Danger! Garden Mulch

[Longdog]

I have just received this information as an email and thought it might be wise to pass on to any of those not already aware (I certainly wasn't)

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. The dogs loved the way it smelled and it was advertised to keep cats away from their garden. Their dog (Calypso) decided 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. Halfway 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."

Snopes.com <http://snopes.com/> site gives the following information:http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp <http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp>

Cocoa Mulch 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 cocoa 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.

[GeckoTree]

Ek, I stick to sugar cane mulch.

[Danois]

Sounds American to me.

Hershey's is a US company and the use of 'Mom' and not Mum is also a give away.

Target in Aus does not have a garden section either.

See this link - http://www.hoax-slayer.com/cocoa-mulch-warning.html

Edited May 21, 2010 by Danois

[Longdog]

Okay, just did some googling and found that it is an american product only and not available in Australia. Yes, perhaps I should have done the googling first! However, a reminder perhaps to everyone that we need to continue to read labels on what is considered "normal and safe" household products. Sorry if some people are "bored" with it!!