Veterinary Pain Management

There are many misconceptions regarding pain perception in animals. Animals do not communicate their pain in the same manner as people. In fact, it is their natural instinct to conceal ther pain. Unfortunately, these misconceptions can lead to pain being neglected when animals are sick, injured, or after having a surgical procedure performed.

As veterinary professionals, we have developed techniques to assist in identifying pain in our patients. Some of the common signs we ascribe to pain are inappetence, hiding under an object such as a bed, crying, whimpering, acting out of character, walking or standing in a hunched posture, guarding a painful region, trembling or shaking, and inactivity.

At Iowa Veterinary Specialties, the aggressive management of pain is of paramount importance. We believe all animals pain should be carefully and appropriately managed so our patient , and your loved one, is as comfortable as possible. At our hospital, we prescribe a pain management plan that is unique to each patient's specific needs. We employ a wide range of therapeutic medications to assure that every patient's pain management plan is formulated to meet their particular requirements.

Each surgical patient is pre-medicated to pre-emptively control pain and anxiety and subsequently placed on a CRI (constant rate infusion or "drip") during and after their surgical procedure. Since every animal experiences pain differently, placing our patients on a CRI gives us the ability to quickly control and adjust the amount of medications our patients receive.

At Iowa Veterinary Specialties we make certain our patients are always comfortable from the time they are admitted until they are discharged from the hospital and into their recovery. Even after discharge from the hospital, we understand that it is essential each of our patients go home with an appropriate pain management plan and as such we routinely dispense oral medications that further support your pet's comfort during their recovery.

Our mission at Iowa Veterinary Specialties is to provide the best possible care to our patients. In this role, we strongly believe animals should not be subjected to pain and will fully implement our pain management techniques to support our patients in the healing and recovery process. This is our committment to you and your pet.