Understanding Your Dog's Pain: Common Causes and Signs
Dogs suffer from pain for a huge range of reasons, and this can be acute pain or chronic pain.
Acute pain comes on suddenly and usually has an obvious cause, such as a wound or injury. It is usually short term and goes away once the cause is no longer there. Examples of acute pain in dogs are wounds or surgical sites, broken bones, dental pain, and burns.
Chronic pain is a longer-term form of pain in dogs and can continue even after the initial cause has gone away. This type of pain can impact a dog for years and may result from an illness or a long-term degenerative condition, so is often thought of as “old age pain” in dogs. A common chronic condition which causes pain in dogs is osteoarthritis, but pain can also stem from other conditions such as intervertebral disc disease, cancer, and pancreatitis. The brain is constantly receiving pain signals, which, without management, can be hugely distressing for your dog throughout their life.
How to tell if your dog is in pain
Dogs and humans feel pain in the same way and for very similar reasons, but our dogs can't communicate it as easily. Watch for changes in your dog: these may be physical, behavioural, or a change in the way they move. Dogs are very good at masking their pain symptoms (although not as good as cats), so the signs of pain may be subtle, especially for chronic pain. In the wild, dogs would hide their pain as it is a sign of weakness and makes them vulnerable to predatory attacks.
Here are some signs of pain to look out for...
Behavioural signs of pain
Aggression
Growling and grumbling
Changes in behaviour towards other dogs
Excessive grooming
Restlessness
Whining or being more vocal than normal
Physical signs of pain
Panting
Shaking
Tense or flattened ears
Lowered body posture and head position
Changes in eating and drinking frequency
Mobility issues that indicate pain
Limping
Reluctance to rise from resting
Difficulty keeping up on walks
Difficulty climbing stairs or jumping into the car or onto sofas/beds
You know your dog best. The signals they give to show they are in pain are individual to them, so take note of even the subtlest of changes and get them to a vet if you have any concerns.
You can read about what causes hind leg weakness in dogs here.
The Importance of Seeking Veterinary Advice for Your Dog's Pain
You are the best person to identify signs of pain. Your dog is a member of your family; you know them better than anyone and will notice subtle changes in them.
As the owner, It's important that when you identify something isn't right, you seek professional advice and treatment from your vet as soon as possible. There are lots of things you can do to support them at home, but we strongly recommend that your first step is always to see a vet.
How will my vet diagnose the cause of my dog’s pain?
Although some types of pain have an obvious cause (such as pain from arthritis), this isn’t always the case, and your vet will undertake a thorough examination of your dog in order to come to a definitive diagnosis.
They will begin by asking you lots of questions and taking a medical history of your dog. This sets the scene for them and gives them all the information they need to investigate further. Your vet will then do a physical examination of your dog, touching them and manipulating their body to identify the source of the pain. They may also run diagnostic tests such as blood tests, X-rays, and ultrasounds before coming to a definitive diagnosis.
How will my vet treat my dog’s pain?
Your vet’s treatment plan depends on their diagnosis. They may find a treatable cause of your dog’s pain, which can be fixed with medication or surgery. Or the diagnosis could require long-term management with medication or physical treatments such as physiotherapy or hydrotherapy.
Whatever the root cause, your vet will also look to treat the symptoms of pain. Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) are the most common type of pain relief for dogs.
Your vet will develop a plan with you to manage your dog’s pain in the long term, which may be a multi-modal approach utilising a variety of techniques and pain medications for the best, most comfortable outcome for your dog.
Never try to treat your dog’s pain without first consulting with your vet, but once you have a diagnosis and a plan of action, you can select the best options to help ease your dog’s pain at home.
What do I need to know about home care for my dog’s pain?
Although your first line of pain relief for dogs needs to come from your vet, there are lots of things you can do to ease your dog's pain at home which support that initial or ongoing veterinary care.
Create a comfortable environment for your dog
It’s hard to get comfortable when you’re in pain, and you know yourself that you just want to curl up somewhere cosy and rest. Your dog feels the same. They may be suffering from arthritis pain, surgical pain, an injury, or something else, but providing them with a warm, comfortable and quiet space is vital to their recovery. Keep noise to a minimum, or play quiet, soothing music for ultimate relaxation.
Minimise their need to climb
If your dog’s pain is restricting their mobility, make it easier for them to get around. Stop them from going up and down stairs, and add a ramp or “pet steps” to help them access their favourite sofa or bed.
If you’re heading out in the car, invest in a car ramp, giving them easy access and preventing them from jumping in or out, which causes discomfort. Simply lifting them out may also be an option, depending on their size and weight. However, take care not to put pressure on areas that are uncomfortable for them.
Tips for Ensuring Long-term Wellness and Preventing Pain in Dogs at Home
Although we never know what the future has in store for our pets, there are things we can do to help keep them in great condition and support their long-term wellness, with the hope of preventing conditions that cause them pain.
You may want to help your dog feel more comfortable in a natural way, or perhaps you are concerned about the potential side effects of pain relief medication your dog has been given. Although you should always undertake any treatment under the guidance of your vet, there are plenty of things you can do to support your pet at home.
Weight management
Carrying extra pounds of body weight can be detrimental to your pet and exacerbate pain. The extra weight adds stress to your dog’s joints; however, the fat tissue itself is also a problem. Fat is a pro-inflammatory tissue, meaning that the fat tissue releases pro-inflammatory cytokines that can worsen inflammation and associated pain. So controlling your dog's body weight is vital to help keep them comfortable and pain free. Speak to your vet about an appropriate diet and an action plan to ensure your dog is a healthy weight.
Exercise
Little and often is key to exercise for pain relief in dogs. Keeping joints mobile is important, but you don’t want to overdo it. You may also want to consider therapeutic exercises, such as hydrotherapy – under the guidance of a qualified professional.
Massage
Massaging your dog is a great way to reduce their pain levels – particularly in musculoskeletal conditions such as arthritis. Massage increases circulation and can reduce pain, swelling and inflammation. It will improve your dog’s mobility and the range of motion of their joints.
Massaging your own dog helps them to relax and can relieve some of their pain, and it’s a great bonding exercise. But you should consider a qualified canine massage therapist to support your dog. They use specialist techniques to manipulate your dog’s muscles – releasing tension and helping them to feel more comfortable.
At home, being able to apply a clinically proven massage technique while your dog relaxes is an ideal way to reduce their pain. A specialist massage bed such as the Canissage Pulse enables you to deliver medically proven, deep penetrating massage whenever your dog is relaxing – supporting their wellbeing and rehabilitation, and relieving pain and stress.
Hot and cold therapy
If joints and muscles are the source of your pet’s pain, or perhaps you know they have a tummy ache, hot and cold therapy can reduce their discomfort, exactly as a hot water bottle does for us.
For chronic, long-term conditions like arthritis, a heat pack applied to the affected area is great pain relief for dogs and allows your dog to relax.
If your dog is struggling with an acute injury, like a sprain, apply a cold pack to the area to reduce inflammation and support recovery.
In both cases, ensure packs aren’t applied directly to your pet. Always wrap the pack in something like a tea towel to prevent burns or skin damage from the cold.
Supplements
The supplements market can be mind boggling, with everything claiming to be the next miracle cure. However, finding the right supplement for your dog could reduce their pain and is great for general health and wellness.
Look for a supplement with scientific evidence to support its use in dogs rather than anecdotal evidence or evidence in other species.
Can Canissage Help Ease Your Dog’s Pain?
Canissage Pulse massage beds for dogs are medically proven and utilise the best in Cycloidal Vibration Therapy (CVT) to deliver one of the safest forms of therapy to your dog in the comfort of your home.
CVT therapy is clinically proven to work in 4 main areas:
Circulation and lymphatic drainage
Tight or tense muscles
Joint mobility and wound healing
Musculoskeletal pain
All of these areas are interlinked and, without treatment, contribute to each other, often resulting in chronic pain. With a Canissage Pulse bed, you can target all areas together to improve blood circulation, helping to enhance your dog’s recovery and improve their quality of life.