Treatment of Pain in Birds

This article provides an overview of the current understanding of evidence-based clinical analgesic use in birds. The field of avian analgesia has dramatically expanded during the last 20 years, affording more options for alleviating both acute and chronic pain. These options include opioids, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, local anesthetics, and/or other drugs like gabapentin, amantadine, and cannabinoids, acting at different points in the nociceptive system thereby helping to provide greater pain relief while reducing the risk of adverse effects when combined.