Your Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Best CBD Oil for Your Arthritic Dog

CBD oil is becoming more and more popular as a treatment for various conditions, both in humans and animals. So, if you’re like many dog owners, you may be considering CBD oil or other CBD pet products to help relieve your furry friend’s arthritis symptoms.

But with such a wide variety of CBD oils and all the CBD products on the market today, how do you choose the best one? After all, you want only the highest quality for your pet. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about CBD oil for dogs and how to pick the right high-quality CBD oil product for your pet.

Arthritis in Dogs

Effects of Arthritis on Dogs

Arthritis, specifically osteoarthritis, is a condition that affects approximately one in five dogs. Also known as Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD), osteoarthritis becomes progressively worse for dogs over time. Risk factors include size (larger breeds are more susceptible), age, repeated stress impacts, and injuries.

In addition to making a dog’s joints hurt, arthritis can also lead to muscle wasting, loss of mobility, weight gain, and decreased activity levels. If your dog is displaying any of these symptoms, it’s important to talk to your veterinarian.

Treating Arthritis in Dogs

Since there is no known cure for osteoarthritis, the only way to help your arthritic dog is to manage joint pain, slow down joint inflammation, and keep your dog at a healthy weight. Typical treatments include prescription medications for pain management, dietary changes, and the usage of supplements.

However, owners are increasingly exploring alternative treatments such as acupuncture, cold laser treatment, and, yes, CBD oil. While CBD oil is no replacement for vet-prescribed treatment methods, it can nevertheless potentially help with some of these symptoms and give your dog with arthritis pain a chance for a better standard of living.

Benefits of Pet CBD Oil for Dogs

Is CBD Oil Safe for Dogs?

CBD oil works by interacting with the body’s endocannabinoid system. The endocannabinoid system is responsible for maintaining homeostasis, or natural balance, in the body. While dogs have a somewhat different biology from humans, they also have an endocannabinoid system that responds to CBD oils.

This means that just as CBD products, such as CBD oil, can affect the cannabinoid receptors in the human nervous system, so can CBD oils affect a dog’s receptors. CBD oil does this by interacting with receptors in the endocannabinoid system that control pain perception, inflammation, and anxiety.

If you’re worried about your dog getting “high” off of CBD oil, fear not! The vast majority of CBD products, including CBD oil made for pets, are made with CBD extract from hemp oil. As the name suggests, hemp oil comes from the hemp plant, which does not contain the psychoactive compound THC.

CBD oil that is derived from the hemp plant rather than its cousin in the cannabis plant family, marijuana, is non-intoxicating, meaning that the CBD extract won’t make your dog high. As a result, CBD pet tinctures, including CBD oil tinctures, are considered to be safe for dogs.

General Health Benefits of CBD Oil for Dogs

While research is still ongoing, CBD oil may have multiple positive effects on pets, including dogs with arthritis.

Dr. Jerry Klein of the American Kennel Club (AKC) states that pet owners have a variety of reasons to use CBD oil for their dog’s health, including:

• Potential anti-inflammatory properties
• Help with nausea
• Increase in appetite
• Help with anxiety (which in turn can potentially help overall heart health)

CBD Oil Benefits for Dogs with Arthritis

As you can imagine, CBD oil’s relaxing properties can be particularly beneficial for dogs with arthritis and can help your dog feel better in his or her joints.

CBD oil can also help increase your dog’s appetite if he or she is struggling to eat due to joint pain. A healthy appetite is important for keeping your dog at an appropriate weight, which is part of the overall strategy for treating arthritis in pets.

Finally, pain management is a key factor for dogs with arthritis. CBD oil may be able to help manage the pain associated with your dog’s arthritis. According to the AKC, three separate pain-management studies found the following results for the treatment of dogs with osteoarthritis using CBD oil:

• Noticeable pain reduction and increased activity following consumption of CBD-rich hemp oil
• Less sleep and greater interaction with family following consumption of CBD-rich hemp oil
• Improved walking ability following consumption of CBD

Choosing the Best CBD Oil for Your Dog

Now that we’ve gone over the potential therapeutic benefits of CBD oil for dogs let’s talk about how to choose the best product. This is especially important if your dog is suffering from arthritis.

Here are some things you should look for when choosing the best CBD oil for your arthritic dog:

CBD Oil Designed Specifically for Pets

CBD oils made for humans are not the same as those made for dogs. Make sure you get a product that is specifically designed for pets and says “CBD oil for dogs” on the label.

If you have your own CBD oil or other CBD products, such as edibles, never feed them to your dog. CBD oil and other products that are intended for humans may have artificial sweeteners or other features that are edibles for humans but potentially toxic for dogs.

Broad Spectrum CBD Oil

In addition, you should select a CBD oil product that is labeled “broad spectrum CBD oil” or indicate that the CBD pet tinctures were made from full spectrum hemp extract. This means that the CBD tincture created from the organic hemp oil contains all of the beneficial cannabinoids and terpenes present in the hemp plant.

Essentially, broad-spectrum CBD oil will give your dog the widest variety of potential benefits from the CBD product through what is known as the “entourage effect.”

The “entourage effect” refers to the phenomenon of all the cannabinoids and terpenes present in broad-spectrum CBD oil working together to provide a wider range of CBD benefits to dogs than mere CBD oil alone. Since all of these compounds work together in a broad spectrum CBD oil, that means this type of CBD oil product is arguably the best type to use for dogs with arthritis thanks to its superior CBD content.

Proper CBD Oil Dosage

CBD oil products come in different concentrations. For example, one product might have 500 milligrams (mg) of CBD while another has 1,000 mg. The proper CBD dosage for your dog will depend on his or her weight. A full-grown German Shepherd will need a larger dosage of CBD oil than a Yorkie puppy!

It’s always best to start with the lowest possible dose of CBD oil and increase it as needed. This will help you avoid giving your dog too much of even the best CBD oils, which could potentially cause minor side effects, such as slight drowsiness or dry mouth.

Fortunately, there really isn’t any genuine risk in giving your dog “too much” CBD oil apart from these minor effects, so don’t freak out if you overdo it by a few milligrams. Most quality oils come with a convenient dropper bottle for just this reason.

When discussing starting a pet’s CBD oil regimen, Restart CBD co-founder Shayda Torabi recommends starting with about 1 milligram of CBD oil per 10 pounds of your dog’s body weight. So, the starting pet CBD oil dosage for a 60-pound pit bull would be 5-6mgs, with the dosage increasing as needed.

CBD Form

While organic CBD oil is a popular form of CBD for dogs, it’s not the only one. Other CBD products, including CBD dog treats, chews, and CBD capsules, can also be effective. You might find that one form works better for your dog than another.

For example, if your dog doesn’t like taking CBD oil because of the taste, alternative CBD products such as CBD treats containing MCT oil or peanut-butter-flavored CBD chews may be a better option.

However, CBD oil remains one of the most popular forms of CBD products for dogs. This is because CBD oil can be put directly into your pet’s mouth or added to his or her food. CBD oils come in different concentrations, so make sure you choose one that is appropriate for your dog’s weight.

Quality Dog CBD Oil Products

Not all CBD products are created equal! When choosing CBD oil for your dog, make sure you select a high-quality product from a reputable source. This will ensure that the CBD oil you choose is only the highest quality and is free of contaminants, which lesser CBD oils may contain.

Other indicators of quality include the best CBD oils being derived from USA-grown hemp originating from USDA-certified hemp farms.

Additional ingredients like salmon oil, which contains omega fatty acids, can also augment some of the same benefits for your dog, such as improved joint health and anti-inflammation properties. However, make sure that the CBD oil that you choose to go with doesn’t contain any additives.

Talk to your veterinarian about CBD oil and whether it might be right for your dog. When it comes to CBD oil for dogs, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. The best CBD oil for your dog will depend on a number of factors, including his or her weight, age, and health condition.

The most important thing is to provide your dog with an organic CBD oil made from all-natural ingredients. With the proper dosage and high-quality CBD products, your dog can enjoy the potential benefits of CBD oil as they age!