Signs of Pain in Dogs & Cats
This helpful guide was researched and sourced through professional veterinary guidance and continuing education I received as part of my veterinary technician training. This list is not meant to cause panic OR replace the educated eye of animal care professionals.
Instead, its purpose is for you as a pet owner to gain knowledge and assessment skills that will help you determine when your furry loved one is suffering and needs help.
An important part of my job as a veterinary technician involves triaging possible emergencies, both through assessing the pet and speaking with their owner. My first contact with clients is often through a phone conversation, and one of the questions I consistently ask them is: “Are they in pain?”.
This question is frequently met with hesitation and a quiet “He doesn't seem to be...” because perhaps their pet is limping but still eating. We often try and compare our pet's feelings to our own, emotionally speaking, which is termed anthropomorphizing.
In my experience however, these comparisons tend to fall short when assessing an animal's physical pain or discomfort, because animals often express these traits differently than humans when we are experiencing the same trauma or illness.
All of the following signs and symptoms are indications that your pet is experiencing pain and/or discomfort that needs to be addressed. The level of pain that our pets feel, in physiological terms, is greatly comparable to our own.
The difference is two-fold; how they physically express pain and their stronger instinctual drive to stoicism (protecting themselves from potential predators by hiding weakness). I have broken down the list by body system to help address as many signs as possible.
Remember, pain is a symptom and will require further investigation by trained professionals to rule out what is causing the pain and to properly treat the illness or trauma.
Head:
rubbing face, scratching, pawing
guarding, moving away
head pressing (unusual amount of burrowing head into bed, blankets, etc..)
shaking
mouth open (slack jaw)
squinting, weeping, red eye
drooling (distinguish from nausea)
pupil constriction
not eating/drinking
Neck:
lack of mobility
hunched gait
not able or not willing to walk
abnormal posture when sitting or standing, reluctance to sit or stand
abnormal posture when urinating/defecating
lameness
vocalizing with movement (whine, growl, whimper when moving)
licking at distal limb
tail down (if it’s usually up)
guarding
laying down to eat and/or drink
spasms
Limbs:
lameness
warm to touch
guarding
vocalizing
reluctance to sit/stand/walk
Skin:
redness, scratching, licking
swelling
licking, chewing
missing hair, wet areas
skin twitching
warm to touch
hives
abnormal gait (can indicate pain when moving due to matted hair pulling skin, irritation, and/or inflammation of skin)
Chest:
shallow +/- rapid breathing
reluctance to sit, lie down, walk
coughing
bruising
air under skin
Abdomen:
tense, guarding
hunched
enlargement/distention
vomiting
straining – lack of urination/defecation
reluctance to lie down
“praying” position
splinting
gait abnormalities
decreased appetite
groaning
increased gut sounds, gurgling
lack of any gut sounds (indicates possible foreign body)