Zookies from Medalchemy: lineage from Animal Cookies and a profile from a single source

What is Zookies and where does this strain come from?

Zookies is a hybrid with an indica dominance, created by crossing Animal Cookies with Gorilla Glue #4. The same set of parents is listed by three strain catalogs that form the pedigree graph of this entry, so the origin of this strain is established, not inferred from the name.

The graph lists 85 cultivars present in Polish pharmacies. Parents are established for 60 of them, while 25 have an entry of unknown origin because the breeder did not disclose it or the available descriptions contradict each other. Zookies stands out unusually well in this collection: it is one of seven entries where three source references were recorded instead of one or two. The second strain from the same manufacturer, Wedding Pop Triangle, also made it into this seven.

The pedigree refers to the breeding line, not the contents of a specific package. The names of the parents are strain labels, not results of analysis, and dried flower from one line can vary depending on cultivation and post-harvest processing. Therefore, the origin serves here to organize the family of strains and to indicate neighbors in the comparison, not to predict the composition or effects in a patient. It is also worth knowing what these three references are: they are strain catalogs, not a breeder's card. The consistency of the catalogs can be a result of one description being copied by all, so we read it as a strong clue, not as a document of origin.

Which producers supply Zookies to Polish pharmacies?

One. Zookies is supplied exclusively by Medalchemy and there is one pharmacy entry for this strain. There are sixteen producers in the entire collection, and the number of strains attributed to one ranges from one to thirty-eight. Medalchemy has two, making it one of the smallest suppliers in this market.

The registered name carries a number because that is how the approval record looks. We provide it without this component because the declared value has a tolerance from the producer and quoted separately looks like a measurement of a specific package, which it is not. For this entry, the source does not provide a range of cannabinoid content, so we do not mention it in any form. There are as many pharmacy versions as there are entries, which is one, and the table comparing variants has nothing to compare beyond one row.

The pharmacy composition changes at a pace that is not visible in the strain description: the approval expires, the wholesaler runs out of the batch, the producer shifts their portfolio. We keep the current state separately in an overview of strains available in Polish pharmacies. The manufacturer itself and the rest of its offer have their own text in tym zestawieniu. The database describing this entry marks its availability as high, but this is a catalog label from one day, not the stock status of the wholesaler on the day of prescription fulfillment.

How does Zookies smell and taste?

Descriptions boil down to four catalog terms: spicy, sweet, earthy, and herbal. All come from the same database, which describes the terpene profile, meaning from one source, and they are labels organizing the catalog, not results of sensory testing conducted on this batch of dried flower.

The profile lists four terpenes: caryophyllene, limonene, linalool, and myrcene. Caryophyllene also leads in terms of share, and it is responsible for the spicy note brought to the forefront in the descriptions. We provide the composition as a composition, meaning just the names, without numbers written next to them.

The reason is numerical. The database provides a share for each terpene, but does not say what it refers to. For Zookies, the four shares sum up exactly to one hundred, which looks complete and is precisely why it is misleading: in the same table, 145 entries give 46 different sums, ranging from 14 to 125, the median is 82, and six entries exceed one hundred. Therefore, a sum equal to one hundred indicates normalization within the listed names, not proof that everything present in the dried flower has been mentioned.

What each of these compounds does outside the plant is described separately: caryophyllene, limonene, linalool and myrcene.

How long does it take for Zookies to take effect and how long does the effect last?

It depends on the method of administration, not the name on the label. For this strain, no one has measured either the onset or peak of the effect, and the manufacturer does not publish its own data on this. Only the course described for hemp material taken by inhalation or orally can be inferred.

The route of administration determines the course more than the variety itself. After vaporization, the substance passes from the lungs to the blood almost immediately, so the first sensations appear after a few minutes, the intensity increases for another ten to thirty minutes, and the whole effect lasts for two to four hours. After ingestion, the raw material first passes through the intestine and liver, so the first sensations are awaited from half an hour to two hours, and the episode can last six, sometimes eight hours. Hence the most common mistake with oral administration: anyone who thinks nothing is happening after thirty minutes and takes another dose will receive both doses at once. The above ranges describe the route of administration, not this variety; pharmacokinetic studies for a single cultivar have not been published.

For this item, one practical consequence follows. Comparisons of the duration of effects between strains that circulate in sales descriptions have no measurement basis for Zookies, so we do not repeat them here nor replace them with our own estimates.

What is known and what is not known about the effects of Zookies?

Research on the strain itself does not exist. Only two studies on caryophyllene, the leading terpene in this profile, can be supported by sources, and both were conducted on mice. Everything else comes from sales descriptions or patient reports and does not have the status of evidence, although it is sometimes presented as such.

The first was published in 2008 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), authors: Gertsch J, Leonti M, Raduner S, Racz I, Chen JZ, Xie XQ, Altmann KH, Karsak M, Zimmer A (PMID:18574142). (E)-caryophyllene selectively bound to the CB2 receptor (Ki = 155 nM) and inhibited carrageenan-induced paw swelling in wild-type mice, but not in CB2 receptor-deficient mice (Cnr2-/-), indicating a CB2-dependent mechanism; the study did not include any anxiety tests.

The second comes from 2014 and was published in the journal European Neuropsychopharmacology, authors: Klauke AL, Racz I, Pradier B, Markert A, Zimmer AM, Gertsch J, Zimmer A (PMID:24210682). Oral caryophyllene reduced the late inflammatory phase of pain in mice in the formalin test in a CB2 receptor-dependent manner, with no effect on the early phase; in a neuropathic pain model, it alleviated thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia without developing tolerance with chronic administration.

Neither of the two studies tested caryophyllene on humans or in inhaled form from dried flower; both works concern oral or systemic administration in mice in pain and inflammation models, not sleep or mood. The database describing this item adds two labels, relaxing and balanced, but these are catalog terms entered on the sales side, not results of clinical observation. We keep them separate from the two works mentioned above precisely because in texts about strains, one is sometimes presented as the other.

What side effects have been reported after Zookies?

None specifically under this name. Reports go to supervision with the batch number of a specific package, not with the name of the cultivar, so for the only item from Medalchemy, there is no public compilation of such observations. We do not replace it with assumptions or descriptions transferred from a strain with a similar profile.

Reports of adverse effects are collected for medicinal products with a batch number, not for the strain name, so the following pertains to hemp dried flower as a group of raw materials. The most frequently reported symptoms are dry mouth, red eyes, and increased heart rate. Dizziness upon rapid standing, daytime drowsiness, and temporary worsening of short-term memory are less frequently described, as well as anxiety that increases with dosage. A separate issue is medications taken concurrently, especially sedatives and those affecting coagulation: their assessment requires knowledge of the entire list of preparations, not just the description of the plant. We do not provide the frequency of these symptoms numerically, as public compilations for hemp dried flower in Poland do not separate them by individual products.

With Zookies, there is one caveat. Since the composition is described by a single database, even a compilation of reports with a presumed profile would have no basis, and attributing a symptom to a terpene would be guesswork.

What is known about the vaporization of Zookies and the temperatures of its terpenes?

Not much more than what follows from the chemistry of the terpenes themselves. For this strain, there is no measurement indicating a single correct setting for the vaporizer, and the boiling temperatures of its four terpenes span a wide range of ninety degrees, so no single value encompasses them all.

The numbers in this table come from source records where the same substance was measured under different conditions. For caryophyllene, next to the atmospheric value is a measurement of 130 degrees at a pressure of 14 mmHg, which is over one hundred twenty degrees lower, and the entire difference is explained by the pressure, not another sample. This is where the temperature tables come from, which contradict each other. For the other three terpenes in this profile, no measurements under reduced pressure are recorded, so the four values from the table cannot be aligned without reservations.

The value on the knob is not the temperature of the dried flower in the chamber, and the boiling point does not determine the moment at which the compound begins to transition into vapor, because this also happens significantly lower. For both of these reasons, we do not provide a recommended setting here. The selection of parameters should be discussed with the treating physician, as it depends on the form of the raw material and the device itself.

Which strains from this list are related to Zookies?

Three. Animal Rntz and Animintz share a parent with Zookies on the Animal Cookies side, while Mac Monkey, also sold as Blue Monkey, shares the second parent, Gorilla Glue #4, with Zookies. All three are in the same medicinal lineup, so the relationship can be verified based on specific entries, not just in the breeder's description.

Animal Cookies appears in the graph three times, each time with a different second parent: it Animal Rntz this is Runtz, u Animintz SinMint Cookies, u Zookies Gorilla Glue #4. Ten drugi rodzic wraca z kolei przy Mac Monkey, where it neighbors Black Blueberry.

The name component does not determine anything here. Girl Scout Cookies has in the graph parents OG Kush and Durban Poison, and Frosted Cherry Cookies comes from Cherry Cookie crossed with The White. None of them shares even one parent with Zookies, although all three names end with the same word. Girl Scout Cookies builds its own family, as it appears as a parent to Electric Honeydew, GMO, and Balasa, and this is a group separate from the one described above.

One label stands on the border. The parent of Zookies is recorded as Gorilla Glue #4, and a separate entry Gorilla Glue refers in the graph to the description of Original Glue, meaning the same line under a different name. Siblings are linked by the literal sound of the label, so Balasa, whose parent is Gorilla Glue without a number, does not appear on the list above. This is a limitation of the record, not a botanical determination, and we treat it as such here.

Frequently asked questions about the Zookies strain

Who supplies Zookies to Polish pharmacies?

One manufacturer, Medalchemy, and there is one medicinal entry for this strain. The same manufacturer also has Wedding Pop Triangle in the lineup.

Is Zookies related to Girl Scout Cookies?

No. Girl Scout Cookies comes in the graph from OG Kush and Durban Poison, while Zookies comes from Animal Cookies and Gorilla Glue #4. A common name component does not imply a common parent.

Why do you not provide the THC content for this strain?

Because the source does not provide a range, and the declared value has a manufacturer's tolerance on both sides. A single number would appear to be the result of testing a specific package, which it is not, so we omit it entirely.

What terpenes are mentioned in the Zookies profile?

Four: caryophyllene, limonene, linalool, and myrcene, with caryophyllene leading in terms of share. We do not transcribe the numbers next to these names, as the source does not specify what total they refer to.

Is Zookies always available in pharmacies?

There is no such guarantee. Availability depends on the approval permit, the supply from wholesalers, and the manufacturer's budget, and each of these factors changes faster than the strain description. We maintain the current status in a separate report.

What has been shown in studies on caryophyllene?

Two studies on mice: binding to the CB2 receptor along with the inhibition of edema dependent on that receptor and a reduction in the inflammatory phase of pain after oral administration. Both concern animals, not humans, and neither pertains to the inhalation of dried flower.

Dried flower is a pharmaceutical raw material dispensed by prescription in the Rpw category. The material is for informational purposes and does not replace the advice of a doctor or pharmacist. Products from the store category drought is something different than the pharmaceutical raw material described above. Editorial text: Redakcja ubucha.pl.