Cats hide pain by design: a cat with a sore mouth or an aching hip will still jump on the counter and still purr. What changes is measureable, not dramatic. The home kit that catches it is 4 tools, a 2-minute session once a day, and a 0 to 3 score on each item, and 3 things written down every time. Owners who do this for 2 weeks usually find the problem 3 to 6 weeks before it would have shown up at a clinic visit.
Tool 1: the 0 to 3 scoring sheet
Score 5 items from 0 to 3 each, for a maximum of 15: ear position, orbital tightening, muzzle tension, whisker angle, and head-to-body posture. A relaxed cat scores 0 to 2 total. A cat at 4 to 6 is borderline and worth a second look 2 hours later. A cat at 7 or above, or any single item at 2 to 3, gets a same-week call; 10 or above is same-day.
The scale works because the face is not under conscious control. Ears rotate outward and flatten; the orbital opening narrows even when the eye is open; the muzzle looks flattened rather than round. Photograph the face at rest, from 30 to 40 cm, in the same light, at the same time of day, and compare 3 days of images side by side rather than trusting memory.
Tool 2: a gram scale for food and body weight
Pain shows up in intake before it shows up in behavior. Weigh the bowl, not the scoop: a 1 g resolution kitchen scale costs under USD 20 and catches a 10 percent drop in a 60 g portion, which is 6 g, invisible by eye. Weigh the cat weekly on a baby scale, same time of day, before breakfast. A loss of 3 to 5 percent body weight in 30 days is a signal, and in a 4.5 kg cat that is 135 to 225 g.
Log 3 numbers per meal for the first 2 weeks: grams offered, grams eaten, and minutes taken to finish. A cat that leaves 15 g of a 60 g meal 3 days running, or that used to finish in 5 minutes and now takes 25, is telling you something the bowl cannot.
Tool 3: a 2-minute phone video
Two minutes of video, filmed at the same time each day, catches the gait and jump changes that happen too slowly to notice live. Film 4 things: walk away from the camera for 10 steps, walk toward it for 10 steps, jump up onto a 40 cm surface, and land. Slow the playback to half speed and watch the tail base, the lumbosacral area and the elbow.
What to look for: a cat that used to clear 60 cm and now stops at 30 to 40 cm, a hesitation of 1 to 2 seconds before the jump, a stiffer, shorter stride on 1 hind limb, or a tail that stops swinging. Any of those, held for 5 to 7 days, is a reason to book a visit. Keep the clips; a 30-second before-and-after is worth more to a vet than a description.
Tool 4: hands and a soft brush
A 2-minute hands-on pass, done while the cat is already settled, checks 4 zones: jaw and both masseter muscles, the spine from neck to tail base, both hips through 30 to 40 degrees of extension, and both elbows through full flexion. Compare left with right; asymmetry of 1 cm in muscle bulk or a 10 degree difference in range is the finding.
Use the brush to part the coat and look at the skin, because cats stop grooming a painful area. A 2 cm mat on the lower back, or a patch of dander on 1 hip, marks the spot the cat cannot reach. Never press on a belly or a joint that produces a flinch and hold it; note it, stop, and let the vet examine it.
What to do with the numbers
The score only helps if it drives an action. Use 3 thresholds: total 0 to 3 for 3 days running means stable, keep watching; 4 to 6 for 2 days, or eating 15 percent less for 3 days, means call the clinic this week; 7 or above at any point, or 10 or above, or a cat that stops eating for 24 hours, means today. Add 1 point of urgency for a cat over 12 years, and 1 for a cat on any chronic medication.
Grooming, litter box use and sleep position belong in the same log, since 3 of the earliest signs of pain in cats are a scruffy coat, urine outside the box, and sleeping in a hunched position rather than stretched out. If urine collection is part of the workup, collecting urine at home covers the container and timing.
Medication belongs to the vet
Three classes come up most often for feline pain, and all 3 need a prescription: non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), which carry kidney and gut risk in cats and are never dosed by owner guess; gabapentinoids, used for neuropathic and chronic pain; and opioids, short-term and controlled. Never give a human product, and never repeat a dose left over from another cat, because 1 tablet of the wrong class can be fatal at 4 to 5 kg.
The home kit's job is to produce the evidence that gets the prescription right: 2 weeks of scores, weights and clips. Ask the vet to record a baseline score in the chart so your home number and their exam number are on the same scale; the clinic-side version is described in the feline pain scale.
| Tool | Time per use | What it measures | Action threshold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-3 scoring sheet | 2 minutes | 5 facial and posture items, 0-15 | 7+ weekly, 10+ same day |
| Gram scale | 2 minutes | Grams eaten, 3-5% weight loss | 15% intake drop for 3 days |
| Phone video | 2 minutes | Jump height 60 to 40 cm, stride | Change held 5-7 days |
| Hands and brush | 2 minutes | 1 cm asymmetry, 10 degree range | Any flinch, note and stop |
| 3-item log | 1 minute | Score, grams, minutes | 3 days of trend |
Start with 5 steps
- Print the sheet and score once a day at the same hour, for 14 days.
- Weigh food in grams and the cat weekly before breakfast.
- Film 2 minutes at the same time; keep the best clip from each week.
- Write 3 numbers daily: score, grams eaten, minutes at the bowl.
- Set the call thresholds now, before you need them, and put the clinic number on the sheet.
Frequently asked
Can I give my cat a painkiller from the pharmacy?
No. Three classes cover most feline pain, NSAIDs, gabapentinoids and opioids, and all 3 need a prescription. Cats metabolize NSAIDs differently from dogs and people, and a single human tablet at 4 to 5 kg can cause kidney injury or death. Call the clinic instead; 1 wrong tablet is a worse risk than 6 hours of waiting.
How long should a scoring session take?
About 2 minutes per tool, which is why the whole kit fits into 8 to 10 minutes a day. Watch the cat at rest for 30 to 60 seconds, score the 5 items, then weigh food and film 1 jump. Longer sessions tend to change the cat's behavior and produce a better score than the cat deserves.
Which score means I should go to the vet today?
10 or more out of 15 at any point, any single item at 3, or 7 or more plus refusing food for 24 hours. A score of 4 to 6 held for 2 days, or intake down 15 percent for 3 days, means a call this week. Cats over 12 years and cats on chronic medication get 1 point of extra urgency.