Cannabidiol (CBD) oil is derived from cannabis. Unlike marijuana products, CBD oil is non-psychoactive and doesn’t create a high because it has low-THC content. This makes it a safer alternative, while still providing health benefits.
Recently, people have turned to it as a way to help their pets suffering from physical and behavioral ailments. Although still controversial, it is revolutionary for many pets who have struggled otherwise. Here are some success stories from around the country. Before you try it on your pet (or yourself), be sure to do your research and always seek the advice of your veterinarian.
Brought Back From the Brink of Death!
Emma Smith of Sherman Oaks, California started using CBD oil on her 13-year-old Pomeranian, Tinkerbell, about a year and a half ago when she was battling liver disease and having chronic seizures. She was unable to walk, eat, or use the bathroom on her own, so Smith knew she didn't have much time. Her vet said the best thing would be to euthanize her, so she made the appointment.
At the last minute, based on a recommendation from her local dispensary, Emma decided to try CBD oil to make her comfortable in her last few hours. That night, she gave Tinkerbell a dose of CBD oil before bed and the next morning she was walking, using the bathroom on her own again, and had no seizures! She marvels, “we are still not sure how it all works, but CBD has kept our little girl alive for a year-plus longer than we expected!” Emma cautions, “the dosage is tricky at first, but we are so happy to have found CBD for our pets! We've continued to use CBD to control the seizures and it has worked ever since...it's been almost 2 years, and we have seen our pup do so well on the oil that we will never stop using it. Still doing great, she's about to have her 15th birthday, and we couldn't be happier!”
Three Years of Sickness Halted!
Toby is a 7-year-old Great Dane/Akita mix who lives in Santa Clarita, California. His mom, Jordan, says Toby had terrible stomach problems from the moment they brought him home from the shelter at 2 months old; he vomited and had watery bowel movements every single day. “It was a struggle to convince him to eat because he knew he was going to get sick,” Jordan says. Over the years, they spent thousands of dollars trying to figure out what was wrong, to no avail. In 2013, figuring they had nothing to lose, Jordan tried Canna-Pet CBD oil on Toby. It totally changed everything. Now Toby doesn’t fight Jordan during mealtimes; he eats willingly, and there’s no more vomit or diarrhea. And so far, there have been no side effects. Jordan has been so impressed by the results that she says, “I use it on my feral foster, whom I couldn't even touch because of her anxiety. She's been on it for 6 months, and I can touch her, put a leash on and off her, and she will come when I call her!” Jordan also noted that her cancer-stricken hospice dog, who hadn’t been eating before the CBD oil, is now eating and much more comfortable. And she’s been lucky that her vets have responded favorably to this: “they were supportive and said they would do research themselves on it. They admitted nothing was working, so they didn't object to trying an alternative.”
Life-changing for Abused and Neglected Dogs
Jeanie Shulz is a rescuer and provider of foster/adopter and behavioral support in the Portland, Oregon area. Over the past 20 years, she’s worked with upwards of 1,000 dogs that have special medical needs or are victims of severe abuse or neglect. The vast majority of the dogs she works with are older and have a variety of medical problems (ranging from arthritis to cancer) and severe anxiety/fear/aggression. She first learned about CBD oil from a friend who is a cancer survivor and firm believer in it. Of the 60 dogs she’s currently working with, she has 17 on CBD oil that have been taking it for various lengths of time, ranging from one week to six years.
Overall, she’s had tremendous success and only one mishap: “I've only had one dog that probably got more than she should have because she got into the bag of CBD cookies and ate several. She got disoriented and off-balance for a few hours and was fine the next day. That was the only negative response I've had and that was very minor,” she says. In all of the dogs, she saw a positive result after using it for about a week to two weeks with no interruptions. For the dogs w/ medical needs (in particular arthritis), it’s as if their joints get "oiled," resulting in much less discomfort and more ease of movement throughout their daily activities. For example, one dog named Xena (pictured) was unable to sit and had trouble walking short distances due to severe abuse. She is now a "prancer" after being on it about two to three months, goes on short walks, and is able to sit and lie down comfortably. She’s even able to lay out and stretch on her back for a belly rub...none of which she could do before. “In all of the dogs”, Jeanie says, “I've seen definite improvement and no one acts ‘drugged’ or listless. It's very gentle, unlike synthetic pharmaceuticals and all the dogs who have had bloodwork recently are doing well... their numbers look better than they ever have.”
No Longer Plagued by Thunder and 4th of July
Annie Bahr of West Chicago, Illinois got her now ten-year-old dog Cubbie from a rescue when he was only 6 weeks old. He was a great dog, trained quickly, and had no issues. But suddenly, when he was about 5 years old, he became scared of fireworks, so she got him a compression shirt to help him with 4th of July. “That did nothing,” Annie says, “Cubbie went into our basement and shredded a 5 x 5 foot area of brand new carpet.” A year or so later the fear/anxiety progressed to include thunderstorms. The vet gave Cubbie some anxiety meds, but they did nothing. He still was terrified and they were always scared that he was going to have a heart attack. As the years have gone on, his anxiety over storms and fireworks continued. Annie says, “I tried every 'calming' treat on Amazon that I could and even melatonin. Nothing worked. I have about 6 different areas in my home that are completely shredded.” This year, Annie’s father was diagnosed with stage-4 lung cancer. While researching, she stumbled on the benefits of CBD oil. While her father was too advanced in his sickness, Annie looked into it for Cubbie. She didn’t wait long to try it, because “the next day, we had HUGE thunderstorms. Worse than I could remember. I was afraid to try the CBD oil, so I used his melatonin treats. They didn't seem to work. He was so upset and terrified, I decided to try the oil. Within about 10-15 minutes, Cubbie was laying by our feet on the couch as we watched TV and listened to the thunder roll. It was amazing. I have not used it since as we have no had any more big storms, but I have it ready to go and would recommend it to anyone!”
A New lease on Life - and Business
CBD oil came into the life of Beth Ann Corr of Boston, Massachusetts when her 14-year-old Sheltie, Tamu (pictured), was diagnosed with sarcoma and also had pretty serious arthritis. He was on oral chemo, and she wanted something without side effects for the arthritis. She saw a very short piece on the local news about a woman who was giving her dogs CBD biscuits and it piqued her curiosity so she set out to learn more. She found a supplier, started giving it to Tamu, and saw results!
Beth Ann says, “Tamu had not come up stairs in over a year and a half, and after about 2 weeks on the CBD, he bounded up the steps and was also able to jump in the car again! The CBD was also very helpful in keeping up his appetite during chemo.
Tamu passed away recently and Beth Ann has since adopted another Sheltie named Jazz, who was “extremely fearful of everything and very noise phobic,” so she started him on CBD and he has become a different dog.
Not only does Beth Ann supply her own dogs with it, but she is so impressed by the results, that she helps others too! After she started sharing the oil with others, “the feedback was so positive (for a variety of issues) that a business partner and I started up our own website” she says. Business is good for them, and she loves teaching others about it. She says, “it is a real education process; some people have never heard of CBD, or are under the mistaken impression that their pet will get high.”