Do any of the states with medical cannabis mention veterinary use?
Googling, I find stuff about stoner dogs, etc. But I’m unable to find whether in any med states if dogs/cats/horses are specifically addressed. Anyone know?
Don’t know about other animals, but for horses:
[ul][li]Horses can eat marijuana without ill effects.[/li][li]But they usually won’t, because they prefer to graze on grass (hay type, I mean). Only if they have nothing else will they eat marijuana plants. Horses are generally fussy eaters, unlike cows & sheep.[/li][li]Most of the wild marijuana plants they might eat aren’t very potent anyway. Farmers used to grow hemp, so in farm country it’s still common to see wild marijuana plants. Mostly in non-cultivated areas, like ditches. Even sometimes called ‘ditch weed’. But these plants were bred to produce hemp for ropes, not potent THC content for consumption like current marijuana. [/li][li]And horses don’t seem to get a pleasurable ‘high’ from it anyway. Horses don’t have the self-intelligence to understand that they aren’t sober and enjoy that.[/li][li]Horses may get beneficial effects from marijuana. Maybe. It was used in old ‘patent’ veterinary medicines for general relaxation to treat things like colic. But the quality & effectiveness of those ‘medicines’ was questionable, and never really tested – they just relied on anecdotal evidence to sell them.[/li][/ul]
It’s definitely not mentioned in any of the medical marijuana laws.
The issue with the “stoner dogs” and medical marijuana isn’t that people are trying to treat their dogs’ health problems, but that more dogs are accidentally ingesting marijuana. This is because medical marijuana more commonly comes in the form of baked goods. Marijuana is apparently quite toxic to dogs, so it being disguised in a delicious foodstuff is the only way they’re going to ingest it. More medical marijuana thus means more opportunity for accidental dog poisonings.
Yep, when I began searching most of my results were accidental ingestion due to increased availability secondary to legal changes. Just curious if THC has been found to be of benefit in veterinary medicine. My dog had chemo two years ago for mastocytoma. She was never offered cannabis.
Tough subject to search. Or I’m stoned.
Thanks! Refined my search and found some interesting anecdotal stuff.
Honestly, my dog’s oncologist* said that the antiemetic she was taking was superior in efficacy when compared to any other antiemetic.
*now there’s a first world situation. My dog has an oncologist. And is a two year survivor!
Isn’t marijuana supposed to be really bad for dogs?
An old roommates dog ate a half a pan of hash-Rice Krispies Treats. The dog laid down on the couch and alternated between whimpering and growling at nothing. Seemed like the dog just had a bad trip, she was fine the next day.
For the record, I do not condone giving recreational drugs to animals. This roommate was an irresponsible asshole for leaving laced treats where the dog could get them.
Marijuana is toxic to dogs and to cats. I speak from experience.
My dog once ate some* weed. I googled about this and was horrified to discover that it’s toxic to the little buggers. So I scooped him up and took him to the emergency vet. They did not bat an eyelash, nor did they call the cops. (I never claimed ownership or said where it happened. They did not care.) They told me they got drunk and stoned dogs all the time (this is a college town) and people think it’s funny to get their pets fucked up, but it’s not, really, funny at all to the pet.
Marijuana depresses the central nervous system which prevents the dog from being able to regulate its body temperature. Normal temp for a dog is around 101º. When my dog got to the vet, his temp was 97.7º. :eek: He was twitching and seemed really jumpy and confused. They kept him overnight with a heated saline IV. I had to sign resuscitation orders in case he crashed during the night. The next morning, they called and told me the dog was fine, he’d made it through the night, and I could go pick him up. He was fine and I made sure that there was never pot within doggy reach ever again.
The only repercussions? Damn dog stopped showering and wanted to sit around watching cartoons, eating Cheetos and M&Ms all day. Wore the same tie-dye t-shirt for months and reeked of patchouli. Eventually, he ran off with some other hippie dogs to follow the Dead or something.
- Note, I did not write “my” weed.
