Can CBD Help with Dog Seizures?

Watching your dog have a seizure can be scary and devastating. As many as 1 in 20 dogs will experience a seizure in their lifetime. If your pet has chronic recurring seizures, this may indicate that they have Epilepsy.

Unfortunately, pet medications for seizures, such as Phenobarbital (PB), K-BroVet Potassium Bromide (KBr), and Primidone, only help in 70-80% of cases, and they can carry some harsh side effects including liver damage, lethargy, weight gain, personality changes, decreased white blood cell count, and thrombocytes (blood clotting), as well as thyroid and hormonal changes.

Can CBD help your dog with seizures and canine epilepsy?  Let’s explore…

What is a Seizure?

A seizure is a neurological condition that is popularly referred to as a convulsion. It is a distortion in the brain, a shift from the normal activity which affects the muscles and makes them uncontrollable by the individual who is affected.

Seizures can happen to humans, dogs, or any living animal. For many dog owners, it has been a cause of worry, fear, and anxiety. It sometimes feels worse in animals since you can’t actually hear what they say, you can only see their movements.

If you are not present at the time of a seizure in your dog, it could also be fatal.

Epilepsy is a continual occurrence of seizures in your dog. This means that the seizures may continue to happen especially if your dog is suffering from other illnesses such as kidney problems, liver diseases, and head injuries.

What are the Types of Dog Seizures?

There are different types of canine seizures that your dog can experience including:

Grand Mal Seizures

Grand Mal seizures are what most people associate with seizures. Symptoms can include falling, convulsions and twitching, loss of muscle control, and involuntary urination or defecation. Grand Mal seizures may last only a few seconds or up to several minutes.

Focal Seizures:

This type of seizure only affects one side of the brain. It could eventually spread to the other part of the brain and still make your dog exhibit the same characteristics. Symptoms may include involuntary jerking of limbs or repetitive facial movements.

Psychomotor Seizures

This type of seizure is difficult to detect, you may think that your dog is only having some fun when in reality, it may be struggling with brain inactivity. Your dog may only be hyperactive or aggressive for a short time, or they may express some uncommon behavior such as motionless staring, or hallucinatory behavior.

Symptoms of Dog Seizures to Recognize

Since dogs do not have the ability to communicate what is going on, owners of dogs with epilepsy must be vigilant and check for some of these symptoms of seizures:

• Becoming stiff
• Losing consciousness
• Chewing its own tongue
• Drooling
• Foaming from the mouth
• Unconsciously urinating or defecating

What To Do If Your Dog Is Having a Seizure

If you do notice some of these behaviors and suspect your dog may be having an epileptic seizure, you should remain calm and follow the steps below to comfort your pet:

• Speak to your pet in a soft, calming tone
• Assert light pressure on your pet’s eyes which may help decrease seizure duration
• Protect your pet from injury and prevent their head from hitting nearby objects
• Be careful not to move your pet or approach their head or mouth as they may bite
• Do not punish your pet if they urinate or defecate indoors during a seizure
• Seek emergency help if a seizure lasts more than several minutes or if a second seizure immediately occurs before they have recovered

What are Some Triggers for Seizures in Dogs?

It is difficult to know what particular triggers may cause seizures in dogs. However, you should be on the lookout if your dog has recently exhibited any of the signs or symptoms above and note any possible triggers listed below:

• Kidney or liver disease: if your dog is currently battling or recently recovered from kidney or liver disease, it is possible that seizures will occur.
• High blood sugar or low blood sugar: extremely high blood sugar or extremely low blood sugar can greatly affect the brain which can cause seizures.
• Traumatic head injury: whether recent or past, head injuries could pose a threat to your dog which may be the culprit for seizures.

Other possible causes of seizures may include:

• Genetics (hereditary)
• Anemia
• Vascular disease
• Poisoning
• Tumors
• Stroke
• Infection

How Can CBD Oil Help with Canine Seizures?

As stated above, many of the drugs for canine epilepsy have serious side effects. Many pet parents seek a safe and natural alternative treatment for relieving your dog’s seizures without side effects. This is where CBD comes in.

What is CBD?

CBD, short for cannabidiol, is a non-psychoactive compound extracted from the cannabis plant. CBD has been shown to provide numerous health benefits including relieving pain, reducing inflammation, promoting relaxation, and a wide range of other benefits with little to no side effects.

CBD has been used by many pet owners to help aging pets, those with physical, mental, or behavioral conditions, and as a way to promote good overall health. Many pet owners have reported that CBD has greatly improved their pet’s quality of life.

The neuroprotective property is what makes CBD oil a powerful proponent for alleviating seizures in your dog. In your dog’s body, there are endocannabinoid receptors that interact with cannabinoids introduced into the body. These include CB1 receptors found in the neural system (which is a contributor to epilepsy and seizures) and CB2 receptors found in the immune system.

CBD interacts with our endocannabinoid receptors to repress the hyperactivity of epilepsy and combat neuroinflammation.

How to Give Your Dog CBD?

The options for giving your pet CBD are plentiful. The most common (and tastiest!) method is in the form of CBD Dog Treats.  Tessera Naturals CBD Dog Treats are made from organically grown USA hemp and contain 2mgs of CBD per treat with no THC. They have a delicious beef flavor that all dogs love.  Cats love them too! CBD dog treats are a safe, convenient, and fun way for pets to enjoy the benefits of CBD.

For larger dogs (60+ lbs), it may be more practical (and more cost-effective) to use our CBD tinctures or softgel capsules.

NOTE: If you give your pet CBD oil using tinctures, it’s best to stick with “natural” flavor.  Some essential oils, such as peppermint oil, may be toxic to some dogs.

Tinctures can be applied directly into the back of the animal’s mouth or under their lip, or the appropriate dosage can be dropped into their regular food, or mixed with a tasty treat like peanut butter.

In addition, cats will lick CBD oil off of their paws when it is applied there, which is a good non-intrusive method to get CBD into their system.

If your pet is on prescription medications, we advise that you check with your veterinarian before giving them CBD.

What to Look for When Buying CBD Oil for Dogs With Seizures

Unfortunately, due to the lack of FDA regulations on CBD, there are many low quality and possibly unsafe CBD products on the market. Always make sure you are purchasing a high-quality product from a reputable source.

What Sets Tessera Naturals Apart?

All Tessera Naturals products adhere to the following standards:

• Organically grown phytocannabinoid-rich hemp from fully compliant US Farm
• Manufactured in GMP compliant and FDA registered facility
• CO2 extraction methodology to maintain the whole plant profile
• Nano-emulsion technology to ensure optimal absorption and bioavailability
• Non-GMO and free of pesticides, metals or harsh chemicals
• 3rd party independent lab testing for potency, quality, and safety

We offer military and senior discounts… and every product you buy from Tessera Naturals helps protect our planet through our partnership with onepercentfortheplanet.org!

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Key Takeaways

• Canine seizures can affect 1 in 20 dogs
• There are different types of seizures and some may be difficult to detect
• Remain calm and help your pet avoid injury during a seizure
• Look for triggers and causes to reduce the occurrence of dog seizures
• CBD oil may greatly help your dog control or reduce seizures
• Make sure to only buy high quality CBD products from a reputable source