When we think of taking CBD, our instant assumption is that it can only be used on human beings, well what if we were to tell you that in fact, that isn’t the case at all. Human beings aren’t the only mammals to have endocannibal receptors and benefit from the medicinal benefits of CBD.
Current literature
Up until 2013 there wasn’t much research conducted in the veterinary field of administering CBD to animals, but with the increased adoption of CBD more and more pet owners are looking to increase the health and wellbeing of their pets, but does CBD benefit them in any way? Whilst the jury is still out on definitive answers, early research is suggestive of the fact that yes it can help your pets!
How Does It Work?
Again, this is very new subject matter for researchers, so it is difficult to put an exact conclusion on how CBD interacts with mammals, but research conducted by McGrath in 2018 demonstrated a significant result in dogs who suffer from osteoarthritis taking CBD and an increase in comfort and activity levels. Further research also conducted by McGrath showed that like in humans, CBD could be an effective treatment in dogs that suffer from epilepsy.
Whilst this research does hold academic rigor and has been subject to extensive peer reviews, it is still in its preliminary stages and will benefit from extensive research. However, the early results gathered from McGrath’s study reflect the same results when CBD was trailed on humans suffering with similar medical complaints.
What Types of CBD Work Best?
McGrath has also got you covered on this front, in the study the researchers tested three types of CBD product: edibles in the form of a capsule, oils and creams. The results showed that it was the oil that produced the most stable results of the three products.
When a dog was given an oil, not only did it stay in the blood stream the longest, it also had longer effects than the other products that were trialled. Again, these results are reflective of the benefits oils have been seen to have on human beings.
Why Would I Treat My Dog With CBD?
Even though the jury is still out on exactly how CBD works with a canine endocannibal system, the results garnered are very similar to how CBD interacts with ours.
A large percentage of the evidence for human’s taking CBD is in face anecdotal, with research only increasing into the subject over the last 10 years and yielding positive results in favour of it treating degenerative diseases such as MS and arthritis.
The research is still ongoing into how well it can treat dogs suffering from diseases and conclusions can’t be drawn off the back of one singular research topic, however it is looking increasingly likely that CBD may be used to treat a variety of aliments in the future, from anxiety, depression all the way through to brittle bones, the possibilities for man’s best friend are endless.
Final Considerations
The jury is not still out on whether or not you should dose your dog on CBD, but the research is certainly still in its preliminary phases, that being said, the results that the research has yielded so far are enlightening and are showing that CBD could be as beneficial for dogs as it is for us. Plenty of people are already giving it to their dogs and cats as a treatment for arthritis.
From the products tested it was the oil that showed the most stable results over a 12 hour window, with the effects lasting longer than other products, so it is possible to say that if you are considering CBD for your dog, oil is a research backed option for you.
