Evidence for the welfare benefits of pain management in livestock is strong. Closing the gap between what science recommends and what farmers practice is the key challenge.
The pain management gap in livestock farming is one of the most tractable welfare problems available for intervention. The science is clear, the drugs are available, the costs are modest relative to the welfare benefit, and the barriers are primarily attitudinal and cultural rather than technical. Changing the farming culture around livestock pain — from a normalised cost of doing business to an unacceptable welfare failure — requires a combination of legislative mandates, veterinary advocacy, farmer peer education and consumer demand for welfare assurance that includes pain management verification. Jurisdictions that have mandated analgesia for specific procedures demonstrate that culture change follows regulatory change with relatively little resistance once adoption is normalised.