Cocoa Mulch fatal to pets....warning - Page 1

Even if you don't    have a pet, please pass this to those who do .

Yesterday    one of our dog agility friends experienced a  tragedy and wanted me to    pass a special message along to all of my dog loving friends and    family.
 
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 web site, 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.'
 
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 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 g