Can cats eat chocolate? What are the symptoms of chocolate poisoning in cats?

2022-06-17



Chocolate is a delicate, richly flavored sweet food that is sometimes used to express "love" in modern society.
A moderate diet of chocolate has many benefits for people, such as: releasing feel-good hormones, thus relieving stress; helping to lower and regulate high blood pressure; benefiting heart health; lowering cholesterol...
But this wonderful food is not so wonderful for cats, on the contrary, it is a "poison"!
Do not have the idea of feeding chocolate to cats, the intake of a certain amount of chocolate can lead to the death of cats.
It is known that dogs are not allowed to eat chocolate because they will die if they eat it. Not only dogs but cats are also not allowed to eat chocolate Oh! Because there is also theobromine in chocolate, cats will also eat it, as well as dogs, there is a reaction of poisoning, so cats are also not allowed to eat chocolate.

If a cat accidentally eats chocolate, it may suffer from lack of energy, loss of appetite, irregular heartbeat, vomiting, diarrhea, or even fainting. Generally, cats will have an abnormal reaction within a few hours after eating chocolate.
Although chocolate is not 100% fatal for cats, if it is not found in time or consumed in too large a quantity, it can easily kill the cat. In order to be safe, it is best to put away all the chocolates at home, so that the cats and dogs at home do not have the opportunity to accidentally eat them.

In addition to chocolate, like similar chocolate-flavored drinks, snacks are not allowed to give cats to eat. Similar food and coffee, tea, and so on, are and chocolate has the same effect, can cause poisoning and even death of beloved pets, usually must be put away.

Although chocolate is really delicious, this delicious cat is no way to enjoy it. As a pooper scooper, don't think about sharing everything with your pet, because a lot of the food people eat is toxic to animals. Although people eat with no problem, it does not mean that animals eating is okay oh.

The following is a detailed explanation of the effects of chocolate on cats, and what we should do if our cats accidentally eat chocolate.

I. Theobromine and caffeine


Chocolate is toxic to cats because it contains theobromine and caffeine, with theobromine being the main toxic component and caffeine in much lower concentrations.

Theobromine is a drug-like methylxanthine, and caffeine is a xanthine alkaloid compound, both of which have effects such as stimulating the central nervous system and exciting the heart muscle.

When cats consume chocolate, the theobromine and caffeine are digested and absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract and travel with the bloodstream to various organs throughout the body. It takes a long time for the cat's body to metabolize such ingredients, during which time the theobromine and caffeine will continuously stimulate the central nervous system, leading to toxic symptoms and even death.

II. Toxic doses


"Toxicity without talking about the dose is a rogue", for you to popularize the toxic dose of theobromine and caffeine in cats.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center data records that the dose that can produce mild symptoms is 20mg/kg, and the dose that produces severe symptoms is 40-50mg/kg.

These doses do not need to be memorized, just remember that once a cat eats chocolate, no matter how much we need to be alert, observe, and consult a veterinarian. White chocolate has the lowest level and baked unsweetened chocolate has the highest.
Why does chocolate kill (cats)?
Is a small piece of chocolate really that bad?

Toxic compounds in chocolate
The main toxic compounds in chocolate are theobromine and caffeine, both of which are xanthine derivatives.

Xanthine derivatives
Xanthine derivatives are a group of alkaloids that are commonly used as mild stimulants and bronchodilators and are often used in the treatment of asthma.

Methylated xanthines, including caffeine, aminophylline, IBMX, theobromine, and theophylline, among others, can stimulate the central nervous system, enhance cardiac and skeletal muscle contraction, and cause arrhythmias at high concentrations.

Can cats eat chocolate? What are the symptoms of chocolate poisoning in cats?



III. What are the symptoms of chocolate poisoning in cats?


Clinical signs in cats usually occur within 12 h of chocolate ingestion.

Initial clinical signs include.

Panting, hyperactivity, restlessness, shortness of breath, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, and excessive urination.

Mid to late symptoms include.

Hypokalemia, severe vomiting or diarrhea, ataxia, muscle tremors, increased or decreased heart rate, elevated body temperature, respiratory failure, cardiac arrhythmias, and death.

Less common symptoms include abdominal pain and hematuria.

Death is usually due to cardiac arrhythmia or respiratory failure.

IV. What should we do if a cat accidentally eats chocolate?


If a cat accidentally eats chocolate, there are three things we need to do immediately: call the vet, induce vomiting, and take the cat to the vet, and time is of the essence.

1. Call the vet and tell the vet all the actual circumstances, including what kind of chocolate was eaten by mistake, how much chocolate was eaten by mistake, how much time has passed since the cat ate the chocolate, and the basic condition of the cat (weight, age, etc.), and follow the vet's method.

2. Emetic, which is to reduce the chocolate in the stomach as much as possible, thus reducing the absorption of chocolate in the cat to avoid further development of the disease. Consider 3% hydrogen peroxide, activated charcoal, and dehydrated morphine. It needs to be operated according to the veterinarian's instructions.

3. Take the cat to the veterinarian without delay.

Once at the hospital, the veterinarian will continue to induce vomiting and treat the symptoms, as well as perform gastric lavage operations and possibly insert a tube in the bladder to prevent the reabsorption of toxins.

After the treatment is over, we need to carefully check if there is any residual chocolate on the cat's fur. If there is, it needs to be cleaned off in time to prevent re-poisoning.

Prognosis: The prognosis for chocolate poisoning in cats is good if it is treated correctly, quickly, and aggressively. If delayed for a long time and enough methylxanthine is absorbed into the body, this can be fatal.

V. List of foods that cats cannot eat



銆€銆€Milk: Most cats do not have lactase, which cannot break down lactose, and milk intake can easily cause diarrhea in cats. However, yogurt can be fed in small amounts, plain. In addition, cats have special cat milk powder, or goat milk powder is also possible.

銆€銆€Salt: This includes anything with salt, including poor quality cat food (especially Vega, which contains excessive salt), your favorite soy beef, and dried salted fish.

銆€銆€Cereals and starches: (such as rice, noodles, buns, bread, potatoes, etc.) For the sake of your cat's teeth and their inability to absorb such foods, please do not feed them cereals and starches.

銆€銆€Animal liver: The liver contains a lot of vitamin A. Excessive intake of vitamin A can lead to muscle stiffness, neck pain, deformation of bones and joints, and liver disease. A small intake is fine, but be sure not to give more.

銆€銆€High-fat foods: that is, high-fat fish or fatty meats, which tend to cause them to lack vitamin E, which in turn causes inflammation of body fat and extreme pain.

銆€銆€Raw fish and raw meat: cook them before feeding them. Although in some foreign countries is very respectable for dogs and cats to eat raw meat food, the domestic quarantine situation is not ideal, in order to prevent parasites, or not give dogs and cats to eat raw meat food.

銆€銆€Dog food: cats are carnivores, while dogs are omnivores, the nutrients in dog food are not enough to meet the needs of cats.

銆€銆€Seafood: shrimp, sea crab, squid, salamander snails, cuttlefish, octopus, squid, sardines, and horse mullet. Because the protein in this type of food is not easily digested by cats and also contains toxins that cause allergies in cats. If a big cat eats too much, it will cause allergy, salivation, vomiting, diarrhea, and other symptoms, and in the case of kittens, it may even cause spasms and death in severe cases. In particular, sardines and horse-faced fish contain a strange toxin to which cats react particularly strongly. However, this type of food is especially liked by cats because of its fishy smell, and also by people, so when we eat if we have the above type of seafood, don't feed them casually because the cat begs for food, and don't cause pain to the cat because of its pampering.

銆€銆€Bones (especially chicken and duck bones and larger fish spines): this also says a lot, never think of cats as tough, sharper bones, and larger fish spines can easily cut their throats or esophagus, which is also the warning of various vets!

銆€銆€Condiments: such as salt, MSG, pepper, mustard, spicy oil, etc. Basically, as long as the food is made through the processing of seasonings, should not be given to dogs and cats to eat. Because these condiments can affect the liver and kidney function of cats.
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  • Release Date:2022-06-17 16:55:11
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