Most cat owners would do just about anything for their pet. So when they see their animal suffering, some explore using cannabis products to ease their companion’s pain.
As more states make cannabis (marijuana and hemp) available for human medical and recreational use, some veterinarians and pet owners are choosing it for animal care as well.
But this treatment is more complicated than other drugs you and your vet might consider. That’s because of a patchwork of state and federal laws regarding its legality and the long, messy political history associated with all use of cannabis—both marijuana and hemp. Some states have even banned veterinarians from discussing cannabis with their clients. But such restrictions are being relaxed.
In 2021, Nevada became the first state to legalize the use of cannabinoids as veterinary treatment. Michigan, Utah, and California are the only other states with laws specifically stating that veterinarians can discuss and recommend CBD. CBD, or cannabidiol, is the a part of the cannabis plant often used to treat cat diseases. It is different from THC, (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) the psychoactive substance that contains the high in people.
Vets’ concerns about giving cannabis to your cat
“The regulations are a mess. They evolve. Hopefully they let reason guide the laws instead of emotion. We’re just not there yet,” the spokesperson said Dawn Boothe, DVM, a certified veterinary clinical pharmacologist and a professor emeritus at Auburn University.
Boothe says that in addition to confusing laws, other issues make the choice of cannabis more uncertain. Large numbers of hemp-based CBD products are legally available online. But the products sold as supplements are not supervised by regulatory authorities in either human or veterinary medicine. They have not been tested by the FDA. That means that right now you can’t go to one trusted source to get answers to critical questions like:
- Is this a good quality product?
- Does it work?
- Is it safe for my cat?
Which cat diseases can CBD help with?
While not all of these issues have been resolved, Boothe says there is enough information out there to know that CBD may be able to help your cat with several troublesome conditions. These include:
- Epilepsy
- Pain from arthritis
- Pain from cancer
- Let cats eat when they are sick
- Possible behavioral disorders
- Chronic vomiting
- Gastrointestinal complaints, especially in older cats
“We haven’t really seen controlled clinical trials in cats yet, and that’s what we need. Just like in humans: well-designed, controlled clinical trials,” Boothe said.
CBD is often used in combination with traditional veterinary care
Trina Hazzah, DVM, is a board-certified veterinary oncologist who also has a degree in Chinese herbal medicine. Her clients wanted alternative, holistic options to help their cats. Hazzah discovered that cannabis is a good choice.
“Cannabis contains more than 700 compounds in the plant, and many of these compounds have physiological and medicinal benefits. If you look at the literature just on CBD and THC, there are more than a hundred publications on the anti-cancer effect,” she said.
She says Cannabis can also make a sick cat feel comfortable and improve its quality of life. It is often used in conjunction with long-accepted, traditional veterinary care.
“Measures to improve the quality of life, things like appetite, reducing nausea and reducing pain. So you have a happier cat, a cat that doesn’t hide, that just feels much better, that comes out to socialize. These are the things you might encounter when using cannabis in cats. They just feel better overall. So they may have been diagnosed with cancer and feel bad. They’re going to get their chemotherapy. You dose them [with cannabis]. They feel much better. They’re not that stressed. Their pain level has decreased. They’re not that nauseous. Now you have a cat that has a much better quality of life while undergoing some kind of therapy,” Hazzah said.
In 2020, Hazzah co-founded The Veterinary Cannabis Society, a US-based non-profit organization that raises awareness about the use of cannabis as medicine for pets. She works with veterinarians and state licensing boards on legal issues to make it easier to advise pet owners.
CBD buyer beware
If you and your vet believe that CBD can help relieve your cat’s symptoms, there are a few steps you can take to ensure you get the safest, highest quality product. Ask your vet if they can recommend treatments that have been successfully clinically tested, or if scientific articles have been written about them. If a manufacturer is transparent, its products must have certificates of analysis stating that they contain no pesticides or impurities.
It is also possible to obtain data on products from the National Animal Supplement Council.
But there are many fakes. Recent research has found that many cannabis products were improperly labeled regarding their active ingredients.
The Veterinary Cannabis Society is working on a plan to establish a labeling program with standards for veterinary CBD products. That will take a few more years.
If I get CBD for my cat, how do I use it?
Most cat owners have the scratches that prove that medicating their pet can be a challenge. This also applies to CBD. There are all kinds of pet chews, oils, treats, and tinctures advertised on the Internet. These different forms all have different ways in which the CBD is absorbed. Sometimes it’s difficult to know how much CBD is actually getting into your cat.
Tinctures – a mixture of CBD in an oil solution – may be the best way to administer CBD. (Tinctures are usually alcohol-based, so check the ingredients to make sure it doesn’t contain alcohol, which can be harmful to cats.) Here’s how to determine the perfect dose for your pet, drop by drop. If you know that the correct dose is, for example, 2 milligrams, you can also opt for a chewing gum or a treat with the same dosage. Whatever form you can successfully get to your cat, you should use it.
Will it be easier to get CBD help for my cat?
Experts at recent American Veterinary Medical Association conferences have discussed therapeutic potential in some cannabis-related compounds. Many association members have customers who would like answers about their pets. Their influence could help cat owners even in states with severe restrictions on cannabis.
CBD is not a DIY recipe
It can be dangerous for cat owners to self-diagnose and prescribe CBD or other treatments. Certain cannabis compounds may interfere if your cat has heart problems, for example.
Boothe says: “I think this one [CBD] products are safe enough. So I’m not afraid of causing damage. But what I don’t want is for everyone to get so caught up in this new thing that they forget about traditional therapies and endanger their pets because they are so convinced that this new thing is going to work. That’s why I try to emphasize: I think these products work best in combination with our other therapies. But I do think they hold great promise.”