Chocolate and Christmas dangers for dogs and cats: Belgian guide

From Saint Nicholas to New Year, our homes fill up with pralines, cougnou bread, leftover turkey and glittering decorations. For Archie and Oreo, this is the riskiest time of the year. Here is what to keep out of reach, which quantities are truly dangerous and what to do if an accident happens.

Chocolate: why it is so dangerous

The culprit is theobromine, a cocoa molecule closely related to caffeine. Dogs break it down very slowly: according to the Belgian Poison Centre, its half-life is around 17.5 hours. The first signs appear 2 to 4 hours after ingestion: restlessness, vomiting, diarrhoea, panting, a racing heart. In severe cases: heart rhythm disorders, muscle rigidity, seizures.

Cats are just as sensitive but rarely drawn to sweets; for them, the danger lies in mousses and cocoa sauces licked off a plate.

How much is dangerous?

It all depends on the type of chocolate and your pet's weight. The Poison Centre gives these thresholds for dogs: first symptoms from 20 mg of theobromine per kilo, severe symptoms from 40 mg/kg, seizures at 60 mg/kg and the lowest known lethal dose at 80 mg/kg. Using the contents it publishes (milk 1 to 2.1 mg/g, dark 4.5 to 8.8 mg/g, cocoa powder 5.3 to 38 mg/g), taken at the high end here to stay on the safe side, you get:

A single 100 g bar of dark chocolate makes a 10 kg dog seriously ill and can kill a small dog. White chocolate contains almost no theobromine but is very fatty and sweet, enough to trigger pancreatitis.

The other festive foods to keep out of reach

• Raisins and fresh grapes: found in stollen, cramique, pudding and some stuffings. In dogs they can cause acute kidney failure within 24 to 72 hours, with a risk from more than one grape per 4.5 kg according to the Merck Veterinary Manual.
• Onions, garlic, shallots, leeks: raw, cooked or powdered (stuffings, sauces, gratins), they destroy the red blood cells of dogs and cats and cause anaemia a few days later.
• Alcohol: a dribble of mulled wine or whisky cream can cause hypothermia, loss of balance and coma in a small animal.
• Cooked poultry bones: their sharp splinters can perforate the stomach or intestine; the carcass goes straight into a closed bin.
• Turkey fat, skin, gravy: too rich, they cause vomiting and pancreatitis, especially in older or overweight dogs.
• Raw yeast dough: it swells in the stomach and produces alcohol as it ferments.
• Xylitol: this sweetener in "sugar-free" chewing gum and sweets drops a dog's blood sugar within 30 minutes from around 100 mg/kg and can damage the liver above 500 mg/kg.
• Macadamia nuts: hind leg weakness, tremors and fever in dogs.

See also the digestive warning signs to watch for.

Tree, decorations and seasonal plants

Pine needles irritate the mouth and can form an intestinal blockage: Vlaanderen Dierenwelzijn advises sweeping them up every day. The water in the tree stand, quick to go stale and sometimes laced with preservatives, should stay covered.

• Tinsel, ribbons and string: cats swallow them while playing and the thread can saw through the intestine. If one is hanging from the mouth or the anus, never pull on it and see a vet.
• Glass baubles and fairy lights: shards that cut paw pads, a chewed cable that burns or electrocutes. Choose shatterproof baubles, away from the lowest branches.
• Candles: a tail brushing the flame, a tablecloth pulled down: never leave them unattended.
• Poinsettia, mistletoe, holly and Christmas rose: all four are toxic to dogs and cats; mistletoe and holly berries cause vomiting, drooling and drowsiness. Place them high up or choose artificial versions. Our article on plants toxic to dogs and cats details the symptoms.

What to do if your pet eats something

1. Do not make your pet vomit yourself and do not give it anything to swallow: this is the Poison Centre's explicit instruction. Salt or hydrogen peroxide often make things worse.
2. Note what was eaten, how much and at what time, and keep the packaging. With your pet's weight, the vet can calculate the dose.
3. Call your vet, or the on-call vet at night and on public holidays, 25 December and 1 January included: see our on-call vets page and the guide on-call vet: how it works.
4. The Poison Centre answers on 070 245 245 for animals, weekdays from 8 am to 4 pm, weekends and public holidays from 10 am to 4 pm. It handles human emergencies first and its advice does not replace your vet's.
5. Act quickly: the vet can safely induce vomiting within two hours of ingestion, then give activated charcoal. After that there is no antidote and hospitalisation is needed.

With Zoolinko, your pet's weight, treatments and history are in its free digital health record, and the 72-hour emergency access lets the on-call vet consult them immediately.

Store chocolate in a closed cupboard, tell your guests that nothing gets handed out at the table, and empty the bin as soon as dessert is served. Prepare as well for the New Year fireworks, the season's other big stress.