Caliloo:

You are ultimately correct; it is *possible* that a dog can eat enough cocoa shells to die from the theobromine, though I never read of one who actually did.

Cocoa shells smell wonderful, to both humans and dogs, for a couple weeks right after the package is opened and the mulch is spilled all over the yard. It does not taste as good however; dogs, if tempted, cease consumption after a single bite -- harmless. More susceptible would be a puppy, which may not be able to resist the alluring scent and continue to munch on the stuff. Will still have to eat a *bunch* of mulch to hurt it though. The dog's stomach would be full before any sickness can occur (else we'd hear of a number of actual deaths instead of just a forwarded warning that shows up every few months in email inboxes).
What do you mean there has "already" been a report of "one" dog dying from this stuff? Cocoa mulch has been around for >50 years. A single canine death, though some folks will continue with "...is one death too many!", hardly deserves the alarming "already" moniker.

J

Most cocoa mulches sold now have had the theobromide removed from them, but there is a slight danger from a mulch that isn't theobromide free.

I'm always a little skeptical of reports that there has already been one death reported when there are no details about the death.

Here is an article about cocoa mulches.

I think the cocoa mulches sold now are probably safe to use, but if you want to take extra precautions and avoid them, there are other alternatives.

Cocoa shells sing almost well. Who what when now?

Where are you folks finding this stuff? I live in Florida and the only place that has it is some distributor in West Palm Beach (across the state from me) to ship several bags will still cost more via shipping than the actual product. Is everyone going through this process to try this mulch?

Where I have seen this stuff being sold the price was way too high for me to consider, it is very expensive, decorator mulch. Since most everything else I would use is free, maybe some of my labor required, this is not something I would even consider.

Cocoa is my favorite mulch but I am too cheap to pay for it. Although it smells good, the taste is so horrific I think you would have to mix it 50:50 with hamburger to get a dog to eat it. All things considered I wouldn't worry about it.

Are you guys that are able to buy it locally, are you finding it in big box stores or some kind of specialty shops? By big box stores I am thinking of Home Depot/Lowes/Wal-Mart. Are you finding them at these types of retailers or "Joe's Wholesale Landscape Supply" etc.

In my area the only place to buy it is from the Men's Garden Club when they have their spring fund drive. Smells wonderful, like fresh fudge, for a few weeks. It's worth the money to just get a couple bags to spread around the back door--for the smell alone;~) It washes very badly, so it isn't practical for large areas. Like someone else commented, I'm skeptical of reports of dogs eating it.

I live in the vicinity of Hershey Chocolate, so there is a ready supply. I would guess the further you are from a chocolate factory the less likely you would be to see any.

Don't know if this is the same thing, but Gardener's Supply Company sells a coir mulch block which is made out of coconut husks. It's $14.95 for 2 cubic feet. You add water and it expands.

Livvyliv, that's the other product I have been trying to track down in the 2cu ft. size I already tried the bricks and love them but the larger size is more practicle. Where is Gardener's Supply? I found a hydroponic store for $13.95/ 2 cu ft. but is good to know there are other places carrying it.

The ASPCA seems to have a few documented cases.

One part says that 67% of the cases were in California. I wonder if that is because that is where the study centered or if that's because California has more people using cocoa bean mulch?

Here is a link that might be useful: ASPCA Cocoa shell mulch

Now that I am looking, there are articles on this all over the web.

ASPCA
Journal of American Veterinary Medicine
Even Urban Ledgends confirms this one as true.
Snopes says it can't confirm the death, but the JAVM does confirm it, as well as other sick dogs who didn't die. It does say that dogs can easily ingest a quantity that will make them sick. I guess dogs don't care about the taste.

Probably better for dog owners not to use it.

For clarity, cocoa shell is from cocoa beans that are used to make chocolate. Coir is from the husks of coconuts which were used to build radios etc on GilliganÂs Island.

I've bought it both at Home Depot and Lowe's, the two biggest "box" stores around here. It's about $10 for a 2 cu ft bag. I picked up two bags this past weekend just to try it out because I liked the fine texture and dark brown color. I also don't have any dogs and none of my close neighbors do either so figured there wasn't too much danger. There is definitely a chocolate smell, I don't know how long it'll last, but it is a little weird to walk out first thing in the morning to the car and smell.... chocolate :-)

If you're concerned about the danger to pets, check the label. The dangerous compound is theobromide. Most of the commercially available cocoa mulches are now theobromide free and not a danger.

"no regrets" strange, maybe the box stores only carry it in certain areas, as down here in Florida, any place I check and ask for it the salespeople look at me like I am an alien, and asking for some futuristic product that won't be invented for another 500 years.

Theobromine is not an added chemical- it's a natural stimulant in cocoa.

Here is a link that might be useful: Snopes on cocoa mulch

Pablo--I didn't mean to imply that the theobromide was added. Rather that most commercially available cocoa mulches have had it removed to make it pet safe (that's in the snopes article).

Gotcha.

When I was a geeky younger chemist (rather than a geeky approaching middle-age chemist), I had a t-shirt with the theobromine molecule on it. If I wore glasses, I'd push them up on my nose and laugh a nasally, snorty laugh