Cannect Group is urging the public to make final comments on its Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) application aimed at rewording Schedule 8 (S8) cannabis and THC entries in the Poisons Standard to allow for veterinary access.

The application closes on October 7 with Cannect Group focusing on pet owners and vets in a bid to change the language from “human therapeutic use” to “human or animal therapeutic use” and allow for safe access to cannabis products for veterinary patients.

Dr Marta Calvo Blanco

Under the current language, vets are prohibited from prescribing S8 cannabis products to their animal patients. 

In a letter to vets supported by Cannect veterinary clinical educator Dr Marta Calvo Blanco, the company said the restriction of cannabis medicines to humans is a matter of animal welfare.

“The addition of cannabis to the pharmacopoeia will allow veterinarians to broaden the treatment options available, especially in those cases where animals do not respond to traditional treatment avenues or cases of extreme pain and cancer.”

It added the move will “expand the veterinary treatment paradigm in Australia in a major way, create safer access to cannabis products for veterinary patients and improve support for pet owners”.

“It is a crucial step in preventing illegal, unregulated, and unstandardised forms of cannabis.”

The group has made a video explaining the TGA application and the steps needed to achieve its goal. 

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Hannah Adler

Hannah is a communications professional and early-career researcher in the disciplines of health communication and health sociology. She is a PhD student at Griffith University currently writing a...

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