If only they could talk it would be a whole lot easier. But while farm animals can’t verbalise, they can vocalise and there are a number of other ways in which they can communicate their experiences. Being able to understand his animals’ body language and behaviour can better enable the farmer to request appropriate health care in cases where the animal is either in distress or in pain.

 

Signs of pain in animals are exhibited in a variety of ways and there are simple ways to monitor this.

 

Be mindful to keep a check on any animals that extricate themselves from their herd or flock and/or show a sudden disinterest in their environment. Likewise a lack of appetite or decreased hunger is indicative either of physical or psychological causes. And any consistent or unusual episodes of teeth-grinding (also known as bruxism) should be investigated.

 

An animal that is in pain or distressed may exhibit signs through their physical stance. Drooped ears, a hunched back and the head dropping to below the withers area are all common signs that an animal’s physical or emotional health is in question. More seriously if an animal refuses or shows reluctance to stand or move then help is required and the possibility of lameness needs to be considered.

 

Animals will often vocalise their pain or distress either by whining or by using grunting sounds when an affected area is touched if they are in pain or ill.

Sometimes very straightforward physiotherapy is all that is required to treat an animal. In other cases more complex medical regimes need to be put into place. The farmer will need to work closely with his animal health care provider in order to settle upon the best course of action and treatment for the animal. Animal pain is categorised in two ways - acute and chronic. Acute pain is associated with trauma and surgery. Chronic pain is often a result of conditions like acidosis or laminitis. Which form of remedial treatment is decided upon depends largely on the type of pain the animal is suffering.
 

Non-steroidal treatments are used in animal health care along with anaesthetic drugs, opiates like morphine, agonists, and dis-associative drugs such as ketamine.

The farmer can play a vital role in receiving the right animal health care by knowing the animal concerned.