7 Signs Your Senior Dog Is in Pain (And When to Call the Vet)

By Paw Pulses · Reviewed for senior dog parents · ~6 min read

Affiliate disclosure: Some links in this article go to products we earn a small commission on if you buy. We only recommend things we'd give our own dogs. Full disclosure at pawpulses.com/affiliate-disclosure.

If you've ever caught yourself watching your senior dog get up and thought, "Was that a flinch? Or am I imagining it?" — you're not imagining it. You're paying attention.

Aging dogs hide pain the same way they hide fear. They evolved to. A wild dog showing weakness gets pushed out of the pack, so even your spoiled fourteen-year-old golden retriever still has the instinct to mask discomfort. By the time pain is obvious, it's usually been brewing for weeks or months.

The good news: dogs leak signals long before they limp. If you know what you're looking for, you can spot pain early — when it's cheaper, easier, and far less stressful for everyone to treat.

Here are the seven most common signs senior dogs show when they're hurting, in roughly the order most owners notice them.

1. They hesitate before jumping or climbing stairs

This is the earliest and most missed sign. Healthy dogs don't pause. If your dog stops at the bottom of the stairs, looks up, and waits a beat — that's not laziness. That's calculation. They're deciding whether the climb is worth what it'll feel like.

Same goes for jumping on the couch, hopping into the car, or stepping off a curb. Hesitation is data. Track it for a week. If it's happening more than once or twice a day, your dog is in mild-to-moderate joint pain.

2. Their gait changes — even slightly

Watch your dog walk away from you. A normal dog's hips swing rhythmically and the spine stays mostly straight. A dog with hip pain develops a "bunny hop" — both rear legs moving together — or a slight side-to-side sway. You may also notice they put more weight on the front legs to spare the back ones.

These changes happen so gradually that it's easy to miss in person. Take a slow-motion video of your dog walking once a month. Compare across months and you'll see things the everyday view smooths over.

3. Sleeping position changes

Senior dogs in pain often switch from curled-up sleeping to stretched-out flat. Curling up requires flexing every joint at once. If your dog used to ball up like a croissant and now sleeps stretched on their side, the joints probably hurt to bend.

The opposite can also happen: a dog with belly pain may tuck up into a tight curl and stay rigid even when you sit down next to them. Either change is worth noting.

4. They stop greeting you the way they used to

Dogs are creatures of habit. When the routine changes for no obvious reason, something is wrong.

If your dog used to barrel toward the door when you came home and now meets you halfway down the hall — or just looks up from the bed and wags slowly — that's a behavioral red flag. It rarely means they love you less. It usually means it hurts to move.

5. New "grumpiness" — especially when touched

Senior dogs in chronic pain sometimes flinch or snap when touched in places that used to be totally fine. The most common spots: the lower back near the hips, the base of the tail, the elbows, and along the spine.

This isn't your dog "becoming aggressive in old age." Aggression doesn't appear randomly in a fourteen-year-old who's been gentle their whole life. Pain makes nice dogs irritable. If a previously cuddly dog has started to growl or move away from being petted in a specific area, that area probably hurts.

6. Excessive licking or chewing of one spot

Dogs lick painful joints the way humans rub a sore knee. If you're finding consistent saliva-stained patches on the same paw, leg, or hip — that's where the pain is.

This is especially common over the wrist (carpus), hocks (ankles), and elbows in older dogs with arthritis. The licking usually starts as a self-soothing behavior and can develop into a hot spot or open sore over time, which then becomes its own problem.

7. Decreased appetite or slower eating

Pain raises stress hormones. Stress hormones suppress appetite. If your senior dog is leaving food, eating slower than usual, or skipping meals entirely, the cause is sometimes dental — but often it's joint or back pain making it uncomfortable to stand at the bowl.

A simple test: try feeding from a raised bowl. If your dog suddenly eats faster and finishes more of the meal, neck or back pain is likely a contributor.

What to actually do about it

If you've nodded at three or more of these, here's the practical sequence.

Step 1: Document for a week

Before calling the vet, build a one-week log. Note which signs appear, when, and how often. Vets get more useful information from a one-week log than from a panicked five-minute description in the exam room. (We made a Senior Dog Health Tracker on Etsy — $14, prints from home, designed for exactly this.)

Step 2: Schedule a vet visit

Don't wait for next year's annual. Book a "senior wellness" appointment specifically. Ask the vet to assess for arthritis and dental pain — those are the two biggest underdiagnosed sources of senior dog pain.

Step 3: Ask about pain management options

Your vet will likely discuss prescription anti-inflammatories (Galliprant, Carprofen, etc.) for confirmed arthritis. These work, but they have side effects and cost adds up.

Many senior dog parents pair prescription pain management with a daily joint supplement to slow further cartilage breakdown. The two we've tested on our own dogs:

• Innovet Pet's Advanced Mobility Support — glucosamine, chondroitin, MSM, plus turmeric. Higher potency than most supermarket options.
• Holistapet's Joint & Mobility Chews — softer chews, easier for picky eaters, includes hemp extract for the calming side effect. Good if your dog also has anxiety.

(Both are affiliate links — see disclosure at top.)

Step 4: Adjust the environment

Small tweaks make outsized differences:

• Rugs or runners on hardwood floors. Slipping on hard surfaces is one of the biggest causes of joint inflammation in senior dogs. A $30 runner outperforms most supplements for some dogs.
• Orthopedic dog bed. Memory foam, not the puffy stuffed kind. Look for at least 4" of foam.
• Ramps for the car and couch. Senior dogs do not need to be jumping. Ramps cost less than a single vet visit for a torn cruciate.
• Raised food and water bowls if neck pain is suspected.

When to skip "wait and see" and call now

The signs above all warrant a vet visit "soon" — within a week or two. These are emergencies:

• Sudden onset, severe limping (couldn't put weight down at all)
• Vocalizing in pain when picked up or moved
• Unable to stand or significant weakness in the rear
• Loss of appetite combined with vomiting or shaking
• Bloated abdomen especially with retching

Any of those, go to the ER. Don't wait until morning.

The bigger picture

Senior dogs have one job: enjoy their golden years. Your job is to notice the small signals and act on them before they become big ones. Spot the limp before it becomes a torn ligament. Catch the dental pain before it becomes a $4,000 extraction. Switch to ortho bedding before joint inflammation becomes chronic.

It's not always glamorous, but it's the difference between a dog who slows down gracefully and one who suffers in silence.

Frequently asked questions

How can I tell if my dog has arthritis vs. just normal aging slowdown?

Normal aging means slightly less stamina and a bit more sleep. Arthritis means consistent hesitation, gait changes, or behavior changes around movement. If your dog is willingly choosing not to do things they used to enjoy (going up the stairs, jumping on the bed), that's not aging — that's pain.

What's the best joint supplement for senior dogs?

Look for products with at least 500mg glucosamine + 400mg chondroitin per 50 lbs of body weight, plus MSM. Bonus points for added omega-3s (EPA/DHA) and green-lipped mussel. We've had the best results with Innovet Pet's Advanced Mobility Support and Holistapet's Joint Chews — both meet those minimums.

Can I give my dog human pain medication like ibuprofen?

No. Never. Ibuprofen, acetaminophen (Tylenol), naproxen (Aleve), and most other human OTC pain meds are toxic to dogs and can cause kidney failure or stomach ulcers. Always use vet-prescribed dog-specific medications.

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— The Paw Pulses Team