About a year ago my nine year old dog became blind in one eye. The veterinarian insisted that he was having extreme headaches due to the blindness and that it was crucial that we buy $80 eye drops. Now, $80 may not seem that bad, but the bottle was so small that it only lasted us two weeks. My parents continued purchasing the medicine because they did not want my dog to suffer. However, this got me thinking. Although my dog’s eye looked disgusting due to the blindness, he did not act any different. He still ran around outside, ate his food, slept through the night etc. He never cried or whimpered and never showed any other signs that he might be experiencing pain. So, I’m curious how the vet knew he was having “extreme headaches.”
According to Psychology Today, dogs do in fact feel pain but they have a good way of hiding it. Dogs want to feel in control, especially male dogs. Therefore, they do not act as if they are in pain. They get this instinct from being in the wild. If a dog showed signs of pain within their pack, they would be vulnerable to an attack. Because of this, it is difficult for dog owners to know when their pup is hurting.
Similar to humans, dogs recover quicker when given relief to their injuries. Studies show that when dogs are given medicine to help them through the pain they will have advantages in recovery. Their stress levels will decrease, it will decrease time in the hospital and improve healing rates. Although it may not be 100% proven that my dog was experiencing headaches, the vet was being cautious because dogs show such mild signs of pain.
Are you worried that your dog might be sick or injured? There are some specific signs that you can look out for. A decrease in appetite is one of the biggest signs. If your dog is not eating as much as he/she normally does, I would bring them to the vet immediately. Some other signs would be if your dog is pacing, panting, shivering, growling or avoiding humans. These are key signs that your dog might be experiencing pain. Be sure to take note that this pain might not be physical. According to The Daily Puppy, dogs will use the same signs to show their owners of mental pain. If you are not spending enough time with your dog, they will be sure to notify you somehow!
In conclusion, I assume my vet was being cautious when prescribing the eye drops for my dog because there is no solid evidence that he is experiencing pain. I am curious if veterinarians will ever create a test to prove that animals are experiencing pain. This would help pet owners tremendously. I’ve included a picture of my dog, Jake. Fortunately, it is a picture before he became blind.
That is so sad, but it is also true. One time, I stepped on my dog’s little feet my accident, and she made a little whining noise. Then I realized she was hurt, and she didn’t respond or want to be around me for a little while. Then, she started acting like nothing happened and it was weird because she was limping all around the room . I could obviously see that she was hurting, and I just find this intriguing that dogs have some sort of pride in themselves to not show that emotion.
AWWW I am sorry to hear about your dog’s eye. I love dogs so much and any time a dog is hurt, it makes me very sad. A few years ago my cockapoo, Sadie, hurt her hip. She did not hide the fact that she was hurt, probably because it was such a severe injury. She cried all day long and sat in the corner of the room. We took her to the vet and the vet told us there was not much they could do. Luckily, she was only 6 months old and eventually recovered on her own. It is weird to know that dogs hide their pain, I wonder how many times my dog has been in pain but just didn’t let us know how she was feeling.