A guide on dosing dogs with CBD oil
The CBD treatment is slowly becoming a key interest of pet owners across the globe. As dog parents become more and more conscious of their pets’ health, they’ve begun to explore the world of alternative, plant-based treatments.
The trouble is that scientific inquiry is already struggling to develop CBD research focused on human consumption. The pet conversation complicates things further.
Regarding CBD usage for dogs, there are a couple of vital questions to answer, such as:
- the overall safety of consuming the substance
- the contents of different classes of CBD
- the difference between how CBD works in dogs and humans
- how effective CBD is for treating dogs
- how to effectively dose a dog with CBD.
Beyond that, there are two critical points to consider. One is that, as we’ve hinted, the current research on CBD usage is lacking in several key areas. That goes doubly so for treating our pets.
Secondly, your primary counsel on these matters should be your veterinarian. Only they are qualified to judge the efficacy of CBD for treating your dog or advise you on how to correctly dose the treatment and ultimately, provide a prescription.
What is CBD and what kinds are there?
CBD is an alternative treatment that’s begun to see legalisation in many parts of the world. The treatment is based on cannabidiol or CBD. This is one of over 100 compounds found in the hemp plant, used in textiles and traditional healing for centuries.
It’s only over the past decade that the modern world has started to recognise the potential medical benefits of the compound. Manufacturers have developed numerous specialised techniques to extract cannabidiol using carbon dioxide, ethanol, dry ice and more.
That extract is paired with other ingredients and sold as:
- oils
- tinctures
- topical ointments and creams
- vapes
- edibles such as gummies.
Pet owners treating their animals with CBD tend to opt for oils. Topical creams only affect the area they’re applied to, whereas edibles may contain other ingredients harmful to dogs.
A more important distinction for dogs would be the difference between the three primary categories of CBD: full-spectrum, broad-spectrum and isolate CBD. The latter is a pure CBD extract, but the first two contain small amounts of cannabidiol’s cousin, THC.
This is the psychoactive component of hemp. Unlike cannabidiol, THC is not considered safe for dogs. It’s generally not fatal, but nonetheless toxic, as studies have proven. The negative effects are typically mild, but worth considering regardless.
What is the correct dosage of CBD oil for dogs?
Picking the correct cannabidiol dosage for your canine friend is a tough one.
Most services recommend basing the treatment on your dog’s weight, but there are a number of other factors to consider. These include their condition, age, diet and more.
Despite this, most experts recommend:
- beginning with small doses of 5 – 15 mg of CBD
- carefully noting your dog’s reaction to the treatment
- steadily increasing or decreasing the treatment as needed.
Note that cannabidiol can induce some negative side effects. Examples include nausea, changes in appetite and diarrhoea.
You’ll want to consult with your veterinarian across the treatment. They can help you gauge whether or not cannabidiol is effective for your dog’s needs and ensure your dosing routine is optimal. Just remember that our scientific knowledge of CBD usage for dogs is seriously lacking.
We don’t have a good grasp on the therapeutic benefits CBD might provide dogs, or even how it might provide that benefit. The assumption is the compound engages the canine endocannabinoid system as it does ours but this has not been proven.
If this is true, then cannabidiol may contribute to regulating our dogs’ sleep, temperature, immune response, digestion and more.
Where to get CBD oil for dogs
With the amount of CBD products to be found online, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the treatment was available just about anywhere.
The reality is, cannabidiol is only available via prescription.
You’ll need to contact a veterinarian licensed to prescribe the treatment. They’ll be able to determine if the treatment is right for your dog and advise you on the most appropriate product for their needs.
In fact, many of those cannabidiol products available online are unregulated. That means there’s little to no oversight of their manufacturing methods, ingredients or marketing. These unregulated products may contain unknown compounds or disproportionate levels of THC.
The only way to ensure your product is safe for your dog is to avoid the unregulated pathways and access the treatment with a veterinarian’s prescription.
Summary:
How to dose and treat your dog with CBD oil is a little more complicated than one might think. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the problem. Your best option is to partner with your veterinarian to establish and maintain a routine that works.
For now, most recommendations have settled on small doses of 5 – 15 mg to start with.
This minimises the potential for negative side effects and allows you to gradually adjust the treatment as per your pooch’s needs.
Just be sure to discuss THC content with your veterinarian. Research has shown the potential for THC toxicity in dogs. It’s likely safest to avoid full-spectrum and broad-spectrum CBD oils until scientific research provides us with clearer answers.