What is Marijuana?
Marijuana is a greenish-gray combination of the dried flowers of Cannabis sativa. It is also known as weed, herb, pot, grass, bud, ganja, Mary Jane, and a variety of other slang words. Some individuals consume marijuana in hand-rolled cigarettes known as joints, pipes, water pipes (also known as bongs), or blunts (marijuana rolled-in cigar wraps). Marijuana may also be used to make tea and is commonly combined into meals (edibles) such as brownies, cookies, or candies, especially when sold or used for therapeutic purposes. Vaporizers are also becoming more popular for marijuana use.
What are the types of Marijuana?
The two main forms of marijuana are derived from two distinct species of the Cannabis plant: Cannabis indica and Cannabis sativa. The many forms of cannabis differ in terms of both the sort of weed plant they originate from and the effects they have on a person or the type of high they provide.
Cannabis ruderalis, a third strain, has recently been utilized to manufacture marijuana.
People who use marijuana will often select a strain based on the impact they desire. While each variety has a distinct effect, one person’s experience may differ substantially from another’s.
How does Marijuana affect humans?
Marijuana has both immediate and long-term impacts.
In the short term:
You may experience the following when high:
Changes in perception, such as seeing brighter colors.
Time perception can be altered, with minutes appearing to be hours.
Variations in the mood.
Issues with bodily mobility.
Thinking, problem-solving, and memory issues.
Appetite stimulation.
In the long run:
Marijuana can create long-term health issues such as:
Developmental issues with the brain. People who began smoking marijuana as youths may experience difficulties with thinking, memory, and learning.
If you consume marijuana regularly, you may experience coughing and breathing difficulties.
Problems with child development during and after pregnancy if a pregnant mother consumes marijuana.
Do dogs get high after consuming Marijuana?
Eating marijuana or other THC-containing items isn’t normally hazardous, but it can have major consequences for your dog. They don’t appear to be having a good time after taking it, and it’s not like they were looking for a “high.”
Instead, dogs feel out of control and rather unwell after consuming weed. It’s easy to picture how bewildering and terrifying that must have been for them. Furthermore, when it comes to cannabis dose, size counts, thus a little dog that consumes a lot of marijuana may experience possibly life-threatening difficulties.
Consider this: if you’re only supposed to eat one or two squares of that infused chocolate bar, what kind of overdose would your 6-pound Pomeranian suffer if he finds and consumes the entire chocolate bar?
What are the Symptoms of Marijuana Poisoning?
Every dog is unique, and the effects will vary depending on the dosage ingested and body weight. It’s also crucial to understand that not every dog exhibits all of the symptoms all of the time. Regardless, there is a broad pattern of symptoms and behavior that is very common for THC use. Examples of dogs that have consumed THC are easily accessible on video-sharing sites, so seeing a few can give you an idea of whether this is what’s going on with your dog.
A sudden start of odd symptoms in an otherwise healthy pet is typical of marijuana intake in dogs:
Being drowsy
Uncoordinated, wobbly motions
Urinary incontinence or dribbling urine
Being easily startled or frightened
Vomiting (occasionally, not always)
Pupils are dilated
How much Marijuana is toxic for our canine companions?
It would be ideal if veterinarians and scientists could provide a definitive solution to this issue, but they can’t. This is due to the lack of standards or quality control over how powerful or concentrated most cannabis products are. Sure, your product may make a claim on the label about the percentage of THC in it, but none of it is vetted or controlled in the same way that traditional drugs are.
As a result, veterinarians frequently feel it’s impossible to know how much THC an affected dog has actually eaten.
What are the treatment options available for Marijuana consumption in Dogs?
The goal of marijuana intoxication treatment is to get the marijuana out of your pet’s system. If the ingestion happened within 30 minutes of the presentation and your pet is aware and functioning normally, your veterinarian may induce vomiting to eliminate as much of the material as possible before absorption. This considerably minimizes the possibility of toxicity. Owners should not try to make their dogs vomit since dangerous and perhaps fatal problems like choking and aspiration can ensue.
Your veterinarian may advise that your pet be hospitalized for 12 to 24 hours for strict supervision. Close monitoring of your pet’s body temperature, heart rate, and respiration is also required until the marijuana is removed from his or her system and the pet returns to normal. Marijuana is a strong sedative that, in excessive dosages, can cause a life-threatening coma. Marijuana poisoning is nearly never deadly when treated appropriately by a veterinarian. Long-term negative effects are uncommon.
How to avoid such encounters in the future?
Things happen, but here are some pointers to help you prevent a catastrophe.
1. Take care
Keep your eyes open when you’re outside, but free-range romps can be too much fun to pass up. Use a “leave it” or “drop it” command to urge your dog to either not pick up something strange or to spit it out.
2. Keep your stash hidden
You wouldn’t leave open wine bottles sitting around easily accessible. Keep edibles and cannabis in child-resistant containers on high shelves.
3. Educate everyone
Make sure that everyone in the household is aware of the signs of cannabis intake and has the veterinarian’s phone number in case of an emergency.
Conclusion
All said and done, the experience of consuming Marijuana/weed in dogs is vastly different than of humans and special care should be taken to not let such a situation arise, as unlike humans they don’t get “high”. Your pet partner might not know any better but now you do, so it’s better to keep your stash away from your dogs as they can get quite sick and can even be fatal at times.
Happy Mood and Health to your Doggo and lots of Love and Licks to you!
