Cattle castration is routinely performed on beef cattle, and evidence consistently shows that current practices cause significant pain that can be substantially reduced with accessible analgesics.
Cattle castration without analgesia causes unnecessary suffering in millions of animals annually. The evidence base for pain during castration is overwhelming — physiological, behavioral, and production measures all show significant pain responses. Effective, affordable analgesics exist and their use adds minimal cost per animal. The primary barriers are habit, perceived cost, and lack of legal requirement. Strong advocacy for mandatory analgesia requirements and veterinary prescribing practices that normalize pain management could rapidly improve the welfare of millions of animals.