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Cannabidiols

What Are Cannabidiols and How Can My Dog Benefit from Them?

Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of the major non-psychoactive cannabinoids produced by a number of plants with the most notable being Cannabis sativa L. It is 100% natural, 100% safe, and 100% legal.

Background and Physiological Details:

Dogs, and all mammals actually, have an endocannabinoid system (ECS) whose function is to receive and process nutritional cannabinoids. The ECS is involved with a number of physiological processes including mood, pain-sensation, nausea, memory, appetite, and inammation. ECS cannabinoid receptors are broken down into two types, CB1 & CB2, and are located in various parts of the body:

  • CB1 receptors are located in the brain, vascular system, lungs, muscles, gastrointestinal tract, and reproductive organs
  • CB2 receptors are located in the bones, spleen, skin, and glial cells
  • CB1+CB2 receptors are located in the immune system, bone marrow, liver pancreas, and brain stem.

Focusing on the brain of the dog, cannabinoid receptors are located in:

  • Brain Stem – This, of course, involves many functions, but notably blood pressure & heart rate, pain sensation, muscle tone & movement, and vomiting reflexes.
  • Amygdala – Involved with emotions
  • Cerebral Cortex – Memory, thinking, overall awareness & consciousness
  • Basal Ganglia – Controls motor skills & learning
  • Hypothalamus – Metabolic activities such as appetite
  • Hippocampus – Memory storage and recall
  • Cerebellum – Controls coordination and muscle control

Summary:

Cannabidiol benefits in humans are well known and multiple and can also have many signicant and useful benefits for dogs. Keeping in mind that most of the feedback is based on human trials and human observations of animals given cannabinoids as we cannot ask our dogs if they feel, for example, less joint pain. However, there is a growing and signicant level of agreement on at least certain key benefits among experts and dog owners - though those benefits may vary from dog to dog (just as with humans).

Most agree that the following benefits are provided by the use of cannabidiols in dogs:

  1. Anxiety relief
  2. Joint pain relief
  3. Appetite stimulation
  4. Generalized pain and inflammation relief

Serving suggestions: We suggest starting with a smaller serving than noted and working quickly towards the serving suggestion. After that, give 1 treat per 25lbs. You may repeat this serving every 4 to 6 hours as needed.

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