Medical Marijuana for your Pets?
As legalization of medical marijuana is happening across the country, many pet owners have tried cannabis to help alleviate ailments of their furry friends.
There are quite a few hemp and marijuana-based products made specifically for pets that are hitting the markets. Hemp based CBD products many times can be purchases online and shipped anywhere in the country.
Similar to a pets human counterpart, pets can experience ailments such as: anxiety, arthritis and pain. Medical marijuana can be an option for treatment and there are many anecdotal stories to provide evidence that pets have had positive impact from medical marijuana. The FDA is not so quick to agree, as none of the pet remedies are FDA approved.
Lisa Mastramico of Long Beach, California told The New York Times that pot has done wonders for her 12-year-old arthritic cat, Little Kitty.
Little Kitty was spending all day hiding in the closet. After Lisa received her medical marijuana card, she purchased a couple of cannabis tinctures for pets. Her beloved Little Kitty has had a miraculous turnaround.
‘When I’ve given it to her, she’s never acted high: falling face-first into her food bowl, chowing down. She comes out and socializes, wants to be in your lap, wants to be petted. It’s a very noticeable difference.’ she said.
It is important to note that THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the property that is the psychoactive element of marijuana, is toxic to animals.
The pet poison helpline states:
Dogs and cats can be poisoned by marijuana from second hand smoke exposure, or from direct ingestion of marijuana or baked foods (e.g., pot brownies, pot butter, etc.) laced with THC. In dogs and cats poisoned by marijuana, clinical signs can be seen within 3 hours, and include severe depression, walking as if drunk, lethargy, coma, low heart rate, low blood pressure, respiratory depression, dilated pupils, hyperactivity, vocalization and seizures. Vomiting is often seen with dogs despite the “anti-emetic” (anti-vomiting) qualities of THC.
It is never advisable to give your pet the same marijuana a human would smoke or ingest.
Cannabis-based pet products use CBD (cannabidiol), not THC, and hemp products may have negligible amounts of THC in them.
Steve Blauvelt, a veterinarian in Bend, Oregon, told the Times that with the increasing legalization of marijuana, he has seen more cases of distressed animals being brought to the veterinary emergency room after getting hold of a pot brownie or a stash of buds.
Still, for many pet owners (and pets) CBD based medical marijuana products have made a huge difference in the health of many of our furry friends.
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