Easter Holiday Shocker! Creme Eggs Nearly Killed This Dog April 8, 2009 by PDSA
Sweet-toothed Labrador, Buster, has made an egg-cellent recovery
thanks to PDSA – after he collapsed with chocolate poisoning from
wolfing down a dozen chocolate cream eggs!
Five-year-old Buster’s owner, Brenda Dawes, from Derby,
brought the chocolate eggs as an Easter treat for her grandchildren.
She hid them away in her spare bedroom, but didn’t count on
mischievous Buster sniffing them out.
Brenda says: “When I arrived home one afternoon, Buster came
down the stairs, wagging his tail and licking his lips. I knew
immediately he’d been up to something. He’s a terror and
chews everything he gets his paws on – mobile phones, video
tapes, the remote control.”
Brenda went upstairs to investigate and found her Easter presents
missing and just one empty box lying on the floor – Buster had
eaten all 12 chocolate eggs, their foil wrapping and one of the
cardboard containers!
“I knew you shouldn’t give dogs chocolate, but I
didn’t realise it was poisonous,” continues Brenda.
“Buster was fine the rest of the night and we went to bed without
any problems so I thought he was going to be fine. But at about 5am he
woke me up howling in pain. He couldn’t stand up; his back legs
just kept buckling underneath him. His stomach was swollen and he was
obviously in a lot of pain. Panicking, I called PDSA and they told me
to bring him straight in.”
Brenda struggled to carry five stone Buster to her car and rushed
him straight to Derby PDSA PetAid hospital. Once there he was treated
with fluids and placed in intensive care for round-the-clock
observation.
Senior Veterinary Surgeon, Vicky Sims, says: “Buster was quite
lucky. Cream eggs have a fairly low theobromine content because
they’re half fondant. Higher quality ‘posh’
chocolates are the most dangerous as they have high concentrated doses
of theobromine – which poisons pets.
“Many people are simply not aware that even small amounts of
human chocolate can kill a little dog. If you want to indulge your pet
you should opt for a healthy pet treat instead.”
As Brenda found out, despite owners best intentions, our four-legged
friends will outsmart us and get their paws on sweet treats, as Vicky
explains: “Owners may think that they have put chocolate in a
safe place, but it’s not unheard of for pets to open cupboards
and doors to feast on naughty treats. PDSA’s advice is to make
sure unsuitable foods are kept well away from prying paws –
especially Easter eggs.”
Thanks to Derby PetAid hospital’s quick treatment, Buster has
now made a full recovery. Brenda concluded: “I can’t thank
PDSA enough for their help, the idea of losing Buster is just
unimaginable. He doesn’t seem to have leant his lesson though.
He’s already tried to eat a bag of crisps and a toilet roll since
he’s been home – I’ll have to keep a close eye on him
from now on to keep him out of trouble.”
The effects of chocolate poisoning in dogs usually appear within 6
to 12 hours of ingestion, and can last as long as 72 hours. Symptoms
can include vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal tenderness, restlessness and
increased heart and breathing rate. In severe cases there may be fits,
heart beat irregularities or coma. If dogs ingest a large quantity of
theobromine and are left untreated, the poisoning can prove fatal.
For more information on pet health log onto www.pdsa.org.uk.
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R.I.P Scouse xx Saffron xx and Roxanne xx I will Never Walk Alone..Still Miss you all. 
