Excerpted from a press release.
The National Animal Supplement Council (NASC) announced that. Frontiers in Veterinary Science (Front. Vet. Sci.) have published results from a first-of-its-kind peer-reviewed safety study of cannabidiol products in healthy dogs.
In the study, various cannabinoids were well tolerated in healthy male and female dogs when dosed for 90 consecutive days with a 14-day recovery period. Based on the results of this study, other published studies, and data from extensive post-market surveillance, hemp-derived cannabinoids are well tolerated in healthy dogs. at a dose of 5mg/kg of body weight per day and does not pose a significant risk to the dog with long-term use.
“These data show that the cannabidiol variety is safe for long-term use in healthy dogs when given at the dose studied,” said Bill Bookout, NASC president. “In safety studies, no matter how well controlled or carefully defined, it is impossible to consider everything that might happen once a product is commercialized. That is why safety studies include this is not only data from a well-designed study protocol, but also 10 years of post-market surveillance data from the NASC Adverse Event Reporting Database (NAERS), which is the most advanced monitoring system in world for these types of products given to companion animals. There is no other study that we know of that is as comprehensive and includes the same data set.”
The studying
In the study, 32 healthy beagle dogs (16 males and 16 females) were randomized into four treatment groups and treated with either medium chain triglyceride oil as a control (placebo) or one of the following: broad spectrum cannabidiol (CBD), broad spectrum cannabidiol with cannabigerol (CBD + CBG), or broad spectrum cannabidiol with cannabidiolic acid (CBD + CBDA), at a dose of 5 milligrams total cannabinoids per kilogram of body weight per day.
All animals completed the study. The results of the study show that CBD, CBD + CBG and CBD + CBDA in the ratios and doses used were well tolerated during the study period when healthy male and female beagles were twelve in 90 consecutive days.
The full article with study references and supplementary material can be viewed here.
Previous long-term studies of CBD for dogs have shown few health problems
Recently, researchers at Colorado State University and Hill’s Pet Nutrition collaborated on a long-term study of the effects of CBD in dogs. After 36 weeks of CBD supplementation, none of the dogs in the study showed serious health problems. Only at the highest dose did some of the dogs get loose stools.
“This study is important to show that dogs can tolerate doses that are generally higher than what most of these brands are marketing,” Breonna Kusick, neurology clinical trials manager at Colorado State University said. Petfood Industry. “However, it’s important to remember that these are all very healthy dogs, and higher doses may not necessarily be well tolerated in dogs with any type of disease or on any additional medications.”
Kusick noted the importance for CBD-based pet supplement brands to continue reviewing new literature to stick to their own recommendations. “I also think it’s useful for these brands to understand what to look out for (like signs of liver disease) for the education of pet parents,” he added.
Dog owners who choose to supplement their pet’s diets with CBD should watch for signs of liver disease, including vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite and general fatigue, says Kusick. Yellowing of the eyes and skin can be signs of more advanced liver disease.
This year, as negotiations began for the next US Farm Bill, a coalition of 33 hemp industry groups called for regulation of CBD and other hemp-derived substances under existing frameworks for on dietary supplements and food additives as outlined in HR 1629 and S 2451 .
“There’s still a bit of a ‘wild west’ aspect to CBD as the market is unregulated so it’s important to always look for a certificate of testing when considering any CBD-based products,” Kusick said.
