Daily Inspiration: Meet Casara Andre

Today we’d like to introduce you to Casara Andre.

Hi Casara, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I founded Veterinary Cannabis in 2016 in response to the myriad of questions about medical cannabis for animals that began arising from the Colorado, U.S. veterinary community during that time. This period marked a rapid rise in human interest in and access to cannabis…and consequently, animal exposures began to increase in parallel.

The need for harm reduction education for veterinary professionals and animal caregivers, as well as the emerging cannabis industry itself, was starkly evident. And, as breakthroughs in human cannabis medical research poured out from research groups around the globe, it was difficult for veterinary practitioners to ignore the potential for novel therapeutic applications in veterinary patients as well.

My team and I have been working with cannabis medicine in animals long enough to confidently navigate the unique challenges of this cannabis ecosystem – and we’re here to share that with our community of colleagues and fellow animal lovers.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The veterinary cannabis landscape is a constantly moving one! The rapid changes in the industry around us are one of the more difficult aspects to handle. Our consultation team puts in a lot of effort to stay current with the ground-breaking research occurring in medical cannabis around the world.

Our network includes cutting-edge scientists and researchers and this means we get to bring the most up-to-date information about clinical cannabis utilization to our community. However, as our knowledge of how to utilize cannabis in a therapeutic context grows, we have to remain agile in our business design. The fabric of the business infrastructure must flex with the changes in the industry, our patients and clients, and our team.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I believe that unashamed curiosity will always lead to unexpected and exciting discoveries, but that scientific scrutiny, rigor, and precision must never be neglected.

My current professional interests focus on the scientific investigation into a novel and emerging medicines for trauma-induced emotional disease in animals, particularly canine post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD).

I specialize in the design of clinically-applicable medical protocols that leverage cross-species, shared emotional states, and trauma-aware, family-unit-focused approaches to medical problem-solving.

I am most proud of the ethical courage that my team and I have been able to bring to the veterinary cannabis medical landscape. The landscape of cannabis is frequently changing and the need for strong advocacy for veterinary patients is immense. My team is proud to be vocal about the health and well-being of animal patients in our community.

We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
Veterinary patients, including companion animals such as cats and dogs, also display clinical signs of emotional dysregulation or emotional disease.

The number of animals affected by the emotional disease is rapidly rising and threatens to overwhelm veterinary medical resources. Emotional disease in animals may be increasing in parallel to human emotional disease. For example, canine separation anxiety jumped as high as 700% from 2020 to 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The stress from the COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating for the emotional and mental health of the human populations… and that same emotional disease is spilling into our animal patients.

Medical use of cannabis offers novel solutions for anxiety disorders and clinically applicable treatment protocols for many emotional disorders in animal patients.

Pricing:

• 3-month Guidance Program | $447.00 / 3 months
• Case-specific Colleague Consult | $297.00 / case
• Certification Program | $825.00

Contact Info:

• Website: www.veterinarycannabis.org
• Instagram: @vetcannabiseducation
• Facebook: CVetMedicine
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/veterinary-cannabis/
• Other: https://cultivatewellbeing.substack.com/s/veterinarycannabis