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WHAT IS PAIN?
Pain is defined as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage. Pain is not well understood in humans or other animals. Pain is complex and cannot be measured directly. Pain is very subjective. Individual animals experience pain differently. It is difficult for humans to identify, classify and quantify pain in animals, and this is further complicated because animals can not communicate verbally with us. Yet the anatomic and chemical pathways of pain and its perception are similar in all animals. Therefore we approach the issue of pain with the premise that conditions that are painful to humans are also painful to all animals including rodents, rabbits, hedgehogs, sugar gliders, bats, etc.
CHANGING ATTITUDES ABOUT PAIN
Owners and veterinarians have traditionally relied on the observation of pain induced behaviors to determine when to intervene. Painful behaviors often indicate an underlying problem, and the past approach was to correct the problem with the assumption that the pain would resolve as well. The current approach is to be sensitive to the subtle signs of pain, because the treatment of pain itself can be healing. Pain is stressful and can prolong recovery. The principles of pre-emptive analgesia should be applied to small mammals to reduce sensitization to surgical pain. Clinicians and laboratory animal veterinarians are asking questions such as:
BENEFITS ASSOCIATED WITH PAIN CONTROL
Investigators working in pain research, veterinary anesthesia and laboratory animal medicine have augmented our knowledge about animal pain and its relief. Most veterinary studies have used dogs and cats because these are the most common animals brought to veterinary practices. Laboratory animal medicine has made tremendous inroads into understanding pain relief and often small rodents and rabbits are the primary subjects of these studies. Benefits include improved respiratory functions, decreasing stress responses surrounding surgery, decreased length of hospitalization, faster recovery to normal mobility, improved rates of healing and even decreasing the spread of cancer after surgery. Almost all studies show people and animals return to normal eating and drinking habits sooner when given relief from pain. Therefore prevention, early recognition and aggressive management of pain and anxiety should be essential to veterinary care of small mammals.
RECOGNIZING PAIN
The presence of pain must be inferred by the observation of change from normal behavior. Normal small mammals are bright, alert, active, inquisitive, have a smooth coat and good body condition. Pain may be evident as a limp or a change in gait, withdrawal or protection of an injured part, awkward or abnormal postures, licking, rubbing or scratching at an area. Signs of pain and distress particular to rodents include polyphagia of the bedding and chewing toes and feet. Small mammals will often stop eating when they are painful or frightened and a change in gastrointestinal motility can be very harmful to these animals, especially the herbivores. Many small mammals are adapted as prey species - an animal that normally needs to hide any handicap in order to escape predation. Signs of pain may be subtle such as a change in respiration, reluctance to move, apprehension, sudden aggression, inability to rest or sleep normally, or a worried or anxious expression. An animal with abdominal pain or sore feet may lie stretched out or sit in a hunched position. Bruxism is a sign of severe pain. It is unusual for small mammals to vocalize but when they experience sudden pain or anxiety they may give a high pitched squeal. Very often the presence of pain in rabbits is under diagnosed by veterinarians, and when it is recognized it is often underestimated. It is very difficult to differentiate pain from anxiety in rabbits and small mammals especially since they are often combined and may be manifested by similar changes in behavior.
REDUCING PAIN
Pain is only one of many stress factors that small mammals face when ill. A sick small mammal is transported to the veterinary hospital, separated from their home and other animal companions ( rabbit owners insist this is stressful) and enter a strange environment with threatening noises and smells. Then the veterinarian palpates, pokes and moves painful parts of the animal's body. Restraint is used for venipuncture and other diagnostic procedures. Veterinarians can reduce frightening and/or painful aspects of a procedure by petting the animal, speaking in soft tones, using good nursing practices and providing a home and hospital environment that is conducive to rest. Rabbits and other small mammals may recover faster if returned to their home environment as soon as possible. It is a strongly held belief by many rabbit owners that rabbits are comforted by being with a familiar companion rabbit, although this is not usually possible during hospitalization.
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