Description

There is rapidly growing interest in the potential therapeutic use of cannabis among veterinarians around the world. Unfortunately, there is a profound lack of formal veterinary education on the endocannabinoid system (ECS) and its clinical manipulation, despite its discovery more than 30 years ago. This gap has left practitioners with a lack of knowledge, as well as comfort, in meeting the increasing demands placed on them by clients. Some of these concerns revolve around the legality of prescribing cannabis as well as challengers accessing safe, quality-controlled, pharmaceutical grade formulations. This lecture will explore these concerns as well as provide clarity around the clinically relevant questions of which situations are warranted; what is an effective dosing strategy and what precautions should be taken?

Learning Objectives

• Understand the physiology of the endocannabinoid system (ECS)
• Understand how medicinal cannabis interacts with the ECS
• Understand the legality of accessing medicinal cannabis for veterinary patients
• Understand the clinical role for medicinal cannabis
• Understand a practical approach to dosing and patient monitoring