A Quickly Budding Trend: Medical Marijuana for Pets

A 12-year old arthritic cat’s owner, Lisa Mastramico, wanted a better option for relieving her cat’s pain. She turned to marijuana after many failed attempts at using supplements. Her beloved cat required a soft bed made of plush blankets and spent most of her time resting due to her pain.

Mastramico said, “My concern was that it’s not my place to get my cat high.”

What Lisa Mastramico did was obtain a medical marijuana card for herself, the New York Times reports. Using her medical marijuana card, she was able to purchase medical marijuana oil that she could administer through a dropper to her cat. The treatment has worked because she says her cat is more active and mobile since starting it.

Mastramico said, “When I’ve given it to her, she’s never acted high: falling face-first into her food bowl, chowing down. She comes out and socializes, wants to be in your lap, wants to be petted. It’s a very noticeable difference.”

Other pet owners are also using marijuana oil to treat their pets’ medical conditions. Some of the animal ailments treated are seizures, inflammation, pain and anxiety. Those using medical marijuana for their pets are reporting great results and improvements to their pets’ conditions. Medical marijuana is not yet approved for use in pets, but has reportedly being used to treat livestock such as pigs and horses as well. Some domesticated wild animals have also shown positive improvement from medical marijuana treatment.

The FDA has not approved medical marijuana for animals yet due to the lack of research evidence. In Nevada, supporters of medical marijuana for pets attempted to have a new law passed. It would have allowed veterinarians to prescribe medical marijuana for pets with chronic illnesses.

A hemp-based product called Therabis helps pets with anxiety, chronic pain, and itching.

Hemp, or CBD-based products, which are non-psychoactive, seem to help pets with chronic ailments. Animals are very sensitive to the psychoactive effects from THC-based products and are therefore not recommended by veterinarians.