Chocolate on the Brain? The Brain on Chocolate?

One Man's Meat is Another Mans' Poison....
                                               ....Chocolate Can Be Poisonous for Dogs

Dogs and humans have similar tastes. Like us, they seek out sweets and have no problem indulging. But unlike humans, our canine companions experience dangerous effects from eating chocolate—it can poison them and in some cases is lethal. Apparently, large dogs can usually handle a small amount of chocolate whereas the same helping could cause problems for a small dog.

Chocolate is processed from the bitter seeds of the cacao tree, which contain a family of compounds known as methylxanthines. This class of substances includes caffeine and the related chemical theobromine. Both molecules bind to receptors on the surfaces of cells and block the natural compounds that normally attach there. Low doses of methylxanthines can lead to vomiting or diarrhea in dogs, and euphoria in humans. Chocolate contains a significant amount of theobromine and smaller amounts of caffeine. If a large quantity of theobromine or caffeine is ingested, some dogs will experience muscle tremors or even seizures. These chemical constituents of chocolate can cause a dog's heart to race up to twice its normal rate, and some dogs may run around as if they had drunk  a few too many double espressos.

Around every chocolate-centred holiday—Valentine's Day, Easter and Christmas—at least three or four dogs are hospitalised overnight in the animal medical center at Colorado State in the USA!

Dogs that eat a small amount of chocolate should be able to filter the methylxanthines through their body and avoid veterinary treatment. But more acutely poisoned dogs are generally treated by inducing vomiting and administering activated charcoal to absorb any methylxanthines remaining in the gut or that may be circulating through the dog's digestive system.