This talk will summarize the treatment of pain in animals by veterinarians, with an emphasis on pain in dogs, cats, and horses. The current state of pain management in animals is uneven at best, ranging from the excellent use of pain control techniques by some veterinarians to the complete disregard of pain control by others. Over the last decade, incredible gains have been made in our understanding and treatment of pain in animals, yet relatively few animals under veterinary care receive adequate pain control. Considering what is currently known about pain and the resources available to veterinarians, an important questions remains: Why do so many animals have to suffer needlessly? This talk will provide a brief overview of some of the exciting advances that have occurred in the treatment of pain in animals as well as some of the barriers that exist which hinder the treatment of pain by veterinarians. Some of the specific issues that will be discussed include:

1.  The role that economics has in downplaying pain management by veterinarians. For example, price shopping by clients for the lowest priced surgeries available prevents many veterinarians from expanding their services to include effective pain management. Similarly, veterinarians need to educate their clients that pain management is part of providing good medicine, and that providing good quality medicine costs money.

2.  The responsibility of the American Veterinary Medical Association and the specialty veterinary colleges. It is especially important for the American College of Veterinary Surgeons and the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine to set high standards for the treatment of pain by their diplomates.

3.  The need for private, federal, state, and university monies to be dedicated to performing research in the area of pain management in animals.

4.  The need for faculties at the colleges of veterinary medicine to embrace a philosophy of providing the best pain management possible for animals treated at the veterinary teaching hospitals. Elevating pain to the fourth vital sign (in addition to temperature, pulse, and respiration) will go a long way towards recognizing the importance of pain for every patient. Clinical faculty that ignore pain in their patients do a disservice to the animals under their care, to their clients, to the students that they are mentoring, and to the profession as a whole.

5.  The need for the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and state pharmacy boards to work with veterinarians to decrease the burden and “fear factor” of administering and prescribing controlled substance to painful animals.

6.  The need for pet owners to be advocates for their pets to insure that pain control is part of the overall treatment following an injury or surgery (just as injured or sick people need advocates for them in the human health fields). Clients should not be afraid to ask for second opinions and to seek out veterinarians that are willing to treat their animal’s pain seriously.

Adopting a philosophy of proactively treating pain in animals is consistent with the veterinarian’s oath and in practicing good quality medicine Hopefully, this SAVMA Symposium lecture will stimulate those in attendance to consider their approach to the painful patient and motivate everyone to become less complacent about painful animals being denied effective pain relief.