My 18 kg dog just stole and ate an entir

Answer

Go to the nearest emergency veterinary clinic right now. For an 18 kg dog, 56 g (2 oz) of 100% unsweetened Baker's chocolate is a serious exposure, and "totally normal" 30 minutes in does not change that — symptoms come later, not earlier.

**Why this is not a "wait at home" decision**
- Unsweetened Baker's chocolate is among the most concentrated forms dogs can eat — far higher in the methylxanthines (theobromine and caffeine) than milk chocolate.
- The dog-side card puts the serious-risk band starting in the cardiotoxicity range and continuing up to seizures at higher doses; the 56 g bar lands an 18 kg dog inside that band on this card.
- Onset is usually 6–12 hours, and severe effects can last up to 72 hours. A wagging tail half an hour after the fact is not the safety signal.

**What not to do at home**
- Do not wait to see if diarrhea appears. That is not a decision point on this card.
- Do not give milk, bread, or any home remedy. None bind theobromine and none are a treatment.
- Do not use salt water. Salt water can cause salt poisoning in dogs on its own — adding a second poisoning on top of the first is not the move. Do not give hydrogen peroxide at home either. Any decontamination step is a vet's call.
- Do not use the elapsed time or the bar size as a reason to stay home.

**Take with you to the vet**
- The Baker's chocolate wrapper or whatever is left of it.
- The time he ate it (about 30 minutes ago).
- His weight (18 kg).
- Any new signs on the way: vomiting, restlessness, panting, drooling, tremors, wobbliness.

**Australian animal poison hotline:** the closed table this turn returned no confirmed line for Sydney (status `unverified`, hotlines empty). I am not printing a number from anywhere else — Animal Poisons Centre–style lines are not something I will hand you from memory or from a card. Your path is the nearest 24-hour veterinary clinic; calling them on the way is reasonable while you travel.

A well animal with nothing behind it can sometimes be observed at home. That is not this dog. He has a real, sizeable, identified exposure, and the exposure stays open through the whole trip.

| Now | Do not |
| --- | --- |
| Go to the nearest emergency vet | Wait at home to "see if diarrhea comes" |
| Bring the wrapper, 18 kg, the 30-minute timeline | Give milk, bread, or any home remedy |
| Phone the 24-hour vet on the way | Use salt water or peroxide at home |

I am not a veterinarian. This message is informational, not a diagnosis or a treatment plan, and it does not replace the vet's exam. The risk-band framing above comes from the dog-side chocolate card; the decision about decontamination, monitoring, or anything else is the vet's call, made when they see him.

Source: msd-merck https://www.msdvetmanual.com/toxicology/food-hazards/chocolate-toxicosis-in-animals
Source: petpoisonhelpline https://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poison/chocolate/