Vet explains what happens if your dog inhales marijuana and the risks of having too much
Our four-legged friends require a good deal of love, care, and attention, but it isn't always straightforward to know what is and is not harmful to them.
Everyone knows that treats like chocolate can make a dog very sick, but what about weed?
As cannabis is legalized in more states and more people start using the drug recreationally, dog owners should be conscious of the impact it can have on their pet's health.
Even if you don't use it yourself, it can be easy for your furry pal to be exposed to it.
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Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main psychoactive compound in weed, which is what gets you high. But for dogs, who have twice as many cannabinoid receptors as humans, just small amounts of this substance can make them seriously sick.
Vet Dr Andrew Jones has broken down just how easy it is for your dog to get high, with some getting seriously stoned just by eating a used roach off the sidewalk, or by inhaling too much smoke.
Unlike humans, who are most likely to experience a ravenous hunger (munchies), lethargy (couch lock), or queasiness (whitey), from consuming too much weed, dogs can become life-threateningly ill.
This includes losing their sense of balance, vomiting, and seizures which, if left untreated, could cause a stroke, or even death. Other telltale signs that your dog is high on THC include dilated pupils, staggering, trembling, convulsions, and salivating.
Dr Jones described a situation where a small dog had eaten a roach off the ground while out walking, and immediately started to suffer the consequences as they began falling over and presenting as though they had a stroke.
"That roach that was discarded could easily have 20 miligrams of THC, but that could be easily 30 to 40 times their dose," he explained on his Youtube channel Veterinary Secrets.
The reason dogs can be affected by such a small amount of cannabis is that they have twice as many cannabinoid receptors in their brain. This means a dog that is the same weight as you would get twice as high.
This is why you should be extremely careful when using cannabis around your small pets, as their smaller size and greater susceptibility to THC will see them be far worse affected by the drug.
And that even includes weed smoke, so if you are getting high in an enclosed space, don't just crack open a window, let your dog go outside. "[The smoke] can cause potential life-threatening symptoms," vet Moira Gerlach told tag24
If you are concerned that your canine companion has accidentally consumed THC, whether that's from sitting in your hotbox or from stealing a tray of weed brownies off the kitchen counter, you should tell your vet immediately.
Within two hours of consumption, they will be able to induce your dog to vomit up the worst of the intoxicating substance.
Or, they can give your dog activated charcoal supplements to neutralize the cannabis in their stomach, or put them on IV fluids to keep them stabilized.
But, it is also worth remembering that, in tiny doses, medical cannabis can be used by professionals to treat plenty of our four-legged friends' health issues. Just like with humans, it can help cancer sufferers deal with nausea, chronic pain, and a loss of appetite.
Just don't let them eat the brownies, after all, the chocolate isn't good for them either.
William Morgan