Is CBD Safe For My Cat?

CBD has become a pretty popular among humans. People use it to treat anxiety, pain and a ton of other health issues.

But as CBD becomes more and more popular, a bunch of CBD treats and supplements are becoming available for cats.

So you might be wondering — is it actually good for your cat?

The Dodo spoke with Dr. Bernadine Cruz, a veterinarian at Laguna Hills Animal Hospital in California, to find out if it’s OK to follow this trend.

Well, there hasn’t been enough research done to know for sure.

“Dosing and effects of short- and long-term use are still in the preliminary stages,” Dr. Cruz told The Dodo.

For this reason, it’s important to make sure you know before purchasing CBD for your cat that there haven’t been a ton of benefits proven just yet.

“As with other nutraceuticals, this is an unregulated area of health and wellness,” she explained. “It is basically the ‘Wild West’ with few to no safeguards for purity, consistency of concentration and general safety.”

Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean that CBD is bad for your cat, just that not enough is known about the effects to say for sure whether it’s good or bad.

According to Dr. Cruz, initial studies suggest that CBD could potentially help cats with conditions like:

Although these initial studies seem to be promising when it comes to treating these issues, it’s still important to be careful about giving your cat CBD.

“At this point it appears to hold great promise for several conditions but is definitely not the panacea that trends make it out to be,” Dr. Cruz said.

When it comes to giving CBD to your cat, the biggest concern is the lack of information and regulation, particularly regarding things like:

Aside from the possible physical effects of CBD, another major risk is that owners would use it in place of going to the vet.

“People want to give their pets something natural and often to avoid a perceived costly trip to the veterinarian’s,” Dr. Cruz explained. “This can delay needed medical attention and can result in dire consequences.”

So, don’t rely on CBD as a quick fix for your cat, and make sure you go to your vet whenever you notice there’s an issue. And if you do want to try CBD as a supplement to vet care, make sure you buy it from a reputable company and that the product is designed for cats.

And remember, there’s still more research to be done.

“People are drawn to trends and gimmicks,” Dr. Cruz said. “Social media and testimonials can make anything look like the next great medical breakthrough. Science takes time and medicine for people or pets must be based on science.”