Easter warning as two-year-old Leeds dog taken to hospital after wolfing down 1kg of chocolate eggs

Bailey, an Old English Bulldog, got his paws on a range of chocolate treats that owner Leah Charnley had bought for her son.

She had stashed two large Easter eggs, along with two smaller eggs, two boxes of Smarties, two packets of chocolate buttons and a packet of Mini eggs upstairs.

The 21-year-old explained: “Somehow Bailey managed to get upstairs and into my son's room. He made his way through the whole lot, chocolate, cardboard and tinfoil included.

"When I found him, I couldn’t believe it. I immediately panicked and rang our local PDSA who told me to bring him in straightaway.”

It comes as PDSA, the UK's largest vet charity, issued a warning to all pet owners on the dangers of chocolate.

Leah and her mum, Julia, who she lives with in Wykebeck, took Bailey to the PDSA Pet Hospital in Leeds.

She continued: “The vets examined him as soon as we got there and gave an injection to make him sick. He was sick quite heavily, and you could see the chocolate and wrappers.

“We were sent home with activated charcoal, which the vets said helps stop the body absorbing the toxin found in chocolate, and were told to give him a bland diet for 24 hours.

"He was absolutely fine after that. I couldn’t believe it. I was fearing the worst."

She added: “I can’t thank PDSA enough for what they did for Bailey. He is like my other baby, and I know it could have been a lot worse had they not been there to help us.”

PDSA Vet Nurse Nina Downing said: “Chocolate contains a substance called theobromine, which is perfectly safe for humans, but toxic for dogs, cats and rabbits.

“The seriousness of chocolate poisoning depends on how much chocolate your pet has eaten, how big they are, and the cocoa content of the chocolate – the darker the chocolate the more toxic it is for your pet.”

Thankfully for Bailey, he was seen quickly and the team at PDSA were able to help him.  

“Symptoms of chocolate poisoning usually appear within two to four hours but can take up to 12 hours,” Nina added. “In severe cases, toxicity can cause vomiting and an upset stomach, fast breathing or panting, shaking, trembling and tremors, high temperature, seizures, a fast heart rate and high blood pressure.

“The most severe cases of chocolate poisoning in pets can lead to heart failure, coma and even death. Although this is rare, this is why it’s really important to keep chocolate safely away from prying paws. Especially during festivities like Easter when there’s usually more chocolate in the house.

“The injection given to Bailey to make him sick, which we use for cases of both chocolate and raisin toxicity, sees an average increase in use at our Pet Hospitals of about 23% around Easter. It can cost PDSA as much as £280 to treat a dog for chocolate poisoning."

Those with concerns that their dogs may have had chocolate should keep the packaging and call their vet immediately.