Accurately assessing pain in companion animals is essential for appropriate treatment, and validated pain scales are increasingly available for dogs and cats.
Pain assessment in companion animals has been transformed by validated, species-specific tools that enable more consistent evaluation than behavioral intuition alone. The Feline Grimace Scale, based on facial action changes associated with pain, allows reliable pain assessment from photographs. Canine pain scales combine behavioral and physiological indicators into scores that guide treatment decisions. These tools are most powerful when used consistently across visits, enabling detection of changes that might indicate new or worsening pain.