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Do pets and marijuana sounds like an alarming combination? At the very least it sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. As we learn more about the healing cannabinoids found within both the marijuana and hemp plant, perhaps it's time to consider a CBD-infused treat for your sick pet. Julianna Carella, founder of edibles companies Auntie Dolores and Treatibles believes you should. Treatibles makes use of CBD (cannabidiol) oil extracted from the hemp plant and is non-psychoactive to your pet. For a dog that is in pain, or an owner who would like an alternative to some of the harsh medications that are prescribed by vets, Treatibles offers a safe, viable alternative.
CBD oil has recently received a lot of attention due to its effectiveness in easing the symptoms of a wide range of difficult-to-control conditions, including nausea, inflammation, seizures and anxiety, among others. Carella has heard from pet owners that they have seen “a reduction in chronic pain and less separation anxiety,” when their pets have been given Treatibles.
When asked about the success of her product, Carella commented:
“It has actually been quite overwhelming how great the response has been. One of the first testimonials that came in at the beginning of this year came from a woman who was about to put her dog down because the animal was in a lot of pain. She gave her dog Treatibles and her dog’s demeanor changed for the better, was moving with a lot more ease, had less pain, and ultimately she cancelled the appointment to put her dog down. She called me in tears to tell me her story, which led to some media exposure. It was after this that the product started to fly off the shelves.”
Treatibles is Carella’s second company, which follows the huge success of her San Francisco brand Auntie Dolores, a trusted provider of gourmet cannabis-infused edibles for humans. Asked why she chose to make a product for pets, Carella said:
“I am very interested in making products for families. Since CBD is non-psychoactive, and it offers such profound health benefits, I wanted to try a product line for animals. All animals, except insects, have an endocannabinoid system, which is built to receive the cannabinoids from the cannabis and hemp plants. It can be deduced that all animals, including our pets, could receive the positive effects from CBD.”
There is still a lot of stigma surrounding the use of cannabis, and some people worry that giving their animal CBD will get their pet stoned. This shouldn’t be a concern as CBD is non-psychoactive for both humans and pets. In fact, CBD is an antidote to the ‘high’ one feels after ingesting THC, meaning that ingesting CBD will lessen the psychoactive effects from THC. This is useful if your pet happens to eat a THC-laden edible or eats a joint off the street, which happened to one of my friend’s dog last year. Carella explained that “CBD can help your pet by counteracting the psychoactivity felt from the THC if they happen to ingest it accidentally.”
Julianna talked about the negative connotations surrounding cannabis and pets:
“Treatibles grew slowly initially because there was some controversy. People were worried that we were giving pot to animals. There was a lot of education necessary for people to learn the difference between CBD and THC and how these products were safe for pets. After people started to use our product and see the benefits, it started taking off and people started sending in testimonials and talking about us on social media.”
Initially, Treatibles did contain some THC, although it wasn’t enough to get an animal high. Carella said “We included just enough THC to cause an entourage effect, which is the synergy that happens when different elements of the whole plant work together. In a perfect world, an 18:1 CBD to THC ratio is the perfect formula, but we are unable to ship that over state lines.” Treatibles now offers a purely CBD product although Carella indicates “there is still a synergy that occurs as there is more than just CBD within the high-quality hemp oil. Our proprietary formula includes multiple non-psychoactive cannabinoids”
Treatibles is always lab tested, which is important in the mostly unregulated world of cannabis and Carella stands behind the consistency and safety of her product. Each Treatibles pet treat is infused with 1mg of CBD (small dog bone size) and Carella recommends one mg of CBD per 10 pounds of dog’s weight. After learning about Treatibles I decided to try the CBD-rich treat with with my own dog, Desmond, a 14-year-old rat terrier who suffers from a severely arthritic shoulder. After eating Treatibles for only a few days Desmond showed great improvement and even seems to have a small smile on his face after eating his treats.
