Cats are notoriously stoic and hide pain effectively. Validated pain assessment tools have transformed veterinary care and owner monitoring of feline welfare.
Feline pain is one of the most pervasive and underaddressed welfare problems in companion animal medicine. The combination of stoic behaviour and the attribution of pain signs to normal ageing means that millions of cats live with untreated chronic pain that significantly diminishes their quality of life. Validated assessment tools like the Feline Grimace Scale have given vets and owners evidence-based methods for detecting pain more reliably. Owner education is the critical multiplier: when owners understand that reduced jumping, decreased grooming, altered toilet behaviour, and social withdrawal are pain indicators rather than personality changes, earlier detection and treatment follows. The development of safe long-term analgesic options including licensed anti-NGF therapies means that effective treatment is increasingly available once pain is recognised.