Founding director and CEO of TREC Brands, Trang Trinh is bringing social good to the cannabis industry. It's even hidden in the company name which stands for "Trust, Respect, Equality, Compassion." With her positive spirit, she's not afraid to take on new challenges (like being one of the only female cannabis executives) and that includes becoming a first-time dog owner. She told us about her Bernadoodle named Ozzie and which cannabis product to try if training your puppy is stressing you out.

Hi Trang! Can you tell us about your dog?

Ozzie is a Bernedoodle, which is a cross between a Bernese Mountain Dog and Poodle. He is such a mellow dog. We think it's because he was the last one picked from a litter of nine. All the other dogs were probably more excited to see potential owners and Ozzie is more the type to hang back and chill. We like that he's so calm at home and the office, it really suits our vibe. My husband and I have never been dog owners before and he's been an easy first dog.

What advice would you give to other first-time dog owners?

It was helpful to hire a trainer. We learned basic commands, the importance of eye contact and other foundational behaviours. It only took a one hour session and then we were off to the races. You also have to be patient with puppy training. We got Ozzie in the winter and had to take him outside 8-10 times a day, in extremely cold weather. You'll get stressed out if you get annoyed — you have to learn how to embrace the freezing temperatures and have faith that you'll done puppy training soon.

What's surprised you about being a pet parent?

It's amazing how Ozzie has taught me how to live in the moment. I'm usually in such a go-go-go mentality, but when you have a dog, you have to go outside and take breaks. If I'm walking too quickly, he'll tug back because he literally wants to smell the flowers. He's been a good addition to my self-care routine.

Some people believe CBD (the non-psychoactive component of cannabis) has benefits for animals. What are your thoughts?

There still needs to be more research on the topic of CBD and pets, but what we do know is that CBD doesn't get you high and it doesn't get your dog high either. It's something we've tried out, with positive effects. After Ozzie was neutered, after the pain medication wore off, we could tell that he was still uncomfortable. It seemed to help him when we mixed some CBD into his water. Then, a few months ago, he was attacked by another dog and needed surgery. There was a lot of inflammation on his back and it didn't go down after a week, so we rubbed CBD oil on the area and the next day, it healed.

Because you're an expert in cannabis products, what would you recommend for a pet parent that's stressed out with puppy training?

There are three brands under TREC — Blissed, Wink, and Thumbs Up. The Blissed brand specifically is focused on high CBD content products. The Breathe oil is really good for lowering anxiety and stress. It helps me out — hopefully it helps out others too.

Header image by @katieandco.ca