Animals evolved to hide pain as a survival strategy, making recognition and treatment of pain in companion animals one of the most challenging welfare obligations.
Companion animal pain management sits at the intersection of evolutionary biology and veterinary welfare ethics. Animals that evolved as prey or social hunters mask pain as a survival strategy — predators target the weak. This behavioral adaptation means owners and even veterinarians frequently underestimate pain in companion animals. The ethical obligation is to presume pain in conditions known to be painful, use validated species-specific pain scales, and treat proactively rather than waiting for obvious signs that evolution has suppressed.