What's up with dogs and cocoa butter?
From cacao to cocoa to theobromine, know how toxic chocolate is for dogs
As soon as I turn the jar top on my raw cocoa butter container or press down on the pump dispenser of my cocoa butter lotion, I know company is coming. She’s got a black body with a white patch on her chest and brown tips on a couple paws. Without fail, she’ll wait for my hands to stop rubbing cocoa butter in and then she’ll quickly lick my leg. If I don't swat her away, she'll treat my ankle like an ice cream cone.
Junee, my Hound mix, loves the smell and the taste of cocoa butter — and it’s my favorite type of moisturizer, even over coconut oil, shea butter and tea tree oil. But considering cocoa butter’s connection to chocolate and chocolate being toxic to dogs, I worried if her sneaky leg licks would result in a vet visit.
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Is cocoa butter toxic for dogs?
The short answer is no — to an extent. Cocoa butter does contain small amounts of theobromine, the compound in chocolate that is known to be toxic to dogs. Generally, though, there’s so little theobromine in balms and lotions to the point where it can even be used to moisturize a dog’s paws, treat minor abrasions and (potentially) soothe dog allergies.
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That doesn’t mean pet owners should run out and buy raw cocoa butter instead of paw moisturizer though. In the event that a dog does eat a large amount of cocoa butter, this could result in pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas, an organ behind your stomach that helps with digestion and blood sugar regulation), vomiting, diarrhea and chocolate poisoning (i.e., theobromine toxicity). While human beings can quickly metabolize theobromine in cocoa powder, dark chocolate, baking chocolate and chocolate syrups, it can be fatal for dogs.