Help! My 9 mo. kitten just ate 4 hershey kisses

[meriruka]

Should I panic? Before I drag the vet out and drive 1/2 hour to meet him, will she be ok?
(When I call, I just get an answering machine that the offices are closed until Monday,
absolute emergencies only).
Has anyone had this happen? I've searched the web, it tells me that milk chocolate is the
least poisonous, but it doesn't say how much is too much.

 

[Cindiloohoo]

She should be fine, maybe sick stomach but fine with just 4 of them going through her system. I had a pup devour an entire chocolate cake WITH icing and he turned out okay. It's the dark chocolate with all the condensed cocoa that is really bad from what I understand. Just keep an eye on the little darling.

 

[redhen]

thats a tough call...i think that the chocolate that we eat (milk chocolate) isnt AS bad for them as the baking chocolate...i've heard that its really the baking chocolate you have to really worry about...
but a kitten is small so...not sure what to tell you. Good luck! I hope shes okay..

 

[organicfoltzfamilyfarm]

I think she will be ok.

Worst case scenario is that she will get an upset tummy (from the sugar) and the Hershey Squirts....sorry I had to say it like that.

Please keep us updated. Keep an eye on her and if she starts throwing up or acting unusual take her to the vet IMMEDIATELY.

 

[meriruka]

She nabbed them off the cookies I just baked when I went into the pantry to get her cat food.
So she has also eaten her dinner. I though about trying to get her to throw up, but she has
claws and a short fuse, she's likely to add my finger to the contents of her stomach.

 

[Imp]

Play it safe. Call the vet. If your vet isn't available call another or the closest animal emergency center.
Good luck
Imp


ASPCA Poison Control
http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/what-to-do-if-your-pet-is-poisoned.html

 

[WingingIt]

I think it's the pure cocoa that's dangerous for animals and I just tried to look it up but haven't found how much is in kisses. I'd bet not much. Probably will end up with a tummy ache.

 

[thebritt]

Milk chocolate is less toxic than dark or baking chocolate because it's more "dilute" with the milk and all. However, kittens are small, so the amount tolerated is small. I would keep an eye on her, and offer lots of liquids (chicken/turkey broth, water, some milk - anything to flush the system - they use IV's at the vet's) before calling the vet. Note at what time you think this happened, quantity, etc. You can probably call the vet on duty for emergencies and get a phone consult. A lot of vets are closed today, and they don't want to come out any more than you do, so I'm sure they'd pass along advice. Can also google "cats and milk chocolate" and see what info comes up. Hopefully everything will be fine

Keep us posted!

 

[meriruka]

Left a message for the on-call vet, but in the meantime I found out
it would take minimum 300mg of theobromine to be fatal.( rate = 100-200 mg per ounce per kilogram (2.2 lbs) of pet.)
Milk chocolate is 58mg per ounce.
I weighed 4 hershey kisses and they are .7 ounces, so she had 40.6 mg and she weighs 6 lbs.
So I'm calmer now, she may have the runs or vomit, but she won't die.

Thanks everyone for the advice.

 

[savingdogs]

You could make her vomit it up by giving her peroxide. It makes animals vomit without hurting them. Put some in a syringe (without the needle) and force feed it. Give a few cc's then wait a few minutes. If no vomiting, try again. Repeat until kitten vomits. It does not make them like you but it will make them throw up. You will see the chocolate when they do and then you can feel much better.