The Biggest Challenge for Veterinarians When Assessing Pain

Are animals painful or not? That is the biggest challenge for veterinarians when assessing pain, says James Gaynor, DVM, DACVA, DACVPM, pain specialist at Peak Performance Veterinary Group in Frisco, Colorado.

There's perioperative pain versus chronic or arthritis pain, which both pose different challenges, he says. Cats and dogs are good at hiding their manifestations of pain, which means the veterinarian either needs to make an assumption or palpate the animal.