Success Story: How Hemp helped Finnick’s Fear and Allergies

Meet Finnick!

Finnick is a sweet and loveable 4 year old pitbull/bulldog mix. From the beginning, Finnick was in good hands with Jenny, who routinely fostered and rescued pitbulls.

For the first few months of his life, Finnick was a normal happy go lucky, rambunctious puppy, until some changes triggered his stress and anxiety and drastically changed the way he behaved.Perio

“When he was about a year old, which is one of the fear periods, we moved to a new house which was in a new development,”  says Finnick’s owner Jenny.

In the span of a few weeks, Finnick’s life went from peace and quiet to total chaos.  Moving homes, along with the commotion in a neighborhood under construction, caused this poor pup to develop some serious anxiety.

Periods of Canine Developmental Fear

According to canine behaviorists, dogs have two major developmental periods of increased incidence of fear. The first between 8-11 weeks old, and the second between 6-18 months. During these times, dogs become more fearful because of changes in hormones and cognition, associated with maturation. While your dog is going through these developmental phases, they are more susceptible to long term conditioning from perceived traumatic events.

But wait … there’s more!

Finnick’s troubles didn’t end with the move. In addition to his new digs and a lot of strange people getting up in his space, his doggy sister passed away shortly after they moved into their new home.

“I think the combination really pushed him over the edge.” says Jenny.

“He became fearful of Amazon boxes, walking through the front door, or going for a walk. He was afraid to see a big truck… It got so bad that we couldn’t find a way to walk. He would just lay down on the ground and not budge and you know, he’s 90 pounds. You can’t budge him.”

“I Tried Everything!”

Jenny started looking for options that would help her furry friend feel less afraid.

“We did give him trazadone for a couple months, which isn’t something I want to do, but he was so fearful. His quality of life was not good so I started looking around and I tried some supplements.”

She experimented with Chinese herbal medicines and even tried a number of different hemp products, “which helped to some extent,” she says.

“But then I saw Hemp Dog Health on Facebook and I started trying that, and I’ve never looked back!”

Using Calm to Combat Chronic and Situational Anxiety and Fear

“The first day I used it, I noticed it took a little edge off.” Jenny goes on to talk about her experience finding the right dose for Finnick’s anxiety. He had gone months and months living with daily fear and anxiety, but slowly with the patient care of his dog mom and the help of the Calm oil, he was able to release his fear and start feeling like a dog again. 

“I give him about a milliliter in the morning and a milliliter in the afternoon and that seems to be the perfect place for him.”

*For the folks reading at home, one milliliter (ml) of Calm contains 9 mg of Hemp. Most dogs need between 9-18 mg daily depending on a number of factors, including the level of anxiety and the sensitivity of their endocannabinoid system.

Since Finnick switched to Calm, he has been a new dog.

“He’s happy. He likes to play. He likes to go places, we can take them on walks, and it doesn’t matter where we go! We don’t have issues with him anymore. He’s just a happier dog.”

“And I’m sure he feels better because you’re not as itchy too.”

Not only has Finnick benefitted from the calming effects of a full-spectrum hemp extract, his owner, Jenny, has found that it has also helped with his allergies. 

Finnick was prone to allergies from a young age. Jenny says he was prone to hives and hot spots, and on one occasion ended up having a pretty bad allergy attack. 

A Mishap at the Vet ft. Apoquel

When Jenny took Finnick to the vet to see what could be done about his most recent allergy attack, a critical error happened at check in. The front desk staff took down Finnick’s age as 1 year and 3 months, when in reality he was only three months old.

This doesn’t seem like a big deal, except the veterinarian went on to prescribe him a drug called Apoquel. Apoquel is no joke to begin with, but it is especially dangerous to dogs who are younger than six months old.

“He got papilomas, he got mange, he had worse skin.”

Seeking a Holistic Option: Diet and hemp

Luckily, Jenny was able to see that something wasn’t right and seek out the help of a holistic vet who set them on a better path for what they were dealing with.

Finnick eats a fresh and raw diet, with foods from Answers Pet Foods and Small Batch. Jenny supplements his meals with fish stock and raw fermented goats milk to help boost his immune system and support a healthy gut. 

Along this fantastic nutritional plan, Finnick takes the Ease tincture, from Hemp Dog Health, to help further balance his immune system and reduce inflammation throughout the body. 

“Between the Calm and Ease, I kind of use them depending on, you know: how does the skin look, and where are we going and what might he be exposed to that could make him fearful?”

“He’s just a happier dog.”

Since beginning to use Hemp on a daily basis, and switching Finnick to a diet that matches his needs, he has had a huge bump in his quality of life. He is less fearful, more confident in new settings and doesn’t have to deal with the looming threat of an allergy attack.

And as many pet parents understand, now that Finnick feels better, Jenny feels better. 

“Now, I don’t worry 24/7. I mean, I was spending, hours every day researching what kind of food to try, what kind of medications to try or avoid…. He’s like my child. And it was a constant worry about, am I doing the right thing? Am I doing the wrong thing? My worry is gone, my stress level is less, I feel more confident about him… So… it’s made my life easier.”

Finnick’s Anxiety and Allergy Protocol:

HEMP:

• Calm: 1 ml/ twice a day 
• Ease: As needed 

DIET: 

• Answers Detailed Formula
• Small Batch Rabbit
• Raw Kefir
• Raw Fermented Goats Milk
• Fish Stock
• Calm: 1 ml/ twice a day 
• Ease: As needed 
• Lots of Love

 

 

About Angela Ardolino

Angela Ardolino is a holistic pet expert who has been caring for animals for over 20 years and operates a rescue farm, Fire Flake Farm, in Florida. She is also the owner of  Beautify the Beast,  a natural pet salon and shop. After getting her certificate in Medical Hemp Biology and Therapeutic use from the University of Vermont School of Medicine, she founded Hemp Dog Health to provide high quality, all-natural medical hemp products designed specifically for pets. Angela has seven dogs, Odie a 12-year-old mini-schnauzer, Nina an 8-year-old Doberman. Jolene a 7-year-old mutt, Maza a 7-year-old mutt, Rhemi an 8-year-old poodle, Potato a 15-year-old shih-tzu, and Miss Daisie a 15-year-old black lab, plus 4-10 more at any time she is fostering or boarding. She uses Full Spectrum Hemp Extract on all her pets at her rescue farm every day, and has since 2016. She is a member of the Society of hemp Clinicians, the Veterinary Hemp Association and has trained hundreds of medical doctors and veterinarians about the therapeutic uses of medical hemp on animals. Visit www.angelaardolino.com for more information.