This was just passed on to me and I trust the sender and I know many of
the people on our list are also cat and dog owners.
 
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 the ingredient
that is used to make all chocolate -- especially dark or baker's
chocolate -- which is toxic to dogs.  Cacao 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 cacao 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.
 
[Moderator's note: While it certainly reads like a hoax and is a bit
exaggerated, it's also basically true.  If a dog consumes a decent
amount of this stuff there could be serious complications.  I don't
know of any evidence linking the mulch to problems with either cats or
ferrets, and I think most dogs would ignore the stuff, but if you have
a dog who likes chocolate or eats anything it can, the advice to stay
away from this appears to be sound.  BIG]
[Posted in FML issue 4168]