Osteoarthritis is the most common source of chronic pain in dogs, with an expanding therapeutic toolkit including NSAIDs, monoclonal antibodies, rehabilitation, and multimodal analgesia approaches improving welfare outcomes.
Canine OA pain management has been transformed over the past decade. The availability of validated assessment tools means pain can be objectively tracked rather than estimated. The approval of anti-NGF monoclonal antibody therapy provides a new mechanism for dogs who do not tolerate NSAIDs or whose pain is inadequately controlled. Multimodal approaches - combining pharmacological, physical, and weight management interventions - produce better outcomes than any single modality alone. The welfare challenge is identifying and treating OA earlier: behavioral changes including reduced activity and altered sleep are early signs that owners and veterinarians may attribute to aging rather than pain. Proactive pain assessment in senior dogs is a welfare imperative.