05/03/2025
Please always consider if your dog (or any animal) is feeling uncomfortable or in pain. They often don't show us 🥺
How do I know if my pet is in pain? 🐶💔
We know that this thought weighs heavily on the mind of any dedicated pet guardian.
However, it is often difficult to spot the symptoms of pain because
1. Pets may try to hide their pain.
2. Signs of pain are not what we would expect.
3. Signs of pain are put down to aging changes.
We suggest that you look out for the following signs of chronic pain in your pets.
😿 Changes in behaviour – showing less of a previously enjoyed behaviour – e.g. playing, running, fetching, jumping onto higher surfaces. Or more of an unwanted behaviour – becoming snappier, growlier, withdrawing or hiding, although many pets in pain also become restless in the evening.
🐩 A change in posture. A change in the way they stand, sit or lie. Have a look back through your phone and see if your pet’s posture has changed.
🐾Capability and gait changes. Because dogs and cats have four legs, they have twice as many joints that can be damaged by walking, running, jumping and excess weight, but a sore joint doesn't mean that they will limp. If one limb hurts, they have three others to help take the strain. If both elbows or hips hurt, holding up one leg doesn’t help. Instead they will try to minimise the pain by walking more slowly, spend more time laying down and avoid jumping or going up stairs.
🐶 Change in physical appearance. Legs that hurt are used less. The muscles shrink. This may not be obvious under a furry coat. Dog often have increased bulk around the shoulders, to take the weight off sore hips and knees. Cats may have a matted coat around their back and tail, as it hurts for them to twist and groom this area.
Thankfully there are lots of options for treatment for conditions that cause pain. Household adjustments and keeping your pet at a healthy weight can have a big impact on relieving your pet’s discomfort.
If you are concerned about changes in your pet’s activity or movement, Paws Indoors offers kind, professional guidance to make a difference.
Below is a link to a chart where you can note down any changes that you may have noticed.
https://caninearthritis.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Suspicion-of-Chronic-Pain-Observations-Form.pdf
and for cat owners, further information can be found here,
https://icatcare.org/articles/arthritis-in-cats
☎️ 01508 498718
📧 [email protected]
💻 www.pawsindoors.co.uk
