Vetoquinol has released the second set of results from a survey of over 1000 dog owners which the company says has revealed some surprising findings on owner attitudes to pain and pain relieving medications.¹

In particular, Vetoquinol says it thinks veterinary surgeons will be surprised by the depth of feeling expressed by pet owners about the issue, and that there are areas where there is potential for the profession to relate to the concerns of clients and adapt communication accordingly.

The key findings highlight that dog owners are likely to be shocked by a diagnosis of long term painful illness in their pet and are very likely to search for further information on the Internet about the pet's condition. Most dog owners think that NSAIDs are likely to cause side effects, with the perceived risk being much greater than the actual level of risk. The results also indicate that even low levels of risk of side effects may be unacceptable to dog owners.

• In common with many other surveys, most dog owners (68%) felt their dog was a member of the family and another 22% said their dog was their best friend.
• 73% of people selected the word 'devastated' to most accurately describe their feelings if their dog was diagnosed with a potentially painful long-term illness.

Mark Leddy, Marketing Manager at Vétoquinol said that the strength of the bond between pet and owner should always be front of mind: "A diagnosis of osteoarthritis, for instance, is such a common one, often being made several times a day, so it is easy to become matter of fact about it; yet for the client that news may actually be quite traumatic and the impact hugely underestimated."

• Asked to rate pain, dog owners perceived the most painful condition to be a broken leg.
• On a 0 to 10 scale, with 10 being most painful, 57% rated pain due to chronic arthritis in old age as 8 or above and 36% rated post-neutering pain as an 8 or above.
• Fewer people rated pain due to arthritis in a young dog as 8 or above (51%). Vetoquinol says this suggests that owners might not be good at identifying pain levels in individual animals.

Where clients get their information from is important:

• 98% said they would use the Internet to get information about their dogs' illnesses and medication, whilst 67% said they would do this every time they had a concern. Vetoquinol notes that this means there is greater scope for misinformation.

The majority of respondents (95%) felt that treatment of osteoarthritis should be started as soon as signs appear and then long term, either consistently or as needed. However, despite recognising the need for treatment, many expressed concerns about side effects when giving their dog long-term medication, with 77% considering it important or very important to choose a medication with a limited range of side effects. 

• 48% of those polled felt that NSAIDs were good treatments with a risk of side effects
• 15% rated them more positively as good, effective treatments
• 2% claimed they would object to or resist their vet's recommendation to treat with NSAIDs.
• Only 1% felt that pain controlling medications would never cause side effects, with most respondents claiming side effects were most likely to be seen sometimes (67%) or often (19%).

Vetoquinol says the reality is that one in a thousand pets given an NSAID is likely to experience side effects, which vets may feel is not something owners should worry about unduly. The reality for pet owners is that they perceive the risk to be much greater and if informed of the actual level of risk may still experience a significant level of fear that their pet, with whom they have a special relationship, could be that one in a thousand.

Mark Leddy says that, based on these results, there is great scope for the veterinary team to discuss the level and type of risk entailed in administering medication: "Such an approach will help pet owners make more informed decisions about treatment, allay their concerns and provide them with the support they need at what is probably a very difficult time for them."

^1. A survey of 1048 dog owners, carried out by petbuzz, on behalf of Vétoquinol, March 2011

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