Congratulations, you’ve decided you want to try CBD for your pets!! Now what? You will still need to decide the next steps which will involve selecting a brand, decoding dosing, and picking a product that is a good fit for your pet and their current ailments.
This blog will briefly outline the process we going through when we consult with our CBD curious customers and even our CBD savvy customers. This is a good place to start if you are thinking of coming into the Studio for a chat about CBD..
WHICH BRAND?
At Pet Power, we try to help make the decisions as simple as possible for our customers. We only represent one line of CBD products, Suzie’s Pet Treats. We don’t feel the need to represent multiple brands because Suzie’s has such a comprehensive line of products. These products can cover *almost* any need you and your pets might have for CBD. In the event that we feel you could benefit from different products, we can recommended trusted dispensaries, and other pet food or health stores.
Since the industry is STILL vastly unregulated and filled with “fly by night” companies, we are hesitant to partner with brands that we haven’t been able to personally vet. Without extensive due diligence, we would have to rely on brand motivated information to guide us. This information has the potential to be skewed or agenda driven and not based on facts. It might sound harsh, but we have a hard time trusting manufacturers, given their history for putting profits over pets. We feel confident recommending Suzie’s because we have spent a great deal of time behind the scenes with this company. From farm tours and manufacturing visits, to meeting with the owners on a regular bases, we are 100% confident that everything they offer is clean, reliable, consistent and effective. They also have to comply with strict federal regulations to maintain their USDA organic cert.
**Disclaimer: I am not suggesting that Suzie’s is the ONLY great brand of CBD. I do realize there are more CBD companies helping pets, however I have not personally seen their operations and therefore cannot confirm for myself that what they are saying is accurate or valid.
HOW MUCH?
Plenty of CBD companies make this concept rather confusing. At the end of the day, dosing doesn’t need to be overly complicated. As a general rule of thumb, start slow and grow based on results. Suzie’s recommends starting with 1mg per 10 pounds and increasing as needed. At Pet Power, we recommended starting there and titrating up by 1mg at each serving until you find the sweet spot. Sweet spot means that you are achieving your desired results without overly sedating your pet or giving them loose stool. Even in large doses, CBD is not dangerous and it is impossible to overdose your pets on CBD.
BISCUITS, TINCTURES, AND TOPICALS, OH MY!
As far as efficacy goes, it truthfully doesn’t matter which option you choose. 4mg in a biscuit versus 4mg in a tincture, is going to yield the same results. So let’s dive into questions that may help you to make a decision on products...
Does your pet have chronic/severe issues or are they acute and situational?
Examples of chronic issues:
- Cancer
- Arthritis
- Generalized anxiety
- Pain
Examples of situational issues:
- Vet anxiety
- Car anxiety
- Firework
- Thunderstorm anxiety
Generally speaking the tincture is the best choice for chronic and severe issues that may need to be treated with multiple and/or high doses of CBD daily, thus to reduce calorie intake and expense of CBD. The tincture should always be the choice for animals with cancer, as additional ingredients are unnecessary and could potentially feed cancer cells. (sugar and carbs are no good)
The biscuits/treats are a great option for pets needing CBD sporadically or circumstantially. Or for pet parents that value prevention and increasing longevity and optimal wellness. The biscuits are great for keeping healthy dogs healthy. Virtually any pet can benefit from a conservative daily dose of CBD. Biscuits are great choices for situational anxiety, which includes separation anxiety!
Topicals are great for addressing skin issues...some of the things that the topical salve helps with are listed below. Topical salve can be applied liberally and it safe to be licked. Many pets enjoy the flavor, but it's a good idea to stop them from licking excessively after application. The CBD needs to do its magic, so do whatever you can to prevent your dog from licking away all the goodness!
- Hot Spots
- Wounds
- Allergic reactions
- Bug and spider bites
- Sunburn relief
- Natural flea and tick repellent