Charlie raided the Chocolate Chip bag

[HoneyPot]

Good thing I already have a vet appointment fortoday to get Misty's molars trimmed. ARGH. Charlie is goingto kill me if he doesn't kill himself first. I've been tryingto keep an eye on him for all the cloth he's ingested over the pastcouple days... and now he goes and eats a bunch of chocolate.

Ok so it was a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips, so it's a mix of darkand milk chocolate. I don't think he ate too many but I can'tbe sure. There was a small hole in the bag and I don't knowhow long he was eating.

Misty was downstairs with me, she ran upstairs to check on Charlie andstarted thumping - hard. I didn't go up figuring they werejust being trouble buns, but after 2 minutes of thumping, I went up tosee what was going on and lo and behold, Misty is standing therethumping and Charlie has his face in the bag of chocolate chips. *sigh*

The vet appointment is in 3 hours, so I have him down here with me*just incase*. Right now he's running around doing binkiesand I have some Critical Care out in case he feels likenibbling.

Anything I need to look for if he's adversely affected?

________
Nadia

 

[HoneyPot]

OK well, I called the vet, they said bring him in right away if I didn't know for sure how much he ate.

He is there now and is getting SubQ fluids, Activated Carbon, a shot of Vitamin B and Vitamin C to keep him perky.

The vet figured better be safe than sorry. I don't think heate too much, but I really can't be sure because it was a bulk bag of chocolate chips, it was only a very small hole in the bag, but the chocolate chips are teeny tiny and were just pouring out of the hole,so who knows how much he ate.

And for reference, the vet said chocolate basically will stop their heart if they eat too much. Their heart will slow down and that's what will kill them. It's a matter of how MUCH they ate, and since we didn't know how much he had, they are keeping him for 6 hours to keep a watch of him and give him a 2nd dose of carbon.

_______
Nadia

 

[f_j]

Oh no, I hope he's okay! It soundslike he will be, since they are taking preventative measures at thevet. Thank goodness for Misty, what a smart girl.Please keep up updated on Charlie.

 

[Snuggys Mom]

Wow, Charlie really is a little stinker, isn't he?

I'm glad Misty blew the whistle on him!

I'm sure he'll be fine. He keeps you on your toes, huh?

 

[HoneyPot]

thanks guys - I think he will be ok, but he's such a little doofus. Sometimes Misty just amazes me with how smart she is. I still can't believe she thumped until I came upstairs. And the second I walked in the room, she stopped thumping and just lay down to watch the action. She's getting extra treats today and Charlie I think has had enough treats...

 

[Pet_Bunny]

HoneyPot wrote:

she stopped thumping and just lay down to watchthe action. She's getting extra treats today and Charlie Ithink has had enough treats...

Misty issuch an :bunnyangel:, watchingover Charlie.

Rainbows!

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

Wow! I can't wait to hear how heis. Give that Misty a big hug/squeeze from me. Whata smart girl!

 

[HoneyPot]

Ok my Easter Chocolate Charlie is home! He's a little spaced out, but doing ok I think. He refuses to look at me, he's just sitting in the little stuffy bed with his back facing me. Every time I turn him around to face me, he turns back around. lol.

The vet said to watch him for the next week, but the next 24 hours is critical to keep an eye on him.

Misty is also mad at me because she had to have her molars trimmed, so she's ignoring me as well.

But everyone is a live and healthy (although a bit sulky).

______________
Nadia

 

[Snuggys Mom]

"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" - hee hee

Glad the little man's doing okay.

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

Snuggys Mom wrote:

"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" - hee hee

Ha Ha-Good One.

Seriously, I'm glad he's ok. I hope he learned his lesson:disgust:.

 

[TinysMom]

He thought you wanted a chocolate rabbit for Easter...

Seriously though, I'm glad he's ok and I hope he'll be fine!

(note to self: Hide chocolate from Tiny & Miss Bea and the harem)..

Peg

 

[HoneyPot]

Ugh, I'm so worried about him still.He hasn't eaten anything since getting back from the vet at 5pm today. I'm sure he's still tired and a bit stressed. His breathing is really heavy - to the point where he sounds like he is panting like a dog, and he's making these grunting noises when he breathes. I'm in such a panic about this....

 

[TinysMom]

I'm doing more research but want you to have this NOW....

• Excitement / nervousness / trembling
• Vomiting (not in rabbits) /diarrhea
• Excessive thirst / sometimes excessive urination (at higher levels of Theobromine toxicity)
• Muscle spasms
• Seizures
• Coma (rare
• Death (rare) -- likely due to heart rhythm abnormalities.

• IV fluids - to prevent dehydration from vomiting,diarrhea, and /or increased urination, and to "flush" the Theobromine out of the system.
• Emetics - medications that induce vomiting. Used when the ingestion of chocolate is within 4 hours. Up to6-8 hours post chocolate ingestion may be effective. (not for rabbits!)
• Activated charcoal - for ingestion greater than 4 hours prior to treatment, or for patients that show continued signs of toxicity.
• Anti-seizure medications - for patients having seizures and/or muscle tremors.
• Cardiac medications - for patients exhibiting irregular heart rates or rhythms.

 

[TinysMom]

From another site (about birds but I linked to it from a rabbit site):

t iscorrect that very small amounts of chocolate will notkill your bird. However, chocolate IS toxic — equally so to mammals,birds, and humans. It takes approximately 1 pound of chocolate to kill7 pounds of dog, cat, bird, human, ferret, etc. By this ratio, theaverage human would have to eat about 19 or 20 pounds of chocolate tobe affected!!…..but a 5 pound Yorkie is in serious trouble if it eatsmost of a 1-pound box of chocolate candy.
Your quaker or other small bird, however, is in danger if it eats only1/2 - 1 oz. of chocolate, depending on its weight. However, MOST of thechocolate we eat is not pure chocolate, or cocoa, so there is someleeway. The vet I used to work for sometimes gave Buddy the MealyAmazon an m&m, which he dearly loved, but warned me that awhole m&m was too much for one of my mini-macaws, who are closeto quakers in size.
Note: At least part of choc's toxicity is due to caffeine…which mostpeople don't realize it contains. Coke, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, tea,coffee, etc. should also not be given to birds for the same reason.

http://www.quakerparrots.com/diet/chocolate-toxic-to-parrots/

Continuing to research for you!

Peg

 

[TinysMom]

I really can't seem to find anymore - but this is from the first site I quoted..

Are some chocolates more toxic than others?

Yes. Unsweetened (baker's) chocolate contains 8-10 times the amount of Theobromine as milk chocolate. Semi-sweet chocolate falls roughly in between the two for Theobromine content. White chocolate containsTheobromine, but in such small amounts that Theobromine poisoning is unlikely. Caffeine is present in chocolate, but less than Theobromine.

Quick Guide for Theobromine levels in different types of chocolate:
From The Merck Veterinary Manual, 8th ed

[*]Unsweetened (Baker's) chocolate = 390-450 mg Theobromine per ozchocolate
[*]Milk chocolate = 44-60 mg Theobromine per oz chocolate
Semi-sweet is a bit less than half of the Theobromine content as Baker's chocolate.

How much is too much?

The toxic dose of Theobromine (and caffeine) for pets is 100-200mg/kg.(1 kiliogram = 2.2 pounds). However, various reports by the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) have noted problems at doses much lower than this - i.e.20mg/kg.

Translated to a "typical" scenario, and using the 20mg/kg as a measure of "problems can be seen at this level of ingestion", a 50 pound dog would have to consume 9 ounces (+/-) of milk chocolate to consume the20mg/kg amount of Theobromine. Some dogs won't see problems at this rate. Some may.

This is a much more conservative toxic level calculation than the"standard" of 100-200mg/kg, but better safe than sorry. A dog sneaking a couple M&M's shouldn't have a problem, but it isn't a good habit to get into!

 

[TinysMom]

Now - what I'm about to share is my GUT REACTION...what my instinct would tell me to do - not what I can say I've read you should do.

I would try to push fluids with him to see if you can flush the chocolate out of his body sooner. If he's not eating I'd try to get him to eat parsley, hay, even baby food - but something to make it so that he has more in his system than the chocolate...

Peg

 

[naturestee]

:yeahthat

It sounds to me like he was treated correctly by the vet.Pushing fluids and syringing a little food may help him get this through his system.

ray:

 

[HoneyPot]

Thanks so much Peg... I'm really at a loss as to what else to do here, but I am definately with you about getting more fluids into him.

Neil and I are going to try to get some pedialyte into him along with a bit of critical care. We don't have any baby food on hand...but tons and tons of Critical Care. Hmm.. trying to think of what else I can give him... we tried getting him to eat some tomato, but he's not having it - maybe I will have to puree some veggies...

__________
Nadia

 

[TinysMom]

shred some carrots?

I don't know what to tell you - but I just would be trying to do whatever I can for him as far as getting it diluted.

Peg

P.S. If I was in your shoes - I'd be freaking out! Please keep us updated - I'm almost freaking out here as it is..

 

[Pipp]

Just also try and keep him calm, and stay calm around him. Rapid breathingand confusion is a symptom, although it's obviously also a sign of stress.I think it's the stress on the heart that causes the biggest problem(although I'm not entirely certain, I'll have to double check).

Pedialyte's a good idea, hopefully he likes it and it won't be much of a hassle giving him some. Everything else, balance the stress of giving it to him against the benefits of the food.

Hope he's okay. (It's rarely fatal).



sas ray: