Good Friends Animal Hospital
908 E. Main St. Urbana, IL
217-344-1017
Pain in Cats
OUCH! That’s what people say when they are in pain, but how do you know when your cat is experiencing discomfort or pain?
In people, specific guidelines have been developed to assess pain. In animals, clinical signs of pain are highly variable, and pain
thresholds and sensation are difficult to measure because animals don’t speak. Some signs are obvious, while others are more subtle.
Cats are generally stoic animals and are extremely good at hiding their pain, and their reactions are dependent upon their individual
personalities and degree of pain experienced. Because of this, owners need to assess each cat individually in order to recognize signs
associated with pain.
Signs of Pain Include:
· Changes in behavior: Hiding in quiet areas of the house for extended periods of time, sleeping excessively or becoming
noticeably less active, acting out of character (aggressive or agitated – even fear biting), poor or absent grooming OR
excessive grooming of a single spot such as a wound or painful area, lack of appetite (possibly associated with weight loss,
depending on duration), inappropriate elimination and/or not moving away from feces/urine, rapid, shallow breathing or
restlessness
· Changes in posture or gait: Sitting or lying abnormally (immobilized or sternal with arched back and lowered head
“hunched over”), stiff gait, difficulty rising, lameness of any degree (may be subtle), pacing, trembling or ataxia (wobbliness)
· Vocalization: Change in frequency or quality of meow (yowling, moaning, groaning), hissing or growling, especially if a
painful area is touched, LACK of vocalization (no greeting meow or request for food, lack of purring)
Understanding How Pain Works
Recognizing unexplained changes in behavior, posture and/or vocalization allows early veterinary intervention for potential illness or
injury resulting in pain. Uncontrolled pain can lead to negative consequences including reduced or delayed healing, weight loss and
debility. Once we recognize the signs of pain, the next step is to locate the source which is sometimes obvious but often requires the
skill of a trained veterinarian. Pain may be perceived at the site of injury or stimulation of the pain receptors (such as a burn or
laceration), OR it may be referred to a nearby area of the body.
Referred pain can be deceiving because the signs of pain are manifested in an area other than the source. An example of referred pain
is lameness of a front leg resulting from a cervical disc (neck) injury, or pain in the back resulting from inflammation in the kidney. As
you can see from these examples, pain in a specific area of the body does not always correlate with the underlying source. That is, the
lameness mentioned above is not due to injury to the limb, but rather injury to the neck, and back pain may not be orthopedic but
rather due to inflammation or disease in an internal organ such as the kidney.
Treating Pain
Once the source of pain has been identified, your veterinarian can then develop a treatment plan based on the underlying cause.
Administration of pain medications as empirical therapy without seeking veterinary attention can be dangerous. The feline liver lacks
a fully functioning enzyme pathway necessary for the metabolism of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as
acetaminophen (Tylenol), carprofen (Rimadyl), and aspirin. These medications are highly toxic for cats.
In addition to pain medication, supportive care such as IV fluids, supplemental nutrition and confinement may be indicated during the
diagnostic period based on the clinical findings. Safe pain management options in cats are only available from your veterinarian by
prescription (NEVER give an over the counter pain medication to a cat). Combining medications with other modalities such as
acupuncture, physical therapy, hot or cold packs, bandaging or padded bedding and general nursing care including assistance with
urination if necessary, cleaning and grooming can improve pain control and allow lower doses of pain medication to be used, reducing
side effects without losing effectiveness. Research continues to improve our recognition and treatment of pain in the feline patient, and
advances in the area of pain management can be expected in the future.
Kandice Norrell, DVM