If a dog has eaten chocolate it is not always obvious. If you didn't see the chocolate being consumed, how can you know? There are many symptoms of a dog eating chocolate, the most common of which are listed in this article.

The dog my exhibit some or all of the following symptoms. One thing you can do if your dog is known to have eaten chocolate and you cannot contact the vet is to induce vomiting as this is the best way to clear the chocolate from the dogs stomach quickly.

Of course, the best way to keep your dog safe is to keep the chocolate out of reach of the dog at all times, and never leave any chocolate on tables, desktops and chairs. There are many safe chocolate dog treats available for all dogs.

Dog chocolate symptoms:

• Hyperexcitability. Dogs aren't used to the large amounts of sugar in such a short amount of time, so they may get a sugar rush and get extremely overexcited quickly. This can be a sign of chocolate being consumed, but of course dogs regularly get excited in a normal day so do not panic if this happens.

• Vomiting. This can actually be a good thing if a dog has consumed chocolate as mentioned earlier. You may be able to tell by the colour of the vomit whether chocolate has been consumed. If you suspect it has, contact the vet immediately.

• Diarrhea. This is a less effective way of removing the chocolate from the dogs system, but is a common sign that it has been consumed as the dogs internal organs are not used to the substances.

• Seizures. This is the most extreme case, but is possible from eating chocolate alone. Obviously in this case you should contact a vet immediately.

Death is rare from consuming chocolate but they do occur. It only takes a small amount to make a dog very ill depending on its size, so you should make sure your family are aware of the dangers as small children especially are often tempted to give chocolate to dogs.

If any of these symptoms are observed in the dog it would be useful once a vet has been contacted to search the house for any wrappers that may indicate what type of chocolate and how much has been eaten. This will help with any subsequent treatment for dog chocolate symptoms.