A new stall-side pain scoring system for horses could help veterinarians better determine the need for analgesics in lame horses, according to Kirsten Wegner, DVM, Dipl. ACVA (veterinary anesthesiology), an assistant professor of anesthesia at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center.

In order to properly manage pain in lame horses, veterinarians must measure how much pain the horse is experiencing as objectively as possible. This can become challenging due to unique behavioral and physiologic qualities of the horse (horses tend to be very stoic), the nature of the pain, and the ability of one or more observers to produce consistent, specific results, Wegner said

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