I imagine it does hurt. He did have problems removing the spines from a large dog.
The vet told us this has only started in the past 8 - 10 years. He thinks someone had them as pets, and let them loose into the wild. The porcupines don't have many natural enemies, so they thrive here.
You didn't used to see armadillos north of the Gulf Coast in Alabama. Now they span clean into Tennessee. Their only natural enemies are cars and trucks.
Negative, they are native Texas critters. They are found from the East Texas Pine Woods to El Paso to the High Plains. They are out mostly at night. You would not know that they are out there 'cept for the dead ones on the highways.