Many different human prescription medications can be given to pets for the same purposes – so it shouldn’t be too surprising that the growing cannabis industry has a niche of its own devoted to pet wellness.
While it’s not as heated of a subject as medicinal marijuana for humans, the idea of giving your dog or cat cannabis to help ease their pain might be appealing to a number of pet owners.
Veterinarians can prescribe things such as pain killers and antibiotics to dogs that are the exact same formula given to humans, only in smaller dosages. Over the counter medications like Benadryl are suggested for things such as bee stings or allergic reactions – and they work just as well for our fur-babies as it does for us in most cases.
Simply disguise it in the form of a tasty treat and chances are your dog will go for it, right?
Well, what if instead of an opiate substance, that could be potentially harmful to your dog’s organs, you were able to offer him a cannabis treat to relieve his pain?
To some, it might seem irresponsible to get your dog high – but here’s what so many people are forgetting: CBD doesn’t get you high and has many of the same benefits of THC including the ability to relieve inflammation and reduce pain.
“For now however, a vet cannot prescribe cannabis to your dog, even in states where medicinal marijuana is legal for humans. However this will likely change in the next few years as more research is able to be done – since as always, it’s lack of true research that keeps the FDA weary of approving cannabis as a treatment for your pet,” says Dr. Rahpael Mechoulam.
Treatibles are a CBD based medicated treat for dogs and they come in a bag of 40 for $22. While that price may be steep if you need to feed your dog 1-4 Treatibles (or more) each dose (recommended dosage is 1 treat per 20lbs of dog – I.E. 20lb dog = 1 Treatible; 60lb dog = 3 Treatibles), it would be well worth it to know they were comfortable and you could feel confident that the medicine could not harm your beloved friend.
You may be surprised to know that back in the early 1900s, cannabis was actually a well-trusted treatment for many animals, for a variety of conditions including horses and dogs among others. Conditions such as joint pain and inflammation and reduced anxiety only name a few conditions that both humans and animals can cope with better by using medicinal marijuana. Just like nowadays, the dosage for these animals was based off of the dosage for a human. It’s funny how much and how little things can change, all at the same time – isn’t it?
For now however, a vet cannot prescribe cannabis to your dog, even in states where medicinal marijuana is legal for humans. However this will likely change in the next few years as more research is able to be done – since as always, it’s lack of true research that keeps the FDA weary of approving cannabis as a treatment for your pet.
