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How much pain do dogs feel from severe neck or spinal injuries?

Updated on September 23, 2025

I have a question I need to answer for a research project. How much pain would a dog rendered tetraplegic by a gun shot to the neck, feel? 1) How much, if any, pain would it be able to feel below the point of spinal cord severance/damage? 2) How much pain would it feel at the point of spinal cord damage/severance?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Stacey Anstaett, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on January 29, 2019

I’m sorry but of the purpose of the forum is to advise pet parents regarding their own personal pet’s health. If you would like to consult with an expert regarding research type questions, I would encourage you to request a consultation.

To give you a very brief answer, pets feel pain just as acutely and severely damaged as people do. Therefore, if a pet had a neck injury that has resulted in severe spinal cord damage, the actual incident would hurt just as much as it would in a person. Secondly if the spinal cord were completely severed at the level of the neck, the pet would die( as would a person) unless they were on a ventilator. Complete destruction of the spinal cord, or severance of the spinal cord, at any level would result in a lack of pain sensation below that level of the spinal cord.
Please know that there are very strict guidelines that must be followed for all animals used for research, and do not ever attempt to perform your own research on any animal under any circumstances. Please note that animal cruelty is a felony and all but four states. Also, please note that veterinarians are legally and ethically obligated to report any suspicion of animal abuse or animal cruelty.

2Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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