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Welcome to Tricycle Day. We’re the psychedelics newsletter that perks up every time you dangle a treat and say “who’s a good newsletter?” 😛

You bought the pheromone collar, puzzle feeder, lick mat, and $80 orthopedic bed he refuses to sleep in.

And yet, your dog still completely loses it every time the doorbell rings. (Hey, at least your PetSmart rewards balance is enviable.)

At some point, a psychedelically inclined pet parent starts wondering about other options.

For today’s newsletter, we asked our network of licensed psilocybin facilitators: Could psychedelics help anxious or traumatized pets the way they help humans?

Here’s what they had to say.

Ibogaine is very hot right now.

But the unfortunate reality is, much of the treatment happens in houses and hotels larping as clinics.

It’s different in Brazil. There, ibogaine can be prescribed as medicine and administered in an actual hospital by licensed physicians.

That means Nekawa can safely offer full flood dosing, with weeks of prep and integration around it. (That part happens in nature, by design.)

Their founders are hosting a free live webinar on Oct 24 covering what ibogaine safety requires, above and beyond medical oversight.

Pets have rougher inner lives than their Instagram accounts let on. Kate Schroeder lists what they can go through: “Animals clearly experience fear, trauma, attachment disruption, and patterns of nervous-system activation, so I understand the curiosity.”

And what rattles a pet’s brain looks a lot like what rattles a human’s. Masha Steiner-Renoir compares the wiring: “Animals absolutely experience anxiety and trauma,” and “their nervous systems can get stuck in patterns of fear and hypervigilance just like ours.”

On paper, then, psychedelics could help. Clayton Ickes gives it a cautious nod: “From a purely neurobiological perspective I would say it is likely, yes.” Real life is messier. “I have met one person who told me they do psychedelic-assisted therapy with traumatized pets,” he says, “but the ethics and the efficacy of this are unclear in all directions.”

Guided sessions should start with a yes and end with integration. Masha explains why pets miss both: “Animals can’t consent to or make meaning of an altered state the way humans can, so I think this is one of those areas where curiosity is warranted—but experimentation may not be.”

Nobody can talk a dog down, either. Monica Ramunda sees the problem mid-journey: “They can’t tell us what they’re experiencing, and we can’t explain what’s happening or reassure them in the same way we can a person.”

You might wonder about microdosing, since an imperceptible trip feels less ethically dodgy. Amy Charlesworth points to a test case: “There’s some fascinating early research exploring psychedelics in animals, including a small 2025 study examining low-dose 1cp-LSD in dogs that found promising reductions in separation anxiety.” Still, whether a dog actually feels anything stays between him and his chew toy.

Maybe anxious animals are picking up what we humans are putting down. Not to play the blame game, but Terry Turner raises a fair point: “I have noticed that neurotic owners tend to have neurotic pets. So perhaps it is best to have the owner take the medicine and both himself and his pet might get better!”

Monica also points to the other end of the leash: “My instinct is let’s help heal the humans. As we become calmer, more present, and more emotionally attuned, we can create a safer, more loving world for the animals who share our lives.”

But your pet still needs a plan. Kate writes the prescription: “For now, I’d leave the psychedelics to the humans and give the anxious dog a good veterinarian, behavioral support, a predictable environment, and probably some extra treats.”

Not saying it’s right or wrong, but humans have been dosing animals for a long time.

Take the Shuar and Quichua peoples of Ecuador, who feed hallucinogenic plants to their hunting dogs. Researchers think it may sharpen the dogs' noses by tuning out sensory noise.

And who could forget the famous octopuses (octopi?) on MDMA? Or John Lilly, who injected dolphins with LSD in the 1960s in the hopes they’d start speaking to us? (Alas, they didn't.)

Now, hear us out for a sec. Why is it that we get squeamish about microdosing a nervous dog, but we’re totally fine with lab mice being routinely stressed into depression just so we can test psychedelics on them? Hmm? With the FDA easing off some animal testing in favor of AI models, maybe those poor guys will get a break soon, too.

In the meantime, a word to the wise. Keep your stash out of paws' reach because more pets are tripping by accident these days.

Alright, gotta run. We have a catnip-assisted therapy appointment to get to.

Thanks to Andy R. from Arvada, CO for submitting this week’s question. 🫠

Reply to this email to shoot your shot. If it’s a juicy one, we may select it for a future issue.

That’s all for today, Cyclists! Whenever you’re ready, here’s how we can help.

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DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice. The use, possession, and distribution of psychedelic drugs are illegal in most countries and may result in criminal prosecution.