Cats are stoic pain maskers who frequently suffer from unrecognized chronic pain, particularly from osteoarthritis. Modern palliative approaches can dramatically improve quality of life in senior cats.
Feline chronic pain is a welfare crisis hiding in plain sight. Millions of cats live with significant undiagnosed and untreated pain because their behavioral masking makes suffering invisible to owners and sometimes to veterinarians. The traditional approach of waiting for obvious clinical signs means years of pain may pass unrecognized. Owner education about subtle pain indicators - changes in grooming patterns, reluctance to jump, altered sleeping locations - is essential for early detection. The recent development of a cat-specific monoclonal antibody pain treatment represents a major welfare advance, providing effective pain control with an excellent safety profile. Regular quality of life assessments and proactive pain management in senior cats should become standard practice.