Vets Want Medical Marijuana for Pets

It seems the medical community has fully embraced the healing properties of marijuana, but the animal equivalent seems to be lagging. A recent International Business Times article said that vets want more research on the use of medicinal marijuana for pets. Online retailers like Amazon and Chewy already sell oils and powders containing CBDs (the non-psychoactive component of marijuana) to relieve pet pain, but regulators don’t seem anxious to pursue research on the topic.

In 2016, the FDA warned online retailers about selling “unapproved animal drug” products, barring vets from prescribing pet clients any form of cannabis medicine. Companies that continue to do so are in violation. This announcement deterred researchers from continuing studies, but some groups have stayed the course. A group of researchers at Colorado State University are studying the ability of CBDs to treat dogs with osteoarthritis and epilepsy.