If someone asked you what medical condition do you think affects dogs more so than any other, would you guess it’s anxiety? This may surprise you, and you may immediately think, “My dog gets nervous, but he doesn’t have an anxiety condition!” Ask yourself these next questions, though:
- Does your dog bark when they shouldn’t?
- Do they freak out when you come home?
- Do they hide or seek comfort during storms?
- Have you noticed there are occasions where they pace, pant, or pin their ears back more than usual?
These are signs that your dog could have an anxiety condition.
Dogs give us a run for our money when it comes to who is more anxious. And in many cases, we are the cause of their anxiety. Dogs aren’t naturally afraid of thunder.
In truth, many dogs are susceptible to anxiety, and it’s easy to mess up and exacerbate it. Thankfully, we live in the perfect time to help our dogs with this issue. Today, cannabis products like CBD aren’t only helping us with our anxiety, but also our dogs.
For many, CBD has been the answer to helping their dogs tolerate thunderstorms, long workdays, and the strange neighborhood dog. Even better, when combined with training, CBD offers a powerful one-two punch solution for eliminating even the worst cases of anxiety.
Here’s how you can use CBD for your dog’s anxiety, as well as a few general tips that help prevent it.
Why Is CBD So Popular for Dog Anxiety?
CBD is popular amongst dog owners because CBD kicks anxiety’s butt when dogs get anxious. But why do our dogs get so anxious in the first place?
Why Is My Dog So Nervous?
Usually, the cause for your dog’s anxiety can be traced back to certain events during their puppyhood. Maybe a massive dog came up to them *bang anxiety*, or you clipped a nail too far back *leviathan level of anxiety*.
Dogs are pack animals, and when something scares them as a puppy, they come running to us. Our first response to this is to lighten our voices and comfort our dog, but this backfires because it reinforces their awareness/reaction to the situation. Essentially, you’ve just told your dog that there is a reason to be scared. Your best option to situations like this is to act like nothing happened – if needed, you can even throw a ball or toy to take their attention off of it.
These are just a few ways dogs can develop anxiety, though, yet with it being such a dilemma there isn’t a lot to help them.
With anxiety being so prevalent amongst dogs, many owners don’t feel a prescription drug is warranted to treat it. This doesn’t mean they don’t want to help their dog’s anxiety – they just don’t have an easily available option that is safe and effective. Until CBD…
CBD for Situational Anxiety
What’s great about CBD for dog anxiety is that it can help regardless of the source. For fleeting issues, like the 4th of July, CBD helps by offering around 6 hours of anxiety relief with just a single dose. Many owners find that this is all that’s needed.
Maybe your dog gets antsy on long car rides, but little do they know the beach is just a few hours away. CBD can help keep them – and you – stay calm on the road trip.
Using CBD for anxiety issues that don’t really warrant behavioral training is a great, quick, and easy fix for many pet owners.
CBD for Behavioral Anxiety
When you come home to a room that looks like a twister slammed a cow through your house – *90’s movie joke for ya* – you’re not dealing with mild or situational anxiety.
Behavioral anxiety includes aggression, severe separation anxiety, etc. and will require behavioral training to cure. But we all know training will not set in overnight, and your house can’t take one more hit, and work is tomorrow.
Again, the answer many owners are finding to this sticky situation is giving their dog CBD to help out in the meantime. In fact, one could argue that CBD is even more important for this form of anxiety as it can help dilute the emotional stress their anxiety is taking on them.
Final Thoughts
If you haven’t given your dog CBD before and are worried about the stigma or danger of giving your dog cannabis, don’t worry. Only high amounts of THC are toxic to dogs, and legal CBD has nowhere near enough – studies show small traces may even help.
As well, the dog community is perfectly fine with using CBD. Vets are still a bit wary of it – possibly due to legal reasons – but veterinarian clinical studies are starting to take place on dogs and are showing great results. Plus, the 2018 Farm Bill will catapult CBD’s acceptance among all forward.
Disclaimer: This article is intended for information and educational purposes only and is not intended to reflect the views of the publication.
