Oils well that Ends well
Holistic vets have been asked about CBD (Cannabidiol) oil for pets for many years and it is only recently that much good information has become available about this product.
Most of us in the profession have been careful about endorsing the use of a product in animals that has, until recently not been well researched and albeit widely misunderstood or confused with the medical marijuana debate.
We need to understand what we are purchasing and why the various products are so different from each other and since most of us are not trained in botany or herbal lore, the issue can be quite confusing.
The confusion is lessened when you get the right information.
The CBD Awareness Project, has obviously done their homework and it is an excellent source of information about all of these differences.
CBD, hemp and marijuana are three distinctly different chemical compounds.
It is good to see that there has been some investigation into the physiology of the pets to determine their sensitivities and susceptibilities to both cannabidiol CBD oil and THC ( tetrahydrocannabinol). It is not advisable to give pets THC and potentially quite dangerous so make sure the CBD you purchase is safe for your animals and does not contain THC.
It is only with trials and time that reliable information becomes available about the benefits and side effects of any medicine.
Whilst hemp and hemp oil and products have been marketed for many years as sustainable and healthy options, the medicinal and nutritional effects on animals have experienced more delay in discovery and development owing to a number of factors, largely financial. Aiso with all natural health products on the market for people and animals, there is variance in the purity and effectiveness of products that are largely unregulated. Label claims and ingredient lists require close scrutiny and as with all latest trends there may well be some unscrupulous players in the market for unsuspecting buyers.
It helps to know what you are buying and why.
Hemp and CBD
Cannabis sativa is Hemp (inexpensive and nutritious seed oil high in omega 3)
Hemp oil is NOT CBD oil and is very low in cannabidiol.
Hemp fibre (stalks) is used for clothing and building materials.
Hemp seeds and leaves have different properties from each other.
CBD oil is from hemp leaves (expensive) and is also low in harmful THC.
Marijuana
Cannabis indica is Marijuana and has high amount of THC (%30)
Marijuana is not truly hemp but is called hash or hashish.
CBD oil is not generally extracted from marijuana plants
THC is more harmful to health with heating
Medical (cold pressed) marijuana is used in human medicine.
Medical marijuana is regarded as not safe for animals as they have much lower tolerance to any THC that may still be present.
I am reminded of a funny but disturbing incident that occurred when I was a new vet. In those days we used to be ‘on call’ 24 hours a day before the excellent 24 hour emergency specialist services were well established, so I would often get extremely early morning phonecalls. At 2am a girl phoned to get advice about what to do about her dog that had eaten a ‘cookie’ out of her handbag. I was supposed to know what this meant but asked what flavour it was as part of determining whether this was really an emergency and wondered why on earth she would have cookies in her handbag at 2am. Well after a couple of awkward moments we established it was a ‘hash’ cookie.
I knew what to do with chocolate and sugar but was wholly unprepared for this enquiry as it was a first.
Being the early morning and determining that the dog was not dying, I hoped rather than knew for certain that he would recover and told them to monitor him (whatever that means) and call back if concerned and really hoped that they did not. At 4am I got another call from them to say that the dog got wobbly and lethargic and had vomited so they gave it some ‘Speed’ and that it now seemed back to normal. I suppose ‘normal’ is relative in this context and I pursued this case no further.
Once my real day began I did wonder if it had all been a crazy dream.
Suffice to say that our beloved dogs do suffer at our hands in many ways but that is partly their lot for having chosen us with whom to co-evolve. Most of us are very grateful they did.
For those people looking for good advice about using essential oils for dogs for a range of conditions, you could have a look at this article that has kindly been provided by fluent woof.
In the end all’s well that ends well.