A study using data from the Dog Aging Project found that dogs given CBD products for multiple years were initially more aggressive than dogs not receiving those products, but their aggression became less intense over time.

The finding, drawn from owner-reported measures analyzed by university researchers, suggests a complex time course in behavioral response to long‑term cannabidiol use in companion animals and was published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science.

Researchers relied on the Dog Aging Project for the dataset and statistical comparisons, then examined behavioral outcomes for dogs whose owners reported regular CBD use over multiple years. The lead authors include academics affiliated with Arizona State University and the University of Tennessee.

“Behaviorally, dogs given CBD products for multiple years are initially more aggressive compared to dogs not receiving those products, but their aggression becomes less intense over time,” said Dr Maxwell Leung, assistant professor at Arizona State University.

These findings are particularly relevant as CBD is commonly reported in veterinary medicine as an adjunct treatment for chronic pain, especially osteoarthritis, as well as for epilepsy and anxiety-related behaviors. Dr Maxwell Leung framed the pattern as a temporal shift rather than a simple benefit or harm. That view is echoed by co-author Dr Julia Albright of the University of Tennessee, who described the results as pointing toward therapeutic potential: “This long-term behavioral change highlights the potential of CBD as a therapy for canine behavioral issues.”

The study used repeated owner observations to track behavior over time and focused specifically on aggression as a behavioral measure. Researchers compared dogs whose owners reported giving CBD products for multiple years with dogs whose owners did not report CBD use, and charted how aggression scores changed across the reporting period. Notably, surveys suggest that approximately 7–21% of dog owners report using CBD products for their pets, indicating a growing trend among pet owners seeking alternative treatments.

Authors emphasized the long-term pattern: an initial difference in aggression that diminished across subsequent reports. The paper appears in the peer‑reviewed journal Frontiers in Veterinary Science, and the findings were summarized in a university release and coverage on ScienceDaily.

The research team described the pattern as notable because aggression is commonly tied to stress or anxiety; in this large Dog Aging Project analysis, CBD use was associated with decreased aggression over time but showed no similar association with other behaviors such as agitation or anxiety in dogs.

Data came from the Dog Aging Project, a long‑term research initiative that gathers owner‑reported information on pets’ health and behavior. The project provided the longitudinal observations that allowed investigators to follow behavioral trends in individual animals over multiple reporting periods.

In their public statements, the authors connected the results to possible clinical uses while stopping short of prescribing treatments. Dr Maxwell Leung noted broader medical parallels: “There are many similarities in how CBD can benefit dogs and humans medically.”

The study’s publication in Frontiers in Veterinary Science makes the dataset and methods available to other researchers and clinicians who may examine timing, dosage, or specific behavioral mechanisms in future work.

For now, the research presents a nuanced picture: dogs receiving CBD products for multiple years show an initial increase in aggression relative to non‑CBD dogs, followed by a reduction in aggressive behavior across subsequent reports, a pattern the authors say merits further investigation.

Source

Original reporting: view the original article.