Questions to Ask: CBD Oil for Dogs

It seems as though CBD products are everywhere you look, from healthcare stores to gas stations. Like any relatively new industry, it can be challenging to navigate as a consumer. 

For dogs, things can be even more unclear when it comes to CBD oil. What product is best? How do you choose? Is it safe? Below you’ll find a few tips on what questions to ask when searching for an effective and safe CBD product for your dog. 

Safety & Ingredients 

We all want to help our dogs if we can, but you shouldn’t have to sacrifice safety in the process. And in an industry where guidelines and regulations are still being created and implemented, it leaves room for evasive dishonesty from some pet CBD manufacturers. 

When searching for a CBD oil for your dog, one of the first things you should ask is, has it been tested and proven for safety? Each company has different manufacturing processes and different ingredients that make up its products. So, just because one CBD oil has been proven safe for dogs doesn’t mean that all CBD oil is safe. This is not to imply any company out there is actively trying to harm your dog, but as is the case with any healthcare supplement, human or pet, it should be tested and proven. At the very least, it gives you peace of mind. 

One way to be certain about what’s in the product you’re receiving is called a Certificate of Analysis, or “COA.” This term may be unfamiliar to the average consumer, but it should be second nature among CBD manufacturers. A Certificate of Analysis shows you exactly what the product contains. Think of it as a more in-depth ingredient list. So, if your dog has an allergy to a certain additive, or you are curious about the amount of CBD and other cannabinoids included in the product, a COA will show you exactly that. If you are speaking with a reputable company, a COA should be available for each product you plan on trying or have already purchased. If the company you are thinking of trying cannot prove that their product is safe, and cannot produce a COA for that specific product, proceed with caution!

At ElleVet, each batch of oil and chews produced are tested in-house and by an accredited 3^rd party lab. The purpose of these tests is to confirm the quality and effectiveness of each batch of ElleVet CBD oil and check for any impurities or contaminants.

ElleVet Sciences was the first pet CBD company in the world to have products studied and proven for safety. The safety studies conducted at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine are the first published studies of their kind (regarding the safety of CBD for dogs and cats). ElleVet products were proven safe for both species, with no known side effects occurring. 

Has it been proven to work? 

Safety is paramount, but you want to know you’re receiving an effective product for your dog. And much like the safety aspect, just because one CBD oil for dogs is found to be effective doesn’t mean all CBD oil products for dogs are effective. 

When you’re considering options, ask whether the product has been scientifically tested and proven to work. If it has, the company you are speaking with should provide concrete evidence of this in the form of published clinical trials. To date, ElleVet remains one of the only products in the industry to have been put through a published clinical trial and efficacy study, with over 80% of dogs showing positive responses. 

What’s the concentration of CBD in the product? 

Concentrations will vary depending on the product and company (recognizing a trend?). It’s essential to know how to read the labels and what exactly you’re looking at. 

Most products use milligrams (mg) to measure the amount of CBD in their product and milliliters (mL) to measure the volume of oil. You may see a CBD oil with “100mg of CBD included”. For example, if you have a CBD oil for dogs with 100mg of CBD in a 20mL bottle, there is 5mg of CBD per mL (100mg/20=5mg). It does not mean there is 100mg of CBD per dose, per drop, etc. 

For reference, ElleVet’s oil products contain a minimum of 70mg of CBD per mL, which has been studied and proven effective and safe for dogs. You want to make sure there’s enough CBD in the actual product, or else you’ll be stuck with an ineffective, inefficient waste of time. When studying ElleVet CBD oil and its effects on dogs with joint discomfort, veterinarians at Cornell University found a maintenance dose of 2mg per kilogram of body weight (kg) of CBD to be the minimum required dose for dogs to garner positive results (1mg/kg twice a day). 

Takeaways

The purpose of explaining these realities is not to ‘put down’ other products or companies. But as a pet owner, it is important for us to reiterate that many of the products are untested and unproven. It’s crucial to understand that while CBD oil has, in fact, been proven effective for discomfort, skin issues, and stress in dogs, not all products are created equally. 

The points discussed are meant to help you in your CBD oil search, making you a more informed buyer and knowing what questions to ask. Hopefully, you found some of this helpful!

The ElleVet Team
844-673-7287
[email protected]