Facebook/Fairfield Police Department
- People are getting high off a drug called Catnip Cocktail, which is advertised as a pet sedative.
- "This is a very dangerous product and it appears its improper use is on the rise," Fairfield Police Chief Anthony G. Manna said in a statement. "We will do whatever we can to assure that Catnip Cocktail does not become the next drug fad."
- People suspected of ingesting Catnip Cocktail have been described as acting erratically with severe "mood swings."
People are getting high off a drug called Catnip Cocktail, which is advertised online as a pet sedative.
When ingested by humans, the drug mimics the date-rape drug Gamma-Hydroxybutyric Acid, commonly known as GHB, according to the Fairfield Police Department in New Jersey.
"This is a very dangerous product and it appears its improper use is on the rise," Fairfield Police Chief Anthony G. Manna said in a statement. "We will do whatever we can to assure that Catnip Cocktail does not become the next drug fad."
The drug depresses the nervous system and "gives you a feeling of euphoria," Fairfield Police Lt. Charles Zampino told News12 New Jersey.
The Fairfield police department raided a strip-mall store called Nutrition Zone last week and recovered 61 bottles of Catnip Cocktail, 29 bottles of Human Growth Hormone (HGH), and seven high-capacity handgun and rifle magazines.
The drug’s ingredients include caffeine and "1-4 BDO," or 1,4-butanediol, which is classified as a Schedule 1 controlled dangerous substance under New Jersey’s administrative code, the Washington Post reports.
The Fairfield police department started investigating the drug in July, after first encountering it near Nutrition Zone in the possession of someone who was acting strangely.
The person was dancing, yelling, and exhibiting mood swings, "being very friendly one moment, then being confused and angry the next," according to the Fairfield police.
Officers found six bottles of Catnip Cocktail on the person, along with a receipt for the medicine from Nutrition Zone.
Catnip Cocktail
A couple months later, police found several bottles of Catnip Cocktail in the car of a driver who was pulled over for driving erratically.
The driver was "acting irrationally, was extremely confused and unaware of his surroundings," Fairfield police said. The driver was later hospitalized and charged with driving under the influence.
The drug is sold for $20 per bottle online and advertised as "entirely harmless" with "helpful pain relieving properties."
A disclaimer on the site reads: "This product is intended solely for the treatment of anxiety in cats and dogs. It is NOT approved for human consumption. If this product is ingested by humans, accidentally, or otherwise. The manufacturer assumes no responsibility nor liability for any harm which may occur as a result from that use."
It’s not clear that the product is actually safe for animal consumption, either. The site does not identify the product’s manufacturer.
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Source: Business Insider – hpeterson@businessinsider.com (Hayley Peterson)