Facts for Animal Pain Awareness Month
Pet owners may not always know when their animals are in pain, and it’s not always an easy task to recognize the signs. Thomas F. Dock, Practice Manager and Veterinary Journalist, Noah’s Animal Hospitals, shares ways we can help keep them happy… and healthy!
- The International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management (IVAPM) has proclaimed September as Animal Pain Awareness Month. The goal is to help pet lovers understand that all signs of pain may not be as obvious as we would like.
- Up until the mid 1990s, pain relief for most pets was rarely considered. Only in extreme cases, such as bone fractures, etc, were clients given options to help alleviate discomfort in their pets. For more commons surgeries, such as spays and neuters, post operative pain relief was not routinely given.
- In fact, even today, many pet owners will call a veterinary clinic with a pet who is not using a leg and explain that “he’s not really in pain, he’s not whining or crying”. The signs of pain in our pets, especially cats, might be much more subtle.
- For dogs, decreased social interactions, decreased appetite and an anxious expression could be the first signs of pain. Pets who refuse to move, whimper or even howl could be showing how uncomfortable they are. Symptoms could expand to include guarding behavior, aggression, self-mutilation and changes in posture.
- Similarly, cats may not be as active and lose their sense of curiosity. A feline friend who is hiding more often, seems to have lost their ability to jump or is excessively grooming may be showing signs of pain. Like dogs, aggression may occur, guarding behavior or even the beginnings for inappropriate elimination in the house.
- Thankfully, we can help our furry friends, but it does take the involvement of your veterinary team. Your veterinarian will assess a pain level for your pet as part of their overall examination. It’s important to be as thorough as possible with your history (when did this start, how much weight has he lost, etc).
- Veterinarians have a wide range of therapeutic options that may help alleviate some pain for your pets. First, simple measures like a proper amount and type of exercise might be a good first step. Newer technologies, like cold laser therapy can go hand in hand with older techniques, like acupuncture or massage.
- Even procedures, such as stem cell therapy and platelet rich plasma infusions have been studied for use in helping our pets.
- By far, the most common method of pain relief is prescription pain relief medications, such as Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxants and nerve pain drugs, like Gabapentin. Products such as Rimadyl, Galliprant, Deramaxx and others are routinely prescribed.
- IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE that pet owners should NEVER give their pets any sort of over the counter pain relief medication without speaking to their veterinarian. Because of their unique physiology, cats can die from a single 500mg extra strength Tylenol and dogs can experience life-threatening ulcers and gastritis with many OTC drugs.
- If you feel that your pet is not feeling his or herself, don’t chalk it up to old age… plan to see your veterinarian and see if we can’t put some pep back in your pup’s step.
To learn more, visit www.noahshospitals.com.