Warning for Dog (and Cat) Owners

[Guest guest]

http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp

 

PLEASE

PASS IT ON ~ EVEN IF YOU DON?T HAVE A DOG OR CAT, YOU SURELY KNOW

SOMEONE WHO DOES.

Checked

on

WWW. Snopes.Com

<http://snopes.Com/>

and it is true.

Please

tell every dog or cat owner you know. Even if you don't have a

pet, please pass this to those who do.

 

Over the weekend the doting owner of two young lab mixes purchased Cocoa

Mulch from Target to use

in their garden. They loved the way it smelled and it was advertised

to keep cats away from their garden.

Their dog Calypso decided that

the mulch smelled good enough to eat and devoured a large helping. She

vomited a few times which was typical when she eats something new but

wasn't acting lethargic in any way. The next day, Mom woke up and took

Calypso out for her morning walk . Half way through the walk, she had

a seizure and died instantly.

 

Although the

mulch had NO warnings printed

on the label, upon further investigation on the company's website, this

product is HIGHLY toxic to dogs and cats.

 

Cocoa Mulch is manufactured by Hershey's, and they

claim that 'It is true that studies have shown that 50% of the dogs

that eat Cocoa Mulch can suffer physical harm to a variety of degrees

(depending on each individual dog). However, 98% of all dogs won't eat

it.'

 

 

 

 

This Snopes site gives the following

information:http://WWW.snopes.Com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp

<http://WWW.snopes.Com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp>

 

 

 

 

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. Theobromine is in 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.

 

 

PLEASE

GIVE THIS THE WIDEST DISTRIBUTION!!!