I've been an owner of many dogs and cats. Always several at a time. We've endured major and minor surgeries many, many times over the years. I find that both dogs and cats are self limiting. If it hurts to move naturally they don't move. There are ways to figure out how much pain a dog is in just by knowing your dog and watching carefully. I have used pain meds a few times but never for a spay or neuter. Joey was the last dog I had neutered a few years ago. He did great but refused to jump up on the couch for a few days and I knew that was his favorite place to be. That made it obvious to me that trying to jump up caused him to hurt so I simply lifted him onto the couch till he was ready to do it on his own. I guess you might say he showed me his problem and I took care of without pain meds. Also, animals don't mask their pain. They'll show you but you have to be listening.

I'm rambling but you cannot quote me on saying dogs don't need pain relief. Funny. You are just full of it. I said dogs that don't appear to be in pain don't need pain relief.

Whether that be after a spay or for whatever reason. Make guesswork and medicate your dogs if you want to, but it doesn't make it smart or something they needed.

Funny that you agree with Helena, when her first sentences pretty much contradicts what you've been saying this entire time. Proving you just like to tit for tat with me, which is fine.

Said nothing about dogs not feeling pain after a spay, because of course they'd feel some pain. That is just you making dumb and outlandish statement #2 after saying that someone could possibly think dogs never feel pain.

Moving right along. My spays were not given pain medication, and they did not get it and did perfectly fine. Her dog is fine without the medication (obviously if she's hurtling herself over fences) so there is no reason to give it to her.

IMO, a "bit of discomfort" does not warrant pain medication, neither in dogs nor in people. But if you wish to fork over dangerous pain medications at the slightest possible twinge, then that is your prerogative.

Also, can you please spell my name correctly? You may not have any respect for me, but that is on another level of low.

I disagree , animals are very good at masking how much pain they are in......

It was not till my old boy had his eye removed we realised how much pain he must have been in...same with his bone cancer...it was there long before he showed he was in pain.

Same with my friends rotti, they a are stoic breed and again she masked a lot of the pain.

I agree you can have to know your dog, but sometimes knowing them shows just how much they dealt with it till it became obvious....

I agreed with Helena because I agree with her.....my opinion on this thread is directed towards major surgeries.....NOT minor discomforts.

You had added all that to my posts yourself.

As I said I can't be bothered to go through the thread to quote you, it's there for all to read.

I'm amazed that so many vets perform major surgery on animals and send them home without any pain relief medication .......

It's rather barbaric to think any living being has has such invasive procedure without any pain relief ..

Or I wonder are people forgetting the intravenous pain relief most vets would administer.... They of cause can last up to 24/48 hrs .

While a spay surgery is very common, it is still a very invasive surgery. A dog that has been spayed has been cut open and had an organ removed. I would think afterwards the dog would be in pain. I had a foster that got bloat and torsion and had to be cut wide open to save her life. The poor thing was in so much pain afterwards that she had to be taken back for pain therapy. I would personally give pain meds if the vet saw fit (I an fortunate to have a very good vet that does not do things or prescribe things for the sake of it or for money, so I trust him completely). If not that is ok too unless the dog is in obvious distress for days afterwards or if the vet said that the surgery was more complicated for whatever reason.

The dog will have at least a small bit of pain. I think that small amount is just good enough to keep the dog from thinking she is perfectly fine and going off and bust a stitch or something, especially in a normally very active bitch.

Why mask ALL her pain and make her think she is perfectly fine? That won't do her any good. Spaying is an invasive surgery, and thus the patient needs to take it very easy for a bit. Allowing the discomfort of a fresh spay helps with that IMO.

If she's in severe pain, or if the vet thinks she will need pain medication for some reason, I'm not saying not to give it. But vets here don't give pain medication for spays or neuters, and I don't think most of the pets need it.

It's certainly not "barbaric". That is just being dramatic. My goodness!

When I had Joey neutered the vet offered to give him a shot of pain meds before we left. Here was this tiny dog jumping around my feet wanting to be picked up and I had to say no. If he could manage all that action he couldn't have been in pain. I do keep pain meds at home for the dogs just in case but I have very seldom had to use it and recently had to toss out some that had expired. A few of my dogs are elderly and there are times one will have an arthritis flair up. Half a baby aspirin does them very well till the attack is over.

Fascinating thread. What I am picking up is how dog vary. I know easily when collie here is in pain. Head goes down, ears flop...no bounce. Wee dog just mopes sensibly

Many drs also think babies feel no pain but hey; we know better and can cope accordingly. I give collie the equivalent of baby aspirin sparingly as the meds vet gave have a bad press

Up to each.