Cats may not be feline fine; RECORD PETS.

Byline: By NEIL McINTOSH 

PAIN is a good thing. It is necessary. Take pain away from the world and we would all be in big trouble.

Pain saves us, protects us and keeps us from repeating terrible mistakes. Early on in life we discover what we can and can't do.

We learn what is hot, what is sharp and what happens when our fingers are left behind when the door shuts.

Without pain we would be burned, cut, scraped and torn every day.

Our pets learn in a similar manner. For them, where there are no spoken words of wisdom, pain is an even more important sensation.

Even Scud, our daft rescue dog, stays away from hedgehogs now!

We rely on pain in medicine, too. Most animals with fractures will limit their movement for a while, due to the obnoxious sensation that they feel if they overdo it.

A damaged joint will be rested all the more when it is sore to move.

Conditions that create pain will usually alter behaviour so that an owner is made aware there is something wrong.

So an old arthritic Labrador, who will no longer jump into the car or run to the door when his lead is picked up, is generally limped off to the vets pretty quickly. But there are times when pain is of no use.

And that is when pain is persistent and severe but fails to affect an individual enough to bring the situation to its owner's attention.

The classic example is the old cat with osteoarthritis.

When, many moons ago, I was at veterinary school, our lecturers told us cats didn't get osteoarthritis. For a change, it was them who weren't listening.

It is true that dogs with arthritis get thick swollen joints you can see a mile off, while cats don't.

But cats still get osteoarthritis. They just don't show it.

There are lots of reasons for this. Simply, we don't tend to walk our cats on a lead so minor changes in their gait are missed.

Cats are also lighter and able to distribute weight more evenly so only about one in five arthritic cats will be lame.

We are used to letting cats "do their own thing" and rarely force them to walk or play.

But, if we watch and listen, it is easy to spot the cat who is in chronic pain.

Have they stopped grooming so their hair is matted?

Are they grumpy and dislike being picked up? Do they shun your attention? They might also have back pain.

Are their nails getting long due to reduced scratching and walking?

Have they started sleeping more, maybe next to a heat source?

Do you see them licking joints continuously? Are they suffering in silence?

Fortunately, you can now ask your vet about a new, safe, palatable painkiller for cats.