While most moderate chronic pain can be managed with nutraceuticals, nonsteroidal drugs, or therapeutics, these solutions can become ineffective over time. This ineffectiveness forces veterinarians to prescribe higher and higher doses of opioids and narcotics until owners eventually consider euthanasia as the most humane solution for their beloved pets—an emotionally difficult decision for both the animal’s owner, their veterinarian and the hospital staff.

The magnitude of the chronic pain market can be demonstrated by looking at the numbers for severe canine osteoarthritis (OA) treatment.

It is estimated that up to 20% of dogs (and some studies state 60% of cats over age 10) have signs of arthritis. Each year, at least 5.3M canine patients are prescribed NSAIDs for managing chronic OA pain, but because of many factors including convenience and worries about adverse events, the average treatment persistence (number of days the drug is given as prescribed) is only 70 days of treatment per year. At least one-third of those canine patients' therapy is discontinued because of poor response, and every patient eventually reaches an advanced stage where stronger alternatives are needed—up to the point when euthanasia is the only option.

Estimate of chronic arthritis pain–afflicted dogs

According to survey data, veterinarians euthanize, on average, 9 dogs and 6 cats each month (adding to 5.5M dogs and 3.5M cats each year in the US alone). Half of the pets euthanized are for pain and quality-of-life related reasons (mobility, pain, terminal illness).

That means that millions of canine patients with severe, difficult-to-manage pain, could, within the next year, become candidates for a completely new type of approach to pain control (such as resiniferatoxin).