not letting any of it go!!  She was a tiny rescue girl from Ireland who fought for every scrap of food as a baby so I think she must have the constitution of an ox!

It is two ingredients in chocolate that are dangerous - the caffeine sends them hyper and raises the heart rate dangerously, the bromine is poisonous and if absorbed through the stomach walls into the blood stream will cause blood poisoning.  We had to feed Meggy very bland food mixed with charcoal powder - the charcoal lines the stomach and reduces/prevents the bromine absorption. 

For about 24 hours afterwards Meggy was hyper - I was up with her all night - I know collies are normally hyper but this was something else.  I guess that the caffeine is what caused that.  The vet told us to watch her constantly for 48 hours - if she showed any signs of listlessness or drowsiness this would indicate the bromine had been absorbed into her blood stream - then I should get her straight back to the vet.  Thank goodness that this didn't happen!

Just recently (she is almost 6 now) she got her 'paws' on one of those Cadbury bubbly bars - I didn't worry as she had survived a much bigger dose of stronger chocolate.  However, it is all down to the dog and their susceptibility - with any other dog I would get them straight to a vet with a small Cadbury bar to be honest.

Donna

[ZaktheLad]

A friend of mine lost her German Pointer when the dog opened the kitchen cupboard one night and ate a bag of dried raisins.