The most significant barrier to pain management in livestock is cultural — attitudes among farmers and veterinarians that minimise the importance of animal pain; changing this culture is a priority welfare intervention.
Cultural change around livestock pain requires more than information provision — the evidence for livestock pain is already available to anyone who seeks it, yet uptake of pain management remains inadequate. Changing practice requires addressing the attitudes and social norms that make pain denial acceptable in farming communities. Peer champion programmes where progressive farmers advocate for pain management among peers, combined with assurance scheme requirements that create professional norms, provide the most promising pathways for cultural change.