Cats conceal pain as a survival strategy, making recognition of feline pain challenging for owners and veterinarians, with significant welfare consequences for untreated suffering.
Feline pain recognition is a critical welfare issue because the gap between experienced pain and recognized pain determines how long cats suffer without intervention. Cats with significant chronic pain from arthritis or dental disease often continue appearing outwardly normal to untrained observers. The development of validated pain assessment tools like the Feline Grimace Scale has improved acute pain recognition, but chronic pain remains vastly underdiagnosed and undertreated. Training owners to recognize subtle behavioral pain signals and increasing veterinary attention to proactive pain assessment are key welfare priorities.