Published in Frontiers in Pain Research, this study by Rachel M. P. Caddiell and colleagues evaluated whether canine pain sensitivity truly varies across breeds and whether veterinarians’ beliefs accurately reflect biological reality. Although veterinarians commonly share consistent breed-specific assumptions about pain tolerance, scientific evidence for such differences has been lacking.
The researchers assessed pain sensitivity thresholds using quantitative sensory testing (QST) across 149 healthy adult dogs from ten breeds. These breeds were selected because veterinarians traditionally rate them as having high, average, or low pain sensitivity. Alongside QST measurements, the team analyzed emotional reactivity through owner questionnaires and behavioral tests to determine whether temperament factors might explain sensitivity differences.
The findings challenge long-standing professional assumptions. Veterinarians’ ratings offered minimal explanation for the pain sensitivity patterns measured. However, breeds did differ biologically in their sensitivity thresholds across the QST methods used. These differences could not be attributed to behavior, temperament, or emotional reactivity.
An intriguing side result showed that veterinarians’ perceptions correlated with how dogs approached a stranger during the disgruntled stranger test. This suggests that behavioral impressions—such as confidence or sociability—may unintentionally shape beliefs about pain responsiveness, even when unrelated to physiological pain processing.
The study highlights a substantial need for deeper investigation into the biological mechanisms underlying breed-specific pain sensitivity. Understanding these mechanisms could improve clinical pain management and guide veterinarians toward more individualized, equitable treatment decisions. It also underscores the importance of examining how professional beliefs form and how they might influence diagnosis and care.
Source: Caddiell, R. M. P., Cunningham, R. M., White, P., Lascelles, B., & Gruen, M. (2023). Pain sensitivity differs between dog breeds but not in the way veterinarians believe. Frontiers in Pain Research. Published June 26, 2023.
