What Do Vets Say About CBD & Hemp for Your Pets?

To date, more than sixty different compounds called cannabinoids, have been identified in marijuana. The darlings of the cannabinoid universe, the reigning King and Queen, are THC and CBD. While there’s a lot we know about both, there are also still a lot of lingering questions, and a lot of things we don’t know.

We know, for instance, that THC is the psychoactive component of marijuana. It’s what puts the “high” in the drug. We also know that CBD does much of the heavy lifting, and is responsible for most of the beneficial effects, and we know that the two compounds are better together than they are independently. The whole really is greater than the sum of its parts.

Despite that, however, given the lingering stigma of THC, many vendors have naturally begun to create CBD-infused products, eliminating the stigma from the equation. These products have documented benefits, and are capable of treating a variety of ailments in both humans and animals. Just as important is their ability to improve quality of life in terminally ill patients.

So far though, the AMA has been mostly silent on the issue of using CBD-infused products, and the AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association) has been completely silent, so we did some digging to find out what the veterinary community actually thought about these kinds of holistic treatments.

The answers we got were surprising in some ways, and not surprising at all in others.

The official veterinary line is almost identical to the AMA’s line. That medical marijuana, and all associated cannabis-related products, including CBD-infused products, show great promise and warrant further study, but no one in the halls of the AVMA wants to go on the record as recommending the use of these products.

If you dig a bit deeper though, you’ll find that a growing number of individual veterinaries do have strong feelings about these products and their use. The number willing to go on record in support of them is still quite small, but they’re out there, and quietly supporting their customers with sick animals that can’t be helped by conventional medications.

The pet owners, however, are not waiting, and are blazing new trails, with or without veterinarian approval. This is especially the case in situations where a terminally ill pet, or one that is suffering from chronic pain is concerned. In these cases, the pet owners’ primary concern is with the quality of life of their beloved four-legged friends, and they’re understandably willing to try just about anything to make them feel better.

It’s not surprising that the mainstream veterinary world is reluctant to embrace CBD-infused products. Nor is it surprising that a few forward-thinking pioneers have stepped forward, and bolstered by this, a (slowly) growing number of others in veterinary practice are now beginning to offer increasingly vocal support. For the foreseeable future, however, you, as pet owner, will be leading the charge that will one day see CBD-related products go mainstream for use by both humans and pets.