Veterinary Pain Management Advances in Animal Welfare

Advances in veterinary pain management are transforming companion and farmed animal welfare by improving recognition and treatment of animal pain.

Key Facts

Animal pain was historically underrecognized and undertreated due to incorrect assumptions that animals experience pain less acutely than humans
The Glasgow Composite Pain Scale and Feline Grimace Scale are validated tools for assessing acute pain in companion animals
Multimodal analgesia combining different drug classes provides more effective pain control than single-drug approaches
Opioids, NSAIDs, local anesthetics, and gabapentin are among the most commonly used veterinary pain management drugs
Chronic pain in companion animals, including arthritis, dental disease, and neuropathic pain, is increasingly recognized and treated
Inadequate pain management is still common in farmed animals for routine procedures including castration, dehorning, and ear tagging

Welfare Considerations

The revolution in veterinary pain management represents one of the most significant welfare advances of the past three decades. Pain assessment tools, multimodal analgesic protocols, and changing professional attitudes have dramatically improved pain management in companion animal medicine. The next frontier is closing the gap between companion animal and farmed animal pain management, where undertreatment remains widespread and systemic.

What You Can Do

Ensure your veterinarian provides adequate perioperative pain management for your companion animals
Ask specifically about post-operative pain management for any surgical procedure your animal undergoes
Advocate for mandatory pain management requirements for common farmed animal husbandry procedures
Support veterinary research into improved pain assessment tools for fish, invertebrates, and other understudied species