Just over 1100 words and about 6-ish minutes read time for this one.

9th December marks the International Day of Veterinary Medicine, recognising the vital contributions that vets, and support staff including RVNs (a valuable profession in and of its own rite), make to animal health & welfare, public health, food safety, policy development and their roles in One Health One Welfare applications.

My favourite cases are those where we get to collaborate and create a care-team for the dog, working alongside allied professionals including the dog’s vet-team. I am so lucky to get to work with some wonderful vets, alongside my clients, creating dream-teams to help pets and their people.

On social media, I regularly, and most recently, see references to “pain trials” and how ‘pet owners’ will need to accept that this isn’t a quick-fix scenario. While I agree that trial analgesia can be lengthy, costly and even overwhelming, it’s up to behaviour professionals to ensure that we are communicating with both our clients and vets, supervising the behavioural aspects appropriately, and collecting and presenting data suitable to both clients and vets to ensure progress can be made.

The buck stops with us.

If the end user/s, clients and vets, are having difficulty with our interventions, rather than targeting external accountability, start within. What can we do better?

A boy who cries pain

It certainly is easier now, more than ever before in my career, to discuss the relationships between physical health, disorder and behaviour. High rates of occurrence of physical contributions are often cited as relating to behaviours of concern, across research, e.g., Mills et al, 2020, and anecdotally from professionals (e.g., in 2024 ~60% of AniEd cases included physical contributors).

While improved recognition is good, there are still gaps in our knowledge, and in the procedures we apply to communicate the relationships between pain and behaviour.

It’s not enough for behaviour professionals to declare that an animal is “in pain”, or lament that the vet just needs to prescribe and get on board. Pain is a multi-dimensional, subjective experience (Wiech et al, 2008). that we can’t rule out on behalf of another individual. It is not easily detectable during visits to the veterinary clinic and diagnostics, like x-rays, can’t provide definitive answers either.

But, fear not! Behaviour is our super-power (in more ways than one!). Behaviour can and should be considered part of clinical signs to inform diagnoses and treatments (Dinwoodie et al, 2021). And we can act as translators between clients & their dogs and the vet-team.

We must be specific and clear. We cannot expect guardians and carers to observe and interpret their dogs’ behaviour – they often do not have the skills for such specific observations, and, it’s incredibly difficult to be objective about your own loved ones.

We must collect information via questionnaire and interview techniques, we must make direct and indirect observations of the dog’s behaviours, and we must support our clients in collecting ongoing data (there will be spreadsheets!). We take this from our clients and translate that into appropriate terms for the dog’s vet-team. No vague statements or euphemisms – actual observable behaviours and evidence-based language that can relate to diagnostic and treatment approaches.

Only the vet can decide on medications, treatment options and diagnostics. But that doesn’t exclude or devalue our contributions, it’s a collaboration!

Behaviour is still in the environment

With our increased awareness and willingness to discuss the bidirectional relationships between physical and behavioural health, it’s everywhere. But as with anything that may be treated as social media fodder, extremes and polarisation are rampant. Pathologising behaviour is widespread as we become convinced by current trends and blinded to the nuances of behaviour.

Of course this infects our insistence about client or veterinary attitudes to our efforts – they are mistaken, their expectations are unreasonable, them, them, them…

Trial analgesia isn’t some panacea. Behaviour is still in the environment. The painful dog’s distance increasing response, e.g., growling and snapping, is still negatively reinforced when the hand reaching for them withdraws. And that response can be maintained beyond our analgesia efforts.

Trial analgesia is just one piece of the puzzle

There are many different types of pain and many types of pain relief. History, data collection and observations may provide some insight into the types of pain potentially contributing to behaviour. Also, it might not.

We can’t just throw things at the wall, hoping something sticks. We form hypotheses using observable behavioural data and our efforts must be falsifiable. Collecting the right data allows us to determine if trial analgesia is appropriate, and, when and what adjustments may be trialed next.

Expectations must be realigned with reality and a roadmap produced for both client and vet-team so we are all on the same journey together. Both need to understand observations that indicate we’re on the right track, and when we’re not…and what that might mean for our plan.
In this collaboration, we are constructing just a fraction of the plan: the clients contributes their bit, the vet-team their bits and the dog must have a say too!

Trial analgesia should be at least 4 weeks, but for clearer data collection, up to 8-12 weeks can be better (Mills et al, 2020). We are not expecting some magical turnaround…remember, behaviour is still in the environment. And we might continue to trial and collect data, or, we might pivot and look at alternative analgesia with continued data collection. We are supervising and supporting along the way (so many shared spreadsheets!).

Given that chronic pain is a chronic stressor, it makes sense that anxiolytic medications may also be indicated (Mills et al, 2020) and may support increased plasticity, helping the brain heal, recover and adapt (Jetsonen, et al, 2025).

Starting both at the same time is sometimes required to improve welfare, but can muddy the waters in our data collection. However, effects can be distinguished at a later time when we have progressed through our intervention plan a little.

Pain relief is not just about pain relief! Pain is multi-systemic affecting behaviour, cognition, inflammation, activity and social interactions. And that means multi-modal pain relief as part of our intervention programs.

Nuance

At AniEd, our professionals and learners do courses and CPD on behaviour health as health, communicating and collaborating with veterinary and allied professionals, and on supervising, guiding and supporting clients in data collection. This is no time for superficial or tenuous recommendations.

I’m not suggesting that awareness of a need for treatment of pain, and other physical contributors to behaviour, should be downplayed. Nope, we have fought hard to build this recognition and we continue to do so.

There must be balance and consideration for how we communicate, supervise and support these investigations as collaborations, as part of team building…building that dream-team.

I don’t often praise social media, particularly in relation to the dog world and dog welfare, but one thing it provides us with is insight into the culture, particularly directed toward dogs, of various dog businesses, pages, organisations and individuals.

That is, these insights, usually videos and posts, provide so much excellent content for learning about canine behaviour, the language we use to discuss behaviour, and often, how not to do those things. But most of all, social media provides us with insight into the understanding, the awareness, the skills & the knowledge of those posting.

Yes, I’m a lurker and a spy. But I claim usage for educational purposes…

Experienced dog professionals, and those who represent themselves in a position of expertise (which on social media doesn’t mean a lot, much of the time), should be a buffer for the quality of the information they produce or share. Maybe someone has shared a clip with them but when they share inappropriate interactions, stressed dogs (without recognising it) or potentially harmful demonstrations, it’s apparent that they may not have a wonderful foundation in understanding canine behaviour.

I have higher expectations of, and hold them to a higher account, these social media content-producers, influencers, experts (or however they rank themselves). Those professionalising dog care, taking fees and charging guardians, those responsible for enforcing dog control legislation, those who care for vulnerable dogs and those advising guardians on “responsible dog ownership” must be unimpeachable in their knowledge and skill regarding canine behaviour, welfare, handling and care.

But our education on canine behaviour is not standardised and without accountability. And that means despite someone’s title, social media hype and postnominals, we might not be able to expect a whole lot.

Often through social media, or, at least facilitated by social media, professionals are drawn to the latest and greatest. I note who is reaching for the fads, noting that foundations in knowledge and skill must be lacking such is their vulnerability to the marketing and the hype.

Maslow’s hammer

The outcome of our interactions with dogs are a result of environmental conditions. This is a fundamental understanding of animal behaviour – behaviour is not in the individual, it’s in the environment. And as humans, we are largely responsible for the environmental conditions to which dogs are exposed.

During this past week, International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women was marked. I can’t help relating any of the world’s goings-on to dogs, and our relationships with dogs. Dogs and humans are joined, intertwined, and separation and separate considerations are not possible.

Misogyny and machismo, and their impacts on violence, can be felt throughout dog training, behaviour & care. Our fields of work and study have not escaped violence, aggression, and cruelty inflicted on dogs in the name of “training”, “welfare” and “safety”.

The direct examples, of course, include deliberate abuse and violence suffered by dogs in homes and families affected by domestic violence, and the focus on companion dogs, and other companion animals, as tools for coercive control.

But our industry has been and continues to be shaped by tools and techniques, attitudes and advice, that presents violence, aggression and cruelty as a means, and first line option, for maintaining safety of humans. And that very idea of safety is weaponised against dogs who are victims of their circumstances.

As someone who works with dogs under stress, whose behaviour can pose serious safety risk to humans, and sometimes where there is urgent pressure to clear the way safely, I acknowledge that from time to time, direct action is required.

But, when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. When the foundation understanding of behaviour is incomplete, partially constructed, or lacking, it’s easier for these direct actions, most often acts of violence and aggression against dogs, to be implemented.

If this, a basis in coercion and suppression, is central to the education of professionals then it all too easily becomes normalised and accepted. Even more.

When I see professionals, on whom I have been spying via their socials, demonstrate lacking in these areas and a focus on education in those areas, I am very concerned that some of our most vulnerable dogs will suffer. And people won’t be any safer.
But machismo will have won again, begetting more violence, perpetuating more aggression, creating more macho-men who blame dogs, label dogs, persecute dogs.

What we do to dogs.

Our society is grappling with supporting an aging population and as with most things, this parallels some of our grapples with our aging dogs too.

I’m a firm believer, and promoter, that senior dogs should have more, not less. But how that more looks will depend on each individual dog’s condition and needs.

Carers of senior dogs need education, but also need empathy.

Aging sucks…

But the alternative is suckier.

We are encouraged to celebrate our golden oldies, to relish those sugar-dusted faces and to bask in a slower pace of life together. And I do.
But that doesn’t mean it’s a walk in the park, even a slowed-right-down walk for seniors.

The accommodations that are often required to maintain our seniors’ QoL can take a toll on care-givers. And for what? At the end, we are left with no dog…

Some of the realities of living with and loving an aging dog include…

Anticipatory Grief

While we are familiar with grief that affects us post-loss, anticipatory grief starts well before. We carers of senor pets are reminded of impending loss with every little slow-down, with every stumble and limp, with every vet visit and with every realisation that this is another new normal. (Cleary et al, 2021)

I’ve written about my process for coping with anticipatory grieving before: “Am I a Mourning Person?“

Anticipatory grief is very real and I’ve worked through it/I’m working through it. I set a timeline for myself; if I get him to 13 years (ancient for an AmStaff), after that, we’re just going to take each day. While it didn’t end there, it helped enormously along with other more general working through anxiety-stuff.

We’re at almost at thirteen and a half now and I know that each extra day is a bonus, that the time allotted us is out of my control, and the inevitable is still going to be devastating.

Caregiver Burnout

Looking after a loved one, full time or close-to full time, can be exhausting and lead to burnout. Caregiver burnout is well recognised in human health-care and the carers of older/chronically ill dogs (Spitznagel et al, 2019).

Along with worrying about those you care for, the actual acts of caring for them is all encompassing.

Decker is well but about once or twice a year, over the last four years, we’ve had some pretty serious medical emergencies generally related to his living life as large as possible. Last year, we had a close call with cancer after the incidental finding of a rectal growth. After an inconclusive biopsy and successful surgery, we got the all clear with a benign leiomyoma.
Since then, he’s had some faecal incontinence, not regularly and certainly not every month but it’s unpredictable and there doesn’t seem to be some consistent and treatable reason behind it.
Recently he had diarrhoea over night…and some incontinence following. Cleaning up animal-poop has been part of my life for a very long time but when it’s over-night, and I’m sleep deprived, and worried, and cleaning up diarrhoea…it can become too much fast.

But caregiver burnout happens over time because sometimes, caring for our seniors, it can seem like incidents that are worrying, effortful, disruptive, stressful and sometimes icky are happening one after another. One after another, one on top of another. All day, every day.

Caregiver burden doesn’t detract from the love we feel or even make us stop caring for our dogs. (Martens et al, 2016) But it affects carers’ quality of life and at the end, we have no dog. (Belshaw et al, 2020)

Finances

Keeping dogs is expensive, and expense increases as they age. As they age, they may require more specialised care and pet insurance often covers less of veterinary fees for pets over a certain age, e.g., 8 years old.

Decker has monthly veterinary treatments and supplements specifically relating to his aging and that costs about €300 a month. On top of all the regular care dogs need. This extra senior-care is maintaining his comfort meaning he can continue with an active life comfortably, safely and happily. That’s priceless.

But it’s another thing. On top of all the other things.

Not everyone can do that. And not everyone can keep up with the social-media-peer-pressure. That’s ok. Their situation doesn’t mean they love their dog any less.

Adjustments

Our dogs are intwined with our lives. And for me, dogs are my life; they’re my work and my hobbies/spare time. All dogs all the time.

At each lifestage and developmental change throughout their life, adjustments to accommodate their needs are required. (Belshaw et al, 2020) That’s a normal expectation when bringing a dog into our home and family.

Part of our anticipatory grief can be grieving for the life we won’t have after our dog is gone. But long before that happens, age-related changes can chip away at those experiences you’ve shared for so long, requiring updates and adjustments according to our new normal together.

Aging leads to deterioration over time so changes are ongoing. If you’re not clear already, Decker’s old. But this year, his aging appears to have accelerated, and the rate of slow-down has increased. By a lot. All of sudden, he appears much older and this is happening faster. That means life is changing again, and changes are on going.

If dogs, as the HAI literature tells us, benefit their humans through facilitating social interactions, getting out into Nature and increasing exercise, aging might impact these outlets for many people.

As humans and dogs age, our worlds get smaller. When I say senior dogs need more, not less, I’m emphasising an awareness of this shrinking life so often thrust upon seniors. We can continue to widen their world, according to their comfort, but with adjustments that accommodate for their changing needs.

Carers’ worlds may shrink too. We might not get to go to the places we once did with them or maybe we have to stay home with our dog more. More adjustments shrinking our world, affecting quality of life.

Emapthise

I was recently interviewed for Senior Paws, about nutrition for seniors (here) and for sure I want to empower caregivers with educational resources and things they can do support their aging dogs.

Education isn’t all that’s needed to empower carers. Empathy works too.
Empathy for these senior-struggles that have impact but don’t stop us loving our dogs, that don’t stop us enjoying and truly reveling in whatever time we have left together, and don’t stop us caring.

We appreciate our senior dogs, and their being alive, while recognising ways to support them in continuing to have a good life with us, and together.

But it doesn’t have to be sweetness and light 24/7. It’s ok to acknowledge that aging brings with it a lot of negatives. And we are going to have feelings about that and that’s ok.

Toxic positivity is not some antidote to anticipatory grieving and these other realities. It’s supposed to be conflicting: the prospect of losing someone for whom we care deeply while also making sure to savour every moment we have together. I just wish our dogs lived longer.