Can Hemp Products Soothe Your Pet`s Anxiety?

Hemp based products are making breakthroughs in modern medicine – for humans and pets. Cities and states are beginning to legalize the sale of these products, and it’s only a matter of time before they are legalized in every part of the United States. Still, many people are finding it difficult to separate the illegal stigma of marijuana use from the healing benefits of hemp based products. One company is looking to change that.

True Leaf, a Canadian company based in Vernon, British Columbia, is marketing a new line of hemp-based dog chews that they say offer a variety of benefits for canines. The products are aptly named True Calm, True Love and True Spirit. The company says that the treats offer natural antioxidants that address anxiety and issues with joint pain such as arthritis.

True Leaf attracted a lot of attention from pet stores, dog lovers and collectives at two recent trade shows. It appears that when the treats hit store shelves this month they will be filling a niche in the quickly-growing “functional chew” class. The official launch of the products came on September 20, 2015 at the Pijac Canada show in Toronto. The show is Canada’s largest annual pet industry trade show.

Initial orders already represent 10 percent of the product’s revenue goal for the first year, and True Leaf has already secured nationwide distribution of the products. The U.S. market got a sneak peak of the products in early September at the International Cannabis Business Exhibition in Los Angeles. At the trade show more than 85 people signed up for future orders of the product line including many medical marijuana dispensary owners, collectives and one grocery chain.

When asked about the initial response to the new product line, True Leaf CEO, Darcy Bomford, said:

“The last two weeks have been a whirlwind as we introduced the product line to the North American marketplace. We’re blown away by the response. When you see people so excited about what we are doing, it’s obvious all of our hard work is starting to pay off.”

She stressed how important the next few months will be for the company as they begin to ship True Spirit, True Love and True Calm products and start generating revenue. The company also has plans to market a proposed new animal drug application for a cannabis-based pet medicine that would be sold exclusively to the veterinary market.

According to TrueLeaf’s website, all non-steroidal anti-Inflammatory drugs (NSAID) cause harmful side effects. They claim that 3,200 dogs had died or been euthanized and 20,000 dogs had negative side effects within just a few short years of the emergence of NSAIDs onto the veterinary market. The company claims that their hemp based products are a natural alternative to these prescription drugs.

If you’ve been following hemp-based medicine news, you’ve surely seen all the research that has been coming to light in recent years. Our dogs don’t have any medical issues that could be helped by these products, but if they did I would honestly give it a try. We know a few owners that have tried these types of products and they’ve seen noticeable improvements in their dogs.

Does this mean these products work? No. Does it mean they are 100% safe? No. It’s simply an observation of my only experience with hemp-based pet products. I’d love to hear your opinion and more importantly, if you’ve ever used these types of products with your pets. Whether you’ve seen noticeable benefits or negative side effects, it would be great to hear from someone who has used these products first hand with their dog.

What about you, pet parents? Would you use these new hemp products to help soothe your dog, or would you opt for a different solution, and why?