# Cocoa mulch (shells) is dangerous



## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

QUOTE:
Cocoa Mulch, which is sold by Home Depot, Foreman's Garden Supply and other Garden supply stores, contains a lethal ingredient called \"Theobromine\". 

It is lethal to dogs and cats. It smells like chocolate and it really attracts dogs. They will ingest this stuff and die. Several deaths already occurred in the last 2-3 weeks. Just a word of caution  check what you are using in your gardens and be aware of what your gardeners are using in your gardens. 

Theobromine is the ingredient that is used to make all chocolate  especially dark or baker's chocolate  which is toxic to dogs. 

Cocoa bean shells contain potentially toxic quantities of theobromine, a xanthine compound similar in effects to caffeine and theophylline. A dog that ingested a lethal quantity of garden mulch made from cacao bean shells developed severe convulsions and died 17 hours later. Analysis of the stomach contents and the ingested cacao bean shells revealed the presence of lethal amounts of theobromine. END

Sounds like an internet legend, but this is from the myth-buster, Snopes.com, and they say it's true, even though they aren't sure about the \"deaths in the last 2-3 weeks\" part.


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## susan tuck (Mar 28, 2006)

Thanks Connie, yet another reason not to let your dog in the neighbors garden!


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## Anne Vaini (Mar 15, 2007)

This gets dragged up every spring. In sheer frustration, I bought a gram scale, a bag of the mulch ...

A 50 lb dog would need to consume 3 cups of mulch to kill itself. That's a heck of a lot of nasty dry mulch. IMO, a dog that would do that has other issues...

And I do have a dog that will eat the stuff! I've used the mulch for years - never had a dog so much as sniff it before. 

Anyhow, I wanted to lay this to rest. 9 oz is 3 cups in volume. Yes, the stuff is a hazard, but maybe not so much as you thought.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Yes, I posted that 3 years ago. One dog has been killed by it. Maybe.

The one (maybe) dog caused a big flurry back in 2005.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Anne Vaini said:


> ... A 50 lb dog would need to consume 3 cups of mulch to kill itself. That's a heck of a lot of nasty dry mulch. IMO, a dog that would do that has other issues....


Ya think? :lol:

In 2007-2008 some cooler heads started to examine the story of what's-the-dog's-name (Calypso?) and found that some parts of it were not consistent with poisoning.

I never thought about back-tracking and saying "Wait a sec" when I read the newer stuff. Shame on me! [-X


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## Maren Bell Jones (Jun 7, 2006)

Anne, you clearly don't own any labs.







When we had radiology last block, I swear to God, whenever we looked at the signalment (breed, sex, age, etc) and Labrador was listed, half the time before we even put the films up, I guessed GI foreign body and was right. #-o


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Maren Bell Jones said:


> Anne, you clearly don't own any labs.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


This is always a poisoning warning, but I see your point about foreign bodies.


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## Maren Bell Jones (Jun 7, 2006)

Well, wasn't so much a point about poisoning versus foreign bodies. More a point that labs can and do eat massive amounts of just about anything.







Then again, we did see a radiograph of a cat who ate a Christmas light bulb and another who ate a diaper. :-s I thought cats were not as prone to dietary indiscretion, but apparently some kitties have a death wish. We briefly mentioned cocoa mulch in toxicology a few weeks ago in passing as part of the xanthines that are problematic.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Maren Bell Jones said:


> ..... we did see a radiograph of a cat who ate a Christmas light bulb and another who ate a diaper. :-s I thought cats were not as prone to dietary indiscretion, but apparently some kitties have a death wish..



Huh. I always heard from cat people that cats were picky eaters.


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## Anne Vaini (Mar 15, 2007)

Maren Bell Jones said:


> Anne, you clearly don't own any labs.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


No, but I have the APBT that almost died from her dietary choices - she ate a nylon bait bag.  :lol: I have fished decorative glass beads out of her mouth. She thought they were treats...


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## Gillian Schuler (Apr 12, 2008)

I must be the only GSD owner that followed it's pup everywhere it went so that I could investigate its excrements to recover the glass droplets from the chandelier in the bedroom......I retrieved it:grin:


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## Anne Vaini (Mar 15, 2007)

Not to mention my first dog - before I discovered crating. :lol: The dog pilfered a wine glass and proceeded to "crunch" it on the bed. Nothing happened so maybe she stepped on it? But that was the last straw after dozens of shoes, $$$ of makeup, and everything in between.

A great story to convince pet people to crate their dogs. ...


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## Gillian Schuler (Apr 12, 2008)

Yeah, but they like to learn from their own mistakes, not from others


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## Christen Adkins (Nov 27, 2006)

> It smells like chocolate and it really attracts dogs.


Smells like chocolate, but doesn't taste like chocolate. Very disappointing.


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## Anne Vaini (Mar 15, 2007)

Christen Adkins said:


> Smells like chocolate, but doesn't taste like chocolate. Very disappointing.


:lol:


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## Alyssa Myracle (Aug 4, 2008)

:-k 

Oh reeeeaaaallly?


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Alyssa Myracle said:


> :-k
> 
> Oh reeeeaaaallly?


Report back, Alyssa.

Is it as disappointing as Play-Doh and baking chocolate?


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## leslie cassian (Jun 3, 2007)

Gillian Schuler said:


> I must be the only GSD owner that followed it's pup everywhere it went so that I could investigate its excrements to recover the glass droplets from the chandelier in the bedroom......I retrieved it:grin:


Did you hang them back up on the chandelier?


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## Alyssa Myracle (Aug 4, 2008)

I must find this cocoa mulch you speak of.

My neighbors already think I'm nuts so whats to lose, really, if I'm outside eating the ground cover?


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Alyssa Myracle said:


> I must find this cocoa mulch you speak of.
> 
> My neighbors already think I'm nuts so whats to lose, really, if I'm outside eating the ground cover?


Warning: It is made of the cacao bean SHELLS, I believe. :lol:


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## Alyssa Myracle (Aug 4, 2008)

I wonder if the effect is similar to the time I was lazy and said, "Screw shelling the sunflower seeds first. I'll just chew 'em up whole"?

I'll keep you posted.


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