With all of the hoopla in the media these days surrounding cannabidiol, you may be wondering what CBD is, its benefits, how to read labels and the correct amount to consume.

So, what is CBD?

Let’s look under the hood to discover more.

What Is CBD And What Are The Health Benefits? 

Derived from hemp plants, CBD triggers particular receptors in the brain and nervous system, resulting in serotonin release. This release can reduce anxiety, depression, muscle soreness and more in both humans and canines.

One of the most significant benefits of CBD is combatting insomnia. As Portland-based startup Mendi states, “The common benefit people notice with CBD is better sleep, because if you have less pain, stress, anxiousness and reduced inflammation, you’re likely in a more calm state and less likely to have disrupted sleep.”

Understanding CBD Labels

Let’s break down what to look for on CBD labels, some of which may include THC information:

• The products: Do you prefer mints, Starburst-like candies, chocolate bars, or even sodas? CBD labels will tell you things like flavors and ingredients.
• Milligrams: This is your starting point. Most labels will encourage microdosing, so you don’t take too much (more on that in a bit).
• Suggested Use: Unless you’re told otherwise by your doctor, follow all suggested use information.
• Time: Many labels will tell you how long it takes for the product to kick in, which can be anywhere from 15 minutes to 90.
• Nutritional Facts: Like grocery store items, total fat, sodium, carbs and more are typically listed.
• CBD to THC Ratio: This is critical because THC may be illegal or require a medical card depending on what state you live in. Know your state’s laws and those you may be visiting. The last thing you want is to bring illegal substances across state lines unknowingly. And because THC is the psychoactive agent of the plant, consuming it is a very different experience than CBD-only items.

CBD Dosage: How Much Is Too Much (Or Too Little)

There’s a hilarious saying in the cannabis world when it comes to products possessing THC: “You can always have more, but you can never have less.” If you’ve ever scarfed down an entire THC-loaded brownie, you probably learned this lesson the hard way.

This axiom should always be respected, but do understand that because CBD does not contain the psychoactive agent found in THC, you don’t need to be afraid of a “bad trip.”

However, there’s no reason to take more CBD than required. If you don’t know how many milligrams to take, dispensaries are known for providing expert advice via email, online chats, phone, and inside brick and mortar stores. Explaining your pain points, what you’re looking to achieve, and, if you’re comfortable, physical attributes like gender, height and weight can help the experts determine the ideal dosage for you.

The idea of your dog taking marijuana products can be scary. You don’t know how they might react to the effects. Don’t worry, though, CBD won’t make your dog high because it is not psychoactive.

CBD is one of the cannabinoids found in marijuana. Unlike THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol), which is psychoactive, CBD is known more for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

Humans have used cannabis for over a thousand years to treat various illnesses. Now, many pet owners are turning to cannabis products to treat their sick pets as well and finding it very beneficial.

Cannabinoids like CBD are potential treatments for various diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, chronic pain, lack of appetite, and epilepsy. CBD is also used in the management of cancer, nausea, and vomiting.

Dogs have an endocannabinoid system similar to that of humans. It means that a substance that affects the human endocannabinoid system will affect dogs in the same way.

Many pet owners are turning to CBD oil for dogs. Here is why:

1. It Relieves Stress and Anxiety

Does your dog have separation or noise anxiety? Does it bark a lot and get jittery when you leave? CBD may help.

CBD binds to dogs’ endocannabinoid system and helps in balancing emotions. When you give a dog CBD, the drug is known to intiate neurotransmitters that convey hormones that calm the dog when stressed.

CBD is not only useful for dogs with separation anxiety but also phobia. If your dog can’t be around people, you can try giving it some CBD.

2. Improves Brain Function

When you bond with your dog, you become lifetime friends. Sadly, dogs do not live as long as humans. They have a lifespan of about 13 years. Your dog will start aging rapidly after about eight years. This can be a sad process as its brain starts to waste.

Inflammatory Central Nervous System (CNS) Disease is common in older dogs. When a dog has CNS, it may lose the sense of its environment. Communicating with it will become difficult, and it may lose its way around frequently.

Endocannabinoids play a key role in modulating neurotransmitter activity in the CNS system. This provides evidence that the dysfunction of the cannabinoid system contributes to canine inflammatory CNS diseases.

Placing your aging dog on CBD therapy can help boost its endocannabinoid system. CBD supports mitochondria development and cellular function. CBD is also known to have anti-inflammatory benefits, which improve brain health.

3. CBD Treats Itchiness

You probably have a dog that itches a lot, and no medication seems to work. The cause may be food, fleas, or lice. Some dogs seem to respond better to these allergies than others. The secret is that they have a strong immune system.

CBD offers relief for many allergic reactions in dogs such as dermatitis. The anti-inflammatory properties in CBD can be useful for itchy dogs. CBD can also boosts the dog’s immunity, giving it a better chance to manage allergies.

4. CBD Increases Appetite

Is your dog giving you trouble eating and you can’t find a solution? Dogs need to have a good appetite because that is what makes them healthy.

If the dog is unwell it may have nausea, which may cause a lack of appetite. Without eating, your dog may not have a good chance of fighting off diseases.

CBD can stimulate appetite and help dogs that are struggling to eat. CBD can also help sick dogs relax and get quality sleep, which is helpful for healing.

5. CBD Relieves Pain

Chronic pain is a prevalent condition in dogs. This type of pain is maladaptive as it does not offer any protective function. Pain causes stress in dogs and takes out their joy. If your pet seems dull, it could possibly be suffering from chronic pain.

CBD can be efficient in treating hard to treat pain. It also is known to have anti-inflammatory properties that help reduce inflammation that causes pain. The endocannabinoid receptors that CBD binds to also help modulate pain transmission.

While CBD is not a conventional treatment for dogs, many holistic veterinary practitioners recommend CBD for dogs suffering from joint pain. Joint pain caused by arthritis is common in aging dogs.

CBD can relax the nerves and help soothe the pain resulting from damaged nerves or cartilage. CBD can also be beneficial in alleviating intestinal inflammation.

6. CBD is natural and Non-toxic

If you are worried about CBD toxicity, worry not. Many studies that focus on the toxicity of marijuana look at the psychoactive element THC and not CBD in isolation.

CBD is not psychoactive, and it will not give the euphoric high associated with marijuana. CBD contains therapeutic properties without the psychoactive element.

There is no toxicity associated with CBD. You don’t have to worry about your dog overdosing and getting sick from CBD.

What this all Means

CBD is seen as a revolutionary treatment for many diseases in humans and now the benefits are being extended to dogs. CBD is not only known to offer relief from ailments, but it also can improve the overall health of the dog.

There is limited research on the benefits of CBD to dogs. However, initial studies show promising outcomes with fears of toxicity having been ruled out. Some dog owners and vets are already experimenting with CBD on their sick dogs. While there is still a long way to go, the results show great potential.

Dogs tend to become a part of the family quickly. We are very connected to our furry friends, and we tend to notice everything that happens to them.

Most dog owners are always on the lookout for tips to keep their pets healthy and in a good mood. CBD is the latest thing in dog food supplementation and many are still unsure when and why to add this to their dog’s diet.

We’re going to discuss the benefits, potential side effects, and right dosage of CBD for your dog so you can use it safely and without worry. To see an example of a specialized dog CBD product, click here.

For another interesting article on this topic Click Here

Since dogs have, more or less, the same endocannabinoid system as humans, they can reap the same benefits as us. Here are the conditions that CBD may help dogs overcome or at least keep under control.

1. Pain relief – One of the primary uses of CBD in humans and dogs is to assist with managing chronic pain. This is especially true when talking about neuropathic pain. If your dog has a condition he/she deals with daily, CBD use should be a serious consideration.
2. Anti-Anxiety – Dogs can develop anxiety due to multiple reasons. For example, they may have survived abuse or were abandoned, so they develop separation anxiety. If you notice your dog experiencing excessive fear and anxiety CBD can help manage that.
3. Seizures and spasms – CBD is a natural anticonvulsant, and as such, it can be suitable for treatment and prevention of spasms, tics, seizures, and tremors of various sorts.
4. Improved appetite – This is a commonly discussed benefit of CBD use. Keep in mind, if your dog gets its appetite back and starts getting overweight, you should stop using CBD as they no longer need it.
5. Insomnia – Sleeplessness is a dreadful condition making dogs lose focus, unable to hold their temper, making them irritable, etc. CBD is often used to improve sleep and can help with long-term sleep regulation.
6. Skin conditions – Due to the connection between the endocannabinoid system and skin regulation, CBD can help with rashes, scar healing, etc.

There are numerous other possible benefits, but we wanted to show you the most widespread reasons animal lovers consider using CBD with their dogs. Let’s see what some of the potential downsides of CBD use are.

The most well known side-effect of using CBD to treat dogs is possible sleepiness (which is the desired effect in some cases).

Keep in mind that cannabis is not typically considered safe for your dog, and the reason is that it contains THC. However, a dog targeted CBD hemp oil does not have dangerous THC levels, even though some human variants might. In a lot of cases, people give their dogs CBD oil intended for human use, and the THC levels are not always appropriate for animal use, so keep in mind that they can’t always be used interchangeably.

The reason why people tend to do this is that dog CBD products tend to be more expensive, but in most cases, the money isn’t worth the hustle of worrying if you did everything right.

This is where it gets a bit tricky.

The right dosage for your dog will depend on two things:

1. Your dog’s weight;
2. The strength of the formula you are giving them;

The math you should be doing when calculating for your dog’s weight is this: 0.2mg of CBD per pound.

Most CBD products have a specific formula strength, and it is usually displayed on the label. This shows how many mg of CBD the liquid contains per ml. For example, a 75 mg formula usually contains 2.5 mg of CBD per ml. However, there can be other variations of formula strength and these should be considered before actually giving any CBD product to your dog.

This means that a dog that weighing 25 pounds, using a 75 mg formula should get 2 ml of CBD to hit that 5 mg sweet spot intended for its weight.

The general advice is to start with a dosage smaller than the proposed dosage and take it from there. Sometimes you won’t even need to max out the suggested dosage to get the benefits you are after. This is especially true if you are giving your dog CBD just for the general benefits.

For more information on how to better understand dosage Click Here

We hope we managed to make the use of CBD for dogs a bit less of a mystery. Of course, before you give your dog CBD, you should consult a vet and see if your dog can manage the therapy.

The CBD products intended for dogs make things quite a bit easier as the treats and oils come with dosage instructions and don’t contain anything that may harm your dog. Good luck!