In this article, I am going to walk you through how to choose and calculate the right dose of CBD for your kitty.
My favorite CBD product formulated for cats is HempRx Feline Drops and it makes CBD dosing for cats straightforward and simple.
For kitties, I recommend starting with the HempRx Soft Chewz for Cats or the HempRx Feline Drops. If you have multiple kitties, I recommend using the HempRx Forte to save money. HempRx Forte has 4x the amount of CBD per bottle.
Products with high levels of CBD are expensive. For this reason, it is most economical to find the smallest dose that is effective for your kitty. There are currently no industry wide established doses for cats. As the cannabis market expands, more resources will be dedicated to research optimal dosing for cats.
Choosing The right Dose
I start with 0.2 mg/kg twice daily and work up to 0.5 mg/kg or higher twice daily. For the average 10 lb cat, this is 1 mg twice daily, working up to 2 mg twice daily. If you are using HempRx Soft Chewz, there is 1 mg of CBD in each chew. So, I recommend starting with one chew twice daily, increasing to two chews twice daily.
If you are using HempRx Feline Drops or HempRx Forte, 1 drop equals 1 mg. I recommend starting with 1 drop twice daily and increase to 2 drops twice daily. The starting dose would be 1 drop twice daily, increasing to 2 drops twice daily. I recommend staying at the starting dose for 2 to 3 days to ensure that your kitty tolerates CBD and the ingredients in the soft chew.
It is safe to increase the dose past 0.5 mg/kg twice daily. Often for severe pain, seizures or severe inflammatory disease, I increase to 2-3 mg/kg twice daily. For reference, both of my kitties are on 2 mg/kg or more twice daily. I definitely have the HempRx Forte in my fridge! If your kitty tolerates CBD, the only downsides to a higher dose is a higher cost.
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Calculating a Dose
If you want to skip the calculations, I have a dosing chart here. However, if you want to calculate the dose yourself, here is how.
Step 1: Convert your kitty’s weight from pounds (lbs) to kilograms (kg). You can do this by dividing your cat's weight in pounds by 2.2. Let’s start with an 11 lb kitty.
11 lb (division sign) 2.2 = 5 kg
Step 2: Multiply the number of milligrams (mg) in the dose by the number of kilograms (kg). If the dose is 0.2 mg/kg, you would multiply 5 kg x 0.2 mg to get 1 mg.
0.2 mg x 5 kg = 1 mg per dose
Step 3: Use the concentration of the CBD product you are using to calculate the volume of oil you should administer. Depending on the product you are using, this is easier said than done. If you are using HempRx Feline Drops or HempRx Forte, it’s REALLY simple! HempRx Feline Drops has 1.0 mg per drop. HempRx Forte also has 1 mg per drop. For example, if you need to give your kitty 3 mg of CBD twice daily. You could use 3 drops of the HempRx Feline Drops or HempRx Forte twice daily. If you are using the HempRx Soft Chewz, you can give 3 treats twice daily.
If you are using another product, you need to know how many milligrams (mg) of CBD is in each milliliter (mL) of oil. Unfortunately, there are a few companies that refuse to disclose this information. It is impossible to know if the dose you are using is a therapeutic dose. For this reason, I don’t recommend these products. Once you know how many milligrams of CBD are in each milliliter (ml) you can calculate the dose volume.
For example, HempRx Feline Drops and HempRx Forte have 30 mg of CBD per milliliter (mL) of oil. If I have calculated my dose to 4 mg of CBD twice daily, I simply divide 4 by 30 to get the number of milliliters of oil I need to give my kitty.
HempRx has 30 mg/ml of CBD
Dose of CBD is 4 mg twice daily
4 mg (divided by sign) 30 mg = 0.133 ml
Dosing past one tenth of a milliliter is difficult. Don’t do it! I would round 0.133 mls to 0.1 mls. For this volume, you could use a 1 milliliter syringe and draw back to 0.1 mL mark. If you prefer to use the dropper in the bottle, you could use 1/6 of the dropper. This assumes the dropper holds 1 mL of liquid. For reference 1 milliliter (mL) is equal to a cc.
Is your head spinning with numbers and units of measurements yet?
Feel free to post questions in the comments below!
Sending you and your pet all of my love,
