Humans can feel stress and anxiety for almost 40% of their lives, may it be from marriage or family. But did you know dogs may feel that way as well? According to this site, dogs can be “moody” when in anxiety, and others become distant or just clingy all the more. This phenomenon is called canine separation anxiety.
You might think it will just pass over time but putting your dog’s body into more stress and anxiety wears it down and exposes it to more illnesses in the future. It is important to not punish your dog, give it space and time, and another treatment is CBD. This compound is widely known to calm their nerves, and even give them a big sleep. But how does it work? Let’s try and explore that.
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What is CBD?
CBD or known as cannabidiol is a compound from copiously from hemp plants. This plant species is related to its sister, marijuana, but by no means is it the same as the said infamous plant. This misunderstanding has caused cannabidiol to have the stigma of marijuana as well. There is a significant difference between cannabidiol and marijuana.
Cannabidiol is a compound, while marijuana is a plant. What can be directly compared is what’s inside marijuana, which is THC. Tetrahydrocannabinol is a compound that causes psychoactive effects on the user. This makes the compound undesirable to the community, especially the pet owners giving the product to their pets. And for good reason.
THC is very toxic to the body of the animal. This is the reason why THC is removed completely from the formula by many cannabidiol companies. Check this dog article out to look at an ideal cannabidiol product. What you can expect of it is simply two things: 100% genuine cannabidiol and 100% Tetrahydrocannabinol-free content.
The reason why it’s removed from the product completely is because of its adverse effects on the animal’s body. Unlike human bodies, your pets cannot endure THC presence, especially in their liver and kidney. Not only is THC a nightmare to cleanse out, but it also destroys vital organs the longer it stays in their body, which will ultimately result in death.
In a more positive light, there are benefits to having TCH with cannabidiol in the body. As the legal margin of THC is 0.3% and below, THC can exist in cannabidiol products meant for humans. This can result in a phenomenon known as the entourage effect. This effect happens when one or more cannabinoids interact and form a synergistic bond that will benefit the body positively. But as THC has been proven to be harmful to pets, none of the companies that make these products are willing to risk it by adding just a little bit of THC to their product.
Introducing the ECS
The ECS is also known as the Endocannabinoid System. This system is present in all mammals, including you and me. It is also in the body of your pets. This system makes it possible for cannabinoids to interact with the whole body.
There are two main systems it stimulates. These are the nervous system and the peripheral system. On how it stimulates them, receptors got your back. There are two as well, which are the CB1 receptor and CB2 receptor, which are responsible for the nervous system and the peripheral system respectively.
In this light, there are also two types of cannabinoids in the body. They can be endocannabinoids, which are proteins that are derived from the body, and phytocannabinoids, which are derived from the plant (e.g hemp plant). These cannabinoids will be the main catalyst for the body to receive the desired effects that you want for your pet’s health.
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Stress and Anxiety in Dogs
Your canine friend can also feel what many others feel in the world. Dogs can also experience stress and anxiety, which can cripple their everyday lives. This doesn’t mean it is permanent though. There are several ways to alleviate this condition, and that can be consulting a vet and taking traditional medicine. This treatment can bring many side effects though, some untoward.
Signs of an anxious and stressed dog can include pacing, restlessness, shaking, constant barking, change in sleeping and eating patterns, and sometimes unprovoked hostility. As a pet owner, these signs can be both strange and heartbreaking to watch, especially when your dog was a cheerful ball of sunshine before this happened. Traditional medicine can calm your pet down, but it can also cause rebound symptoms, such as increased anxiety, aggression, and even unwanted sedation.
The fact is, cannabidiol doesn’t have any side or adverse effects when used by your dog. This compound has been found by this study (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22129319/) to be incapable of inducing addiction, dependence, toxicity, and overdose. This sounds better than traditional medicine, right? That’s because it is. Its effects are potent as well, as CBD is a natural anxiolytic for the dog’s condition.
How it works in the body is as simple as the introduction of cannabidiol to the system through cannabidiol-derived treats. Once the cannabidiol enters the body, it will rush to the receptors found in the nervous system. There it will block and stimulate the messages received and sent in the brain. Specifically, it will block messages from the amygdala, which is known to be directly responsible for the anxiety and stress reactions of your dog. Once it is blocked, the brain can rest from activity and thus will make your dog sleepy or drowsy.
This side-effect among others is as harmless as the product itself. It can bring needed rest to your dog’s body after it was under the pressure of stress and anxiety, and drowsiness is more of the body’s reaction after the problem was resolved than the side-effect of the product.
