When managing chronic kidney disease in your cat you may have run across the recommendation of CBD. This is something we added to our cat’s supplement rotation to help him in a variety of ways with his symptoms. For us we saw improvement in his appetite and mood so we have continued to use it.
Does CBD Help Cats with Kidney Disease?
In our experience yes! We added this one to Olaf’s lineup when he started getting a little aggressive with his siblings. Being our first he always acts like the alpha male but he was taking it farther than normal.
Fighting can be a sign of pain in cats and I definitely wasn’t sitting easy knowing he could be hurting. I mean one of his kidneys was jumbo and the other is undersized couldn’t be the best feeling right?
Sure enough after a couple of weeks on the CBD oil he calmed down and best of all he was gaining weight! A huge win-win in the world of battling kidney disease. These aren’t the only two things that CBD oil can help with regarding kidney disease these are just a few more things CBD oil can improve:
- Appetite
- Anxiety and mood
- Pain
- Energy levels
- Gastrointestinal issues
- Inflammation
- Anxiety and mood
Options of CBD for Cats
There are seemingly 100s of options of CBD oil out on the market. It seems like new companies are popping up all over the places. But be warned they are NOT all the same. It’s very important you give your pet a CBD that is designed for them.
CBD for cats must not have high levels of THC, in fact it should just be trace amounts as it can be dangerous to your cat.
Anxious Pet
This is a newer brand of CBD that I discover for my cat with Kidney Disease. As his disease progressed it got harder to mix medicine in his food and keep him eating the proper number of calories. In comes anxious pet. They have a convient plastic dropper so I could administer straight into his mouth but I recommend not to risk that getting messed up. He tolerated it mixed into a treat or food. Alternatively you could put into a disposable medicine syringe.
Populum
This was the first brand ever recommended to us. It’s widely used in a support group I belong to for parents of cats with Kidney Disease. It recently underwent a rebrand as the company merged with another. CBD Pet now also owns Populum.
Our cat accepted it easily in his food as long as we boosted up the flavor with a sprinkle of treats, Bonita Flakes are nice and fishy so they mask a lot of medicine smells.
How to Administer CBD Oil to your Cat
Shake the bottle for at least 30 seconds and pull the contents of the bottle into the dropper to the appropriate dose (based on dosing chart). Ideally it is best to give the product directly into your pet’s mouth (cheek or under the tongue if possible). Do make sure that the dropper is plastic that you use you do not want a glass dropper breaking in your cats mouth. If oral dosing is too difficult with your cat, consider placing on tasty soft food or a treat to confirm your pet gets every drop.
Due to the lipophilic nature of cannabinoids, they are best absorbed when given with a full meal that contains some fat. The research on this topic has also supported that the bioavailability is higher when dogs received hemp products with food or as a soft chew, compared to on an empty stomach.
Will Giving My Cat CBD Oil Make Them High?
This is not a silly question. I worried about this as well but after I did my research I was happy to find out no it will not make your cat high. When one of my other cats had a surgery she came home with pain meds and boy did that make her loopy. I didn’t want CBD to have the same effect and thankfully it was nothing at all like our experience with pain medication. CBD is not intoxicating (like high levels of THC can be) but it is absolutely psychoactive.
The definition of psychoactive means any chemical substance that can change brain function and result in alteration of in perception mood and behavior.
But that is NOT necessarily a bad thing. When you think about it, many people and animals are taking a CBD hemp product to reduce anxiety, so if a product produces relaxation/calming effect that is a positive attribute, not a negative one.
Is CBD Only Helpful for Kidney Disease in Cats?
CBD has a wide range of uses and can be very helpful in many areas. Because it helped with so many different elements it was a big part of why I took the leap and gave it a try on my CKD kitty. We already mentioned some above but here are just a few more ways CBD could help your cat.
- Promote calm and reduce anxiety related behavior.
- Support immune health and brain function.
- Reduce inflammation and skin irritation.
- Help with seasonal allergies.
- Hip dysplasia or arthritis
- Tumors or growths
- Improved quality of life
Conclusion on CBD for your Cat with Kidney Disease
We saw lots of positive improvements in our cat once he was on a steady daily dose of CBD. Increase appetite, weight gain, and lowered aggression towards the other cats in the house was a huge win. Our vet even agreed that it was helping him out and that we should continue treatment.
Naysha
Friday 23rd of June 2023
Hi Robbin Thank you for your article, your information has been helping us transition into this phase. I am getting some luck with my girl City when I add the Tiki cat chicken mouse cream treat. Here you mention a support group. Do you have any recommendations? I live alone and having a sick baby feels very heavy to carry alone. Having some people who understand would be nice.
Ty in advance and have a great day!
Robin Griffin
Wednesday 28th of June 2023
https://www.facebook.com/groups/felinecrf
Dawn
Tuesday 6th of December 2022
Hi Robin,
My 15 yr old is currently struggling with kidney disease. Recently, his energy levels and appetite have declined significantly. We tried using prescription Mirtazapine as an appetite stimulant, but it didn’t seem to help with his appetite and had negative side effects.
I’d like to try CBD oil to help stimulate his appetite (and help with any nausea he may be experiencing), but I’m a bit overwhelmed by the options. Between the Populum Pop Zen Pets Calming Hemp Oil and the CBD Pet, which of the two would you recommend? Also, I see that they come in different concentrations (mg). Any recommendations for which concentration (mg) level to start with?
Dawn
Saturday 10th of December 2022
@Robin Griffin,
Thanks so much for getting back to me. At this time, we know he is dealing with kidney disease. We’ve been giving him subcutaneous fluids every other day for a week or so per our vet’s orders. We had blood work done recently, but unfortunately, I don’t recall getting any details regarding his phosphorous levels. Our vet did X-Rays and an ultrasound and also identified fluids in his chest and abdomen. She sent a sample of the fluids out for a cytology report (still awaiting the result). In the meantime, we’ve been trying to get him to eat when and whatever we can and keep him comfy and loved. Thank you again for taking the time to reply to me.
Robin Griffin
Wednesday 7th of December 2022
Of the two I have only tried CBD Pet and it really helped our boy. I think the biggest thing with CBD is to look at the purity report make sure it's clean there aren't heavy metals. Also you want to make sure it's not full spectrum and has no THC in it.
I find with the reduced eating there is other stuff going on, have you re run labs? How is the phosphorous levels? You may have better luck focusing on that, CBD is great don't get me wrong but if your cat has another underlying issue CBD won't fix it, it will help for sure.
Carrie
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
Hi ... I rescued two cats last month and they came with urinary food.... they are both 7yrs old, one is female (snowflake) and one is male (Winter)... my Winter is not doing well at all... they came to me underweight and now he is very underweight.... I have spent a fortune on a variety of foods, from urinary care foods, regular cat food, raw food, freeze dried food, making homemade food specifically for cats with kidney disease and still he barely eats, mostly he just licks up any gravy or sauce the food is in.... he is lethargic and so thin.... tried warming his food, adding water and broth to make it wetter and more appetizing, tried treats, tried adding tuna water to his food.... my heart is breaking watching him decline.... so now I’m thinking of trying the CBD oil to help him...I want to be careful what I use and how much... I definitely don’t want to make him worse.... any recommendations or information you can send me would be very much appreciated... I’m not ready to give up on him yet... I know it just a matter of time before this disease takes him but he is such a beautiful soul he deserves a fighting chance to be loved for as long as I can and keep him comfortable and happy
Robin Griffin
Tuesday 23rd of February 2021
I am so sorry you are going through this, having been through this with my boy I know it's just so gut wrenching to watch.
Do you have recent bloodwork? Something else maybe going on. You say they came with urinary food but do they have CKD not urinary issues? Also have you tried Cerenia, Pepcid, or Zofran - they are all anti nausea medication. Also did you try the good gravy foods like Tiki Cat or Weruva OMG BFF line? Baby food is another great option when your cat isn't eating. Also dare I say have you tried dry kibble (better than no food at all?)
If you want to go forward with the CBD start with a half dose see how he takes it and slowly increase from there.