Hannah Smith has worked at the Orange Vet Hospital for the past three months and up until this past week, hadn't seen a single animal brought in for digesting chocolate - something that can be prove deadly.

But in the time leading up to Easter, already she has had two cases come through her door alone.

"Chocolate toxicity in dogs is quite commonly known, I think owners generally know that it's a thing," she said.

"The issue usually is that they leave it around and don't realise the dog has access to it.

"A lot more people have chocolate everywhere around the house and I feel like people put their Easter eggs in a bowl or on the coffee table, so it's more accessible whereas throughout the year you generally keep a chocolate bar in the cupboard or the fridge."

It's not just dogs that can fall foul to an Easter egg either, as Ms Smith added that a large amount of animals lack the ability to properly digest the food.

"It affects most animals but dogs specifically because are smaller and they don't regulate the toxin in chocolate very well," she said.

"They can't excrete it fast so it stays in their body for a long time, whereas humans can excrete it a lot faster so it's not a problem for us."

It's not always the case that someone will be home or even see their pet dig in to a chocolate egg lying about. In that case, the vet said there were some key signs to keep an eye out for.

"Vomiting and diarrhoea are the quickest signs you'll see," Ms Smith added.

"For the longer terms, so 12 or 24 hours after they've eaten it, they can start having seizures, heart problems and eventually cardiac arrest."

While not every animal or piece of chocolate is the same in terms of how deadly it can prove, Ms Smith said the first point of call should still be a vet.

"We can easily make them vomit, it's not hard at all," she added.

"Generally white chocolate contains less of the toxic ingredient and dark chocolate has the most in it. A small amount of dark chocolate can equate to a large amount of white chocolate.

"It also depends on the size of the dog. One small Easter egg in a large dog I'm not so worried about compared to one in a smaller puppy. Be very careful because it can be a very expensive trip to the clinic, but it's better than them not making it through."

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