Can Cats Eat Chocolate?

As every dog owner should know, dogs are not allowed to eat chocolate. But what about our feline friends? Can cats eat chocolate? Cats can’t eat chocolate as chocolate can be poisonous to cats. Why is chocolate poisonous to cats?

Chocolate contains theobromine and caffeine and that are poisonous to cats so cats can’t eat chocolate. The human body can metabolize theobromine but cats cannot metabolize it. This is the reason why people can enjoy chocolate without suffering dire consequences. The compound can stay in a cat’s bloodstream for almost 24 hours after eating chocolate and because the body cannot clear it out, the poisonous accumulation makes the cat ill and in some cases, can cause death.

The darker the chocolate is, the more dangerous it is to cats. The lethal dose for cats is considered to be 200 milligrams of theobromine per kilogram of body weight. There are so many types of chocolates and they contain different levels theobromine. The more cacao in the variety, the more poisonous is the chocolate for the cat.

There are many symptoms that a cat can have after she ingested too much chocolate. Some symptoms can be minor, others ca put the cat’s life in danger. If a cat eats chocolate, here are some symptoms that she can have: diarrhea, vomiting, severe increase or decrease in blood pressure, fever, fast breathing, abnormal heart rate, seizures, lethargy, muscle twitching, weakness, coma, cardiac failure.

In case you suspect your cat has eaten chocolate, you should go immediately with the cat at the vet. If the incident happens outside of normal business hours, do not wait, find or call an emergency vet. Time is essential even if the cat doesn’t show immediate signs of illness. It can take a few hours for symptoms to appear, and once they do, they progress rapidly.

Every cat is different some cats can be much more sensitive to theobromine than other cats and even a very small amount of chocolate can put her life in danger and be even deadly.

As prevention is the best medicine, the best thing that you can do is to keep chocolate out of a cats reach.