How can you use hemp to treat your furry feline family members?

About a year and half ago, my friend gave me the gift of a lifetime: a beautiful, affectionate cat in need of a fur-ever home.  I decided to name her Lucy.

Although I’ve played the role of pet sitter for many years, Lucy was the first cat that I was able to call my own and our time together has been nothing short of fantastic.

When anyone fully embraces the role of being a new pet parent, there inherently comes a host of responsibilities, most importantly their health and wellness.  In order to give Lucy the best quality of life, I need to be vigilant in making sure she is happy and pain-free.  As we all know, being well-informed is half the battle with so many of life’s issues.  So, I wanted to make sure to share a list of some common health-related conditions affecting our whiskered loved ones, which can possibly be treated with the addition of hemp into their diets.

1. Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): This is frustratingly common in cats. Hemp extract may have a place alongside other therapies to help reduce inflammation and therefore symptoms. Cats with IBD may vomit, have diarrhea or may lose weight.

2. Pancreatitis: Many cats with IBD also have pancreatitis. Like IBD it can be frustrating to treat. I use a low fat diet, hemp, herbal remedies, and digestive enzymes to help control inflammation of the pancreas.

3. Arthritis: Cats that suffer from arthritis need all the help they can get. Unfortunately many painful cats suffer because we don’t have great pharmaceutical options that are safe. Because cats tend to be reclusive and don’t travel as readily, they are less likely to get treatment for their aches and pains. I have found WellPUR Organics Pet Hemp Extract to be an extremely effective anti-inflammatory for these kitties.

4. Cancer: This is a popular use for hemp in both animals and people. There are many reports of longer survival times with better quality of life for both people and animals with cancer. Unfortunately, we don’t have any great studies that prove how or why this happens. This will change in the near future.

5. Asthma. Like all of the disease listed above, asthma is a common inflammatory disease of cats. Some cats have very minor symptoms that need little to no medical interventions. Other cats require life long treatment by inhaler. Hemp extract may be a great option to help these kitties have less inflammation and therefore less asthma attacks. It is important that you never stop medications your kitty is taking before speaking with your veterinarian. If your cat needs an inhaler to breathe, don’t substitute phytocannabinoids oil for their daily inhaled medications.

6. Chronic Upper Respiratory Infections. This has been an unexpected but delightful side effect of patients that have been given phytocannabinoids for arthritis or asthma. Kitties that  have had life long symptoms of chronic viral infections have experienced significant relief.

7. Seizures. While these are uncommon in kitties, I have seen amazing responses in kitties that suffer from seizures. If your kitty is already taking medications for seizures, do not stop those abruptly and always work with your veterinarian.