Pets and Their People Blog

“Your dog wouldn’t be able to run like that if she was in pain.”

“My dog isn’t in pain. They can play fetch for hours!”

”My dog loves his walks. He’s crazy when I pick up his harness and he races out the door, pulling me the whole way! How could he be in pain?”

All of these are real statements that I’ve heard, including about my own dog. The problem is that, sadly, they aren’t true.

Dogs can and will do many things when in pain that seem counterintuitive to people.

These statements seem logical because how could a dog in pain possibly play fetch for an hour or more, run fast, or pull for their entire walk? It seems obvious that they would show they are in pain by limping or vocalizing in some way. Unfortunately, more often than not, they don’t show any signs that we humans would consider indicative of pain, and by the time the signs are obvious, the dog is already at a high level of pain, and this may have been the case for weeks, months, or even years!

See that cattle dog mix in the photo at the top of this post? I was told she couldn’t possibly be in pain because she would never be able to run like that. She was recently diagnosed with multifocal spondylosis, a degenerative condition of the spine that affects multiple vertebrae. She didn’t limp or vocalize. However, because of my training and expertise in recognizing subtle signs of potential pain in dogs, I could see that something was going on, but I didn’t know what it was. I insisted on X-rays and now we have a diagnosis from her vet as a starting point for treatment.

While it’s true that pain will absolutely keep dogs from wanting to do certain activities, it’s not true that pain will always stop them from being active.

Let’s look at dogs who will play fetch for extended periods of time.

Do you have, or have you ever seen, a ball-obsessed dog? As soon as they see the ball, or their person speaks the magic words, they get excited; they may even get frantic. Maybe they jump in the air or on the person, start running around, or get in a position to go after the ball.

So, what’s happening here? The first thing we have to think about is the dog’s anticipation. With anticipation, adrenaline and endorphins are released. Adrenaline temporarily blocks pain signals (think fight or flight but also excitement) and endorphins are the body’s pain relievers, so the dog is already feeling better before they even start the activity. Dopamine is also released when dogs are anticipating a reward and when they seek out rewarding activities. Their body will keep pumping these feel-good hormones out during the activity and for several minutes after it’s over. It can then take a few hours or longer for their levels to return to baseline.

Now, let’s think about those walks.

Going for a walk can do the same thing for a lot of dogs. As soon as we pick up the dog’s walk equipment, the dog anticipates the walk and starts getting really excited. They might jump up or start running around or go into wiggle-butt mode. Adrenaline and endorphins are released, masking pain, dopamine activates reward seeking, and they are already feeling the positive effects before they even get out the door.

This is also why people will say that a dog is “fine” wearing tools like prong collars, choke chains, and shock collars, or at least doesn’t seem to mind them.

Again, anticipation. They anticipate the walk, the feel-good hormones kick in, pain is lessened, and that makes it appear that the dog is okay, or even “happy,” wearing tools that are made to cause discomfort and pain when used correctly.

Dogs don’t love these tools and would never choose to wear them. But relief from pain can make dogs (and people) do a lot of things that they might not normally do if given the choice.

But what about dogs who pull like crazy on leash?

Remember how anticipation starts the flow of the feel-good hormones before the walk even starts, masking the pain so the dog is feeling good at the outset?

Now add movement, which can further lessen the dog’s pain. We humans move much more slowly on walks with our two legs and we expect our dogs to match our pace. But for dogs, moving forward at a quick pace can help take weight off of sore limbs and joints. Quickly moving forward can also shift the dog’s weight to the front limbs, further taking stress off of the hind end where many physical issues (such as hip and knee problems) in dogs occur.

Dogs hide pain really well and it’s not easy to detect it.

There are many behaviors that we see in our dogs that are labeled nuisance behaviors, behavior problems, training issues, and even, “it’s just who the dog is.” You may have even been told, as I was, that your dog couldn’t possibly be in pain because they can do ___ activity. But our dogs can’t verbalize what’s happening, so their behavior is often the only way they have to tell us they’re hurting, and movement may be the way they lessen their pain.

I encourage you to take a step back and look at the bigger picture of what’s happening with your dog. Maybe you’ve been struggling with your dog’s behavior for a while and despite trying different tools and training, it’s not getting better, or it might even be getting worse. Or perhaps it’s a behavior that has just cropped up. We now know that a significant percentage of dogs and cats with behavioral issues may have underlying pain. (See Resources below.)

Dogs experience pain for many reasons. One of the most common is arthritis.

According to Canine Arthritis Management:

Arthritis is a Disease of the Young Dog – “Recent pivotal work from NC State University has put the spotlight on arthritis being a young dog disease. 40% of 123 “clinically healthy” dogs between 8 months and 4 years old were found to have radiographic evidence of arthritis in at least one joint, and 24% of them had pain associated with the arthritic joint.”

Identifying and Monitoring the Signs of Pain – “Its [arthritis] prevalence increases with age with 50% of dogs affected diagnosed between 8 and 13 years of age. At least 80% of dogs over the age of 8 years old suffer from arthritis, therefore it is likely that your dog will develop arthritis in one or more joints at some stage in their life.”

Pain is complex and subjective, and no one can decide if another person, dog, or other species is experiencing pain. Often, their behavior is the only sign.

So, what can dog guardians do?

If you’ve been struggling with your dog’s behavior and haven’t found anything to help them, or suspect something might be going on, or if something just seems “off” with your dog, but there are no obvious signs, there are things you can do to start looking at what might really be going on.

First, a thorough medical exam with the dog’s vet is imperative. Keep in mind, though, that due to clinic stress, dogs often don’t show signs of pain at the vet. Remember, adrenaline masks pain, so if a dog is fearful in the clinic setting, their adrenaline levels will go up.

At the same time, dog guardians can work with an Accredited Dynamic Dog Practitioner – a dog behavior expert who has undergone intensive training and knows how to assess dogs for abnormalities in gait, posture, and movement. This evaluation takes place where a dog feels most comfortable – at home – where the dog isn’t stressed and we are more likely to see potential issues. Through an in-depth consultation, the practitioner learns everything possible about the dog and owner’s life together and, with total objectivity, they go through photographic and video documentation with a fine-tooth comb and put together a comprehensive report for the dog’s vet so they can see what’s really happening with the dog. Dynamic Dog Practitioners never diagnose medical issues. We provide the documentation that aids veterinarians.

The number of dogs struggling with pain that we humans don’t recognize as such is staggering, and they need and deserve a different, kinder approach.

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About the Author

Erika Liljefelt lives in San Jose, CA, with her partner and their two dogs, Fiona and Beck, and she runs Relax, Rover. She is an Accredited Dynamic Dog Practitioner and specializes in assessing dogs to identify potential physical discomfort that may be contributing to behavioral issues. She is also a Certified Trainer & Behavior Consultant (CTBC) and a Certified Separation Anxiety Pro Behavior Consultant (CSAP-BC). Erika is a Pet Professional Guild (PPG) Member, serves as the Team Leader for Behavior Team of the Bay Area, CA, and is a Behavior Teams sponsor. She is also a member of the Shock-Free Coalition and Project tRade.