Pain assessment in small animal practice

Abstract

Despite rational perioperative analgesic prescription, a proportion of feline and canine patients will experience moderate-to-severe pain. Species-specific acute pain scales can be used to identify animals requiring further analgesia, and examples of validated pain scales are presented. Persistent pain may result in more subtle behavioural changes, which are often masked in a clinic environment, but are very amenable to assessment by owners following appropriate training from the veterinary and nursing team involved in the care of the patient.