" Some substances that are relatively benign in humans can be highly toxic to dogs and / or cats ," a spokeswoman for the TGA said . " Cannabis cultivated and manufactured into medicinal cannabis products is for use in humans only . It should not be provided to pets ."
But veterinarians have the discretion to prescribe human medicines to pets , if they think it ' ll help , and certain very-low dose hemp oils , like the ones you may see at market stalls , can legally be sold in Australia . " The reason they ' re legal is that they have such a low concentration to be legal so they can ' t be abused . They may well be safe , but we also don ' t know that they ' re effective ," practicing vet and member of the Australian Veterinary Association , Phil Brain , said .
He cautioned pet owners against seeing medicinal cannabis as the silver bullet for their sick pets .
" The AVA remains open to the possibility of these drugs , we welcome further research . It ' s probably just at this time , the unquestioning acceptance of the products is premature ."
Phil said he ' s much more likely to see pets get sick from accidentally accessing their owner ' s stash .
" They come in with quite profound signs of toxicity , ranging from being spaced out , but often including seizing , they ' re wobbly and they ' re quite neurologically affected . In some cases that toxicity can be fatal ."
" We keep an open mind I suppose , but veterinary science is a science and accordingly the AVA are advocates for only using products that have been thoroughly tested ," Phil said .
Could we see approved cannabisbased product for pets on the Australian market soon ?
Next step : getting the product into Australia on a trial basis .
" That ' s probably the first path for us , to get some product into the country through a TGA approval for research purposes so they can have some experience with it ," David said .
Cannabis is a good option for pets , but we need to gather some local evidence ."
David admitted Australia had been slow off the mark when it comes to utilising medicinal cannabis , but he said it ' s " for the right reasons ".
" There are about 5 million dogs - that ' s about 40 per cent of households in Australia - and they ' re part of the family . They ' re a very important part of people ' s lives , and we want to make sure we give them something safe ," he said .
A last resort Tim and Tina didn ' t regret their decision for a second .
Muttley is a much-loved member of the family , and his human parents would do anything to make his last days bearable . You would do that for anyone , you ' d try and make them comfortable ." " I mean , his prognosis is terminal and all it ' s done is make him comfortable for however long he ' s got to live ," Tina said . Tim agreed .
" I just think , give it a go if there ' s no other option ."
Phil ' s approach was a bit more cautious . " I would say to those pet owners to see the veterinarian and have a long chat about conventional medication , discuss using alternative medication as an option ."