Could CBD oil help dogs with epilepsy when regular medicines aren’t enough? A new study gives us some answers.
For many dog owners, seizures are one of the most frightening things to witness. You want to help, but sometimes even with the best medications, the seizures don’t go away.
This condition, called idiopathic epilepsy, is one of the most common long-term neurological disorders in dogs. And when the seizures don’t respond well to treatment, it leaves families desperate for other options.
That’s why researchers decided to look at CBD. Pet owners have been talking about CBD oil for years, but this was one of the first controlled clinical trials designed to see if CBD could actually reduce seizures in dogs.
How CBD Was Given to Dogs
The trial included 26 dogs with intractable idiopathic epilepsy. Each dog continued taking their regular antiepileptic medications. Then they were randomly assigned to one of two groups:
- CBD group (12 dogs): Received CBD oil at a dose of 2.5 mg per kilogram of body weight, twice a day, for 12 weeks.
- Placebo group (14 dogs): Received the same type of oil without CBD.
Owners, veterinarians, and researchers didn’t know which dogs were getting CBD and which were getting a placebo, making the study double-blind and randomized, the gold standard for clinical research.
Throughout the 12 weeks, seizure activity, side effects, and CBD blood levels were tracked.
What the Dogs Experienced
The results showed both promise and side effects:
- Seizure reduction: Dogs in the CBD group experienced a median 33% reduction in seizure frequency. That’s a meaningful drop for families dealing with daily seizures.
- Response rates: When looking at “responders”, dogs whose seizures decreased by 50% or more, the proportion was similar in both groups. That means not every dog responded dramatically.
- Blood levels mattered: Dogs with higher levels of CBD in their blood tended to have bigger reductions in seizures. This suggests dosage or absorption may play a key role.
- Side effects:
- 2 dogs developed ataxia (loss of coordination) and were withdrawn from the study.
- Dogs in the CBD group showed a rise in alkaline phosphatase, a liver enzyme, indicating that liver function should be monitored during CBD treatment.
- Importantly, no behavioral side effects were reported by owners; dogs didn’t become sluggish or act differently beyond seizure changes.
What This Means for Pet Owners
For families with dogs struggling against hard-to-control epilepsy, these results offer cautious hope:
- CBD did reduce seizure frequency in many dogs.
- A few dogs had meaningful improvements, but others did not see enough change to be considered responders.
- Side effects were mild to moderate but real, especially ataxia and liver enzyme changes, showing the importance of veterinary supervision.
The most important takeaway? CBD oil might be useful alongside existing medications, but more research is needed, especially at different doses, to know how effective it can truly be.
Original Study Section
Title: Randomized blinded controlled clinical trial to assess the effect of oral cannabidiol administration in addition to conventional antiepileptic treatment on seizure frequency in dogs with intractable idiopathic epilepsy
Date: June 2019
Authors: Stephanie McGrath; Lisa R. Bartner; Sangeeta Rao; Rebecca A. Packer; Daniel L. Gustafson
Link to Study: Read on PubMed