People who have a dog as a pet know that it’s a special kind of unconditional love. Dogs are your shoulder to cry on, a friend to play with, someone you cuddle with after work, and who loves you no matter what. Dogs show us their love every day and in return deserve only the best.
That’s why millions of pet owners are turning to CBD oil for dogs. CBD for dogs gives your dog a load of hemp-based benefits that may help with anything from anxiousness to dealing with achy joints.
Unfortunately, our furry friends do not have a lifespan like us. Therefore, the quality of life is very important for them. With CBD treats for dogs and CBD pet tinctures, you can help your dog maintain or recapture that youthful spirit.
Here is why CBD oil for dogs may be the right choice of therapy for your pet
What is CBD?
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a naturally occurring compound found in the resinous flower of cannabis, a plant with a rich history as medicine going back thousands of years. Today the therapeutic properties of CBD are being tested and confirmed by scientists and doctors around the world. A safe, non-addictive substance, CBD is one of more than a hundred “phytocannabinoids,” which are unique to cannabis and endow the plant with its robust therapeutic profile.
Research indicates that cannabinoids in hemp interact with a series of receptors throughout the body that influences everything from motion sickness to appetite to anxiety. This complex communication network is known as the endocannabinoid system.
Dogs and the Endocannabinoid System
As we know, pet bodies have a series of receptors. These are known as cannabinoid receptors, and they trigger the symptoms your dog experiences.
There are two cannabinoid receptors, appropriately called, CB1 and CB2. Between the two of them, CB1 and CB2 receptors have almost all the surface area of the body covered. These cannabinoid receptors also bring their own unique benefits, which are crucial in promoting balance throughout the system.
For each reaction of your dog, there’s a receptor in the endocannabinoid system sparking this reaction. For example, if your dog barks sadly every time you leave, a receptor from the endocannabinoid system causes this reaction. The same can be said when he decides to eat all your shoes. A receptor is also causing tingling pain in the elder pup’s joints. These cries for attention from within are all a part of the intricate endocannabinoid system.
When you administer CBD oil for dogs to your pet, the cannabinoids in the formula enter the bloodstream. From there, they will receive the distress signal being parlayed by the receptors. In turn, CBD may react one of two ways.
CBD may either stimulate and sedate the upset receptor, or bind onto the compound that is causing the receptor distress. Either way, the endocannabinoid system is essential for the symptoms your dog is experiencing and preventing them.
Why Buy CBD Oil for Dogs?
CBD products have become so popular among the mainstream. With millions of humans finding relief for anxiety, appetite, and pain perception, why shouldn’t animals have the same respect? After all, many animals are given supplements like fish oil for heart health like their human counterparts!
The reason why CBD oil products for dogs are such a viable option for dealing with separation anxiety, aggressive behavior to strangers, or lack of appetite is due to the endocannabinoid system.
Based on the fact that many human supplements can be altered to meet the correct dosage for dogs, CBD servings can be tailored to pets as well.
CBD for Dogs: Anxiety
If there were any doubt that your dog missed you while you were out, then take a look at the destroyed pillow. Separation anxiety is a real problem among dogs. They get very attached to their owner. Every second you’re gone seems like an eternity to them.
Whether it’s a loud thunderstorm, past owner abuse, or a trip to the vet, dogs can be very anxious. Anytime they experience anxiety; their adrenal glands produce a hormone known as cortisol.
If you work five days per week and come home to a trashed house each time, that means your dog is producing a lot of cortisol. Chronic stress not only destroys your house, but it can destroy your dog’s health.
Research on CBD indicates this cannabinoid can naturally balance cortisol levels. In turn, it also helps in the production of calming neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin.
With CBD oil for dogs, as a result, your dog should have less stress, and you should have less mess.
CBD Oil for Dogs: Pain
There is nothing worse than seeing your pet, once full of life, now groaning by your feet. Aging is inevitable, and pain is often a necessary consequence. Therefore, we should try our best to make these years the most comfortable for our loved ones.
Pain is a perception. It’s something your dog experiences because their mind is drawing its attention to a symptom. Typically, pain is triggered by an inflammation setting off a cannabinoid receptor.
Through the endocannabinoid system, the receptor relays the message of an intruder to the brain. Depending on the intruder, your dog’s mind manifests the symptoms your dog experiences. Pain such as a sprained ankle after a hike in the woods will subside with time. However, chronic pain like arthritis will persist.
How CBD can help your pet?
There are two ways to stop the pain your dog is experiencing:
- Stop the cause of the inflammation
- Stop the Receptor’s Message
Depending on the severity of your pet’s pain, these two might be the best benefits of CBD oil for dogs.
Research on CBD shows that cannabinoids have anti-inflammatory properties. They also exhibit antioxidant-like abilities. Therefore, cannabinoids may help reduce the inflammation within the system while simultaneously helping to clear out the debris causing the inflamed cells.
Secondly, CBD soothes the receptor triggering the dog’s brain to experience these symptoms. Research indicates that cannabinoids calm the receptors, which changes the message being relayed to the endocannabinoid system. In turn, your dog no longer fixates on the problems its body is trying to solve.
If the condition is chronic, the anti-inflammatory qualities of CBD might not be enough. However, CBD is an all-natural way to bring your dog temporary relief.
CBD for Dogs: Appetite and Nausea
What’s so great about CBD oil for dogs is its ability to promote balance throughout the body. Therefore, if your young pup tends to overeat, one of the CBD benefits for dogs is to satiate that hunger. However, if your dog needs some extra encouragement getting chow down, CBD oil for dogs can help with this problem as well.
CBD to Suppress Appetite
Research indicates that hunger is brought on by the CB1 receptor. If the CB1 receptor becomes overstimulated, your dog can end up binging their kibble. However, CBD acts as a CB1 antagonist, bringing the opposite effect to the body. That makes CBD oil for dogs a great way to control your pet’s appetite.
CBD for Appetite
While CBD benefits for dogs do include suppressing appetite, it may still assist your dog in eating. A big part of the reason elderly or sick dogs don’t eat is that treatment or illness is making them nauseous. Just like humans don’t like to eat when they don’t feel well, neither do our four-legged friends.
Research on CBD finds that its interaction with both CB1 and CB2 may help your dog not feel nauseous or vomit. Dogs are instinctual. They want to eat. Therefore, if they don’t feel sick while eating, they will continue to munch. In turn, your dog will get more nutrition into their system, and hopefully, strength to get through their day.
CBD Oil for Dogs: Seizures
What first brought medical cannabis to the forefront was the way CBD has been used to help those with epilepsy. Research on CBD shows that cannabinoids help neutralize receptors that are causing impulses related to epilepsy.
Last year, the first CBD medication for humans with epilepsy became regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). While there hasn’t been any research on epilepsy and dogs, the promising results in humans have made therapy for epilepsy one of the top CBD uses for dogs.
Can CBD Oil for Dogs Get My Pet High?
Dogs have a heightened sense of smell and sight, which means their endocannabinoid system is more sensitive than humans. Notably, they are far more susceptible to the psychoactive effects of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
In hemp-derived CBD oil for dogs, there can be very low levels of THC. This is because the hemp plant contains 0.3% THC or less in its genetic makeup.
Therefore, there isn’t enough THC to cause the psychoactive effect side effects in CBD for dogs.
CBD Oil Dosage for Dogs
CBD dosage for dogs is as unique as your loved one’s personality. It all depends on how big they are, how their body metabolizes CBD, and what they ate that day. While there is no exact science on the correct CBD serving size for dogs, there is a standard to start at and then tweak as you and your pet explore the CBD benefits for dogs.
