What Makes CBD Great For My Pet?

Posted by Orville Redenbarker on Aug 7th 2020

If you’re reading this, right now on this blog, then by now you have probably heard or read the words “CBD” and “pets” in the same sentence. In this new age of cannabis legalization, new information and studies are posted and discussed daily, and more and more uses for every scientific compound in the cannabis plant are being explored. And as it would turn out, humans aren’t the only ones who can see benefits from a wider use and study of cannabis products. More and more people are choosing to treat their older pets with CBD rather than traditional methods of medications, which can often be unpleasant and expensive. If you’re considering treating your pet with CBD, but still want to educate yourself on the facts, you’ve come to the right place.

While THC, the cannabinoid that we humans (owners of pets) take to achieve a high, should NOT be given to pets, the use of CBD in older pets has been recently shown to have amazing positive results in reducing anxiety, joint inflammation, and many other ailments. Let’s take one of the big ones: joint pain. In older pets, this is commonly caused by osteoarthritis. “Canine osteoarthritis is an inflammatory condition marked by pain, stiffness, and loss of mobility... Researchers estimate that it affects at least 20% of all dogs older than 1 year old, with higher risk for older dogs,” (Forbes). Just this past May, the Journal of Immunology published remarkably positive results in using CBD to treat osteoarthritis. “... a 4-week, randomized placebo-controlled, double-blinded study in a spontaneous canine model of osteoarthritis...In the veterinary study, CBD significantly decreased pain and increased mobility in a dose-dependent fashion among animals with an affirmative diagnosis of osteoarthritis.”

It is totally understandable to still be cautious towards giving cannabis to your pet. After all, you probably can’t talk to your dog and ask how their CBD experience is going. Probably. However, you can take comfort knowing that it is very likely similar to what you experience when you take CBD! We’re more like our canine pals than you would think- not just because we slobber and bark more than we’d like to admit, but because a dog’s cannabinoid receptors, the parts of your brain that take in cannabinoids, are incredibly similar to humans! As Gary Richter, DVM, a veterinarian based out of Oakland, CA tells in an interview with Project CBD, “One striking difference is there appears to be a greater concentration of cannabinoid receptors in the dog’s brain than there are in most other animals...when cannabis medicine is used effectively, their endocannabinoid system will act in the same way it would for a human.”

CBD alternatives can be a fantastic avenue to explore curbing your pets joint inflammation, anxiety, appetite, and myriads more struggles that our furry friends deal with in later life. Be sure to always consult your veterinarian to make sure that your pet has no problems with CBD, and seek out places to read up on cannabis and CBD (like here on the Purity Blog)! Like we are now seeing positive effects of CBD in older pets, furthering clinical research and study of cannabis can only have a greater positive effect on medicine, both human and animal. Don’t just take it from us, take it from Gary Richter, DVM: “I would like to see more general research on the use of cannabis in animals, focusing on some of the ailments that it seems [to] be the most effective for—especially gastrointestinal issues, pain, and inflammation. Many veterinary patients see dramatic effects with cannabis for these ailments.”