URGENT. CAT BITE. PLEASE HELP?

Question

My Cat was attacked by a dog about half an hour ago. While trying to get my cat, my mom was biten by the cat in her thumb. It punctured through her nail and the back of her thumb.

Its swollen, red and was causing her a lot of pain. We have put ice on it and everything. However I need to know if since it was a cat bite do I need to take her to urgent care? I heard that bacteria can be very harmful and do not want anything to happen to my mother.I would consult my doctor but it is too late and my only option is to take her. Would it be necessary?

Thank you SOO much..

Answer 1

you really need to take your mom to the hospital now cause the cat bite could of hit a nerve or damaged her tendits i would take her now

Answer 2

If the cat has had its shots & doe not have rabies, she should be fine.

I once had one of my cats bite me in the arm (close to the wrist) while giving her a flea bath, her whole right fang went into my arm up to her gums. It bled alot & we poured hydrogen peroxide over it periodically & used triple antibiotic cream on it & bandaged it up. I did see my doctor & all was fine, but they gave a tetanus shot anyways.

I would suggest to clean the would up well like i did & tomorrow make an appt. to see your doctor, just in case. Tell mom it will hurt for quite awhile but it will get better, Good Luck.

Answer 3

In total agreement with the answer Jerry gave - wash thoroughly, go to doctor soon (but it is currently not an emergency unless it gets significantly worse). Doctor will most likely give antibiotics and a tetanus shot if your mother hasn't had one recently.

It will swell, get red and be very painful for a few days so be a sweetie and do all her chores to help out.

Answer 4

Here is the first aid for cat bites from 'Family Doctor'>

http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/...

This advice is from the Mayo Clinic>

www.mayoclinic.com/health/first-aid-an...

Answer 5

She will need to go to the Dr tomorrow or the hospital tonight.

Cat bites can become infected fast and are very painful

Answer 6

Cats have the dirtiest mouths of any animal I believe.  I got bit on the thumb by a stray and had to go to the hospital. Get her care right away because she really could lose her thumb or hand if infection sets in.

One of our cats had a baby rabbit in its mouth but let it go when I yelled.  I got the rabbit and there didn't appear to be any broken skin at all but the wildlife people said that even if ONE thin layer of skin was broken and the cats saliva got into its bloodstream it would be dead in 48 hours.

Answer 7

Yes,take her.Cats' mouths are full of bacteria and a cat bite can cause a serious infection. I know of a woman who died from a cat bite - she didn't have it treated by a doctor and she got blood poisoning and died.Your mom will need a tetanus booster and antibiotics and the doctors will need to se the cat's rabies vaccination certificate if you are in the U.S. Go and take her right now or at the very least,first thing in the morning.

http://www.thecatsite.com/general/catbit...

Answer 8

Any open wound should be disinfected, with rubbing alcohol or some other disinfectant... as far as anything else, as long as the cat doesn't have rabies or whatever, then... she should be ok. If it looks really bad, you could take her, but... cleaning and wrapping it should be all right if it's your cat and you know it doesn't have anything. If you're unsure, take her, or call and ask someone who would know.

Answer 9

watch out for blood poisoning.  you can tell by a red line going from her left wrist  up towards her armpit. if the red line is there, get her to the hospital a.s.a.p. once it reaches the heart well... you don't want to know. it happened to my husband and we got it seen to just in time. cats do have alot of bacteria so just watch for that one. in my husbands case it was a puppy who wet itself because it was excited, stood in it's own urine and jumped on my husbands hand where he had an open cut from work.

Answer 10

Hye....Crazy guy.!!

What for, r u waiting.....???

Just go quickly to doctor.

Answer 11

run run go go fast !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...

Answer 12

What you have described sounds like a cat bite with proper puncture wounds.

Given it also goes through the fingernail, I would say that you should definitely take her in for medical attention NOW.

Any cat bite that causes puncture wounds needs hospital attention and very strong antibiotics, as the infection can become very serious. You say it is already very red and swollen, so there is already infection there.

The fingernail EXISTS to protect the delicate and sensitive nerve endings in our fingers. The fact that the bite went through a fingernail makes this even more urgent - I am not trying to make you panic, but if infection sets in under the nail, this can become very serious.

Don't waste more time on Yahoo Answers with this - the sooner you get there, the sooner you'll get this seen.

The worst case scenario is that the dog had rabies, which could be transmitted via the cat, to your Mom. This is very unlikely, but the risk cannot be ignored.

It might take a few hours of waiting to get it seen now, but that could save a lot more hours, a lot more pain, and expense, if you wait.

I'm not trying to make you panic, there is no cause for panic, but you should definitely be seeking medical attention now.

I hope everything turns out well, for your Mom, your cat, and you!

Answer 13

It should be okay.. just make sure to disinfect the area. Put polysporin on it after cleaning the wound with peroxide or iodine. As long as your cat has his/her vaccination and there is no chance of rabies it should be only infection you have to worry about. Signs of infection are heat, swelling, pus, fever and pain at the site or the wound. Cat scratch fever is caused by scratches and not bites, so you don't have to worry about that. Other than rabies there isn't much you can get from a cat bite except infection..  

Answer 14

I would take her in just to make sure because if the dog was infected by anything and bit your cat then the cat would be infected too and you mom should be checked just in case. I would go in

Answer 15

Definitely take her to urgent care. Cat bites become infected extremely quickly, and if the bacteria gets down into the joint(which from your description it sounds like it might) things could get very bad. Getting you mom antibiotics is a necessity.

(Haven't you ever wondered why when cats get into a fight, there ends up being an abcess where they got bitten?)

Answer 16

I've worked for several vet clinics where it was COMPANY POLICY that every cat bite go immediately to urgent care.

Do go.

Now!

Cat bites are super dangerous and can cause life threatening, finger amputating infections.

Don't leave without antibiotics.  If they try to brush you off, insist on another doctor/opinion.

Answer 17

You should wash it very thoroughly with an antibacterial soap immediately after being bitten as time is essential and flushout thoroughly with peroxide. If you catch it in time you may be alright but if the bite is too bad or you didn't act quick enough you will probably need some antibiotics and if she hasn't had a tetnus in the last 5 - 7 years they will probably give her one of those as well. Animal bites become infected very easily which will show signs of redness and swelling along with tenderness around the bite which will all get worse in the following days if infection is present also watch for signs of a red line going up the arm of the bite as this is a sign of blood posioning.  

Answer 18

as much as it hurts her this is not an emergency. thoroughly clean the bite with peroxide and put antibiotic ointment on any open wounds. wrap it lightly and use ice pack for swelling. have her take some naproxen sodium (aleve) for the pain and to help with swelling. tomorrow get some povidine iodine and make a soaking solution and have her soak her hand if it is still bothering her. it may ooze serum for a few days but if it oozes pus or starts getting red, hot, or red streaks then definitely have her go to a doctor!

I have 13 cats and do feline foster work and volunteer at a cat shelter so I have been bitten many times before.

ETA: I wanted to add though that if your mom is a diabetic or has any heart problems then yes, get her to a doc right away.

Answer 19

I would not take her to the emergency centre as they would be busy with much more pressing matters. Although i would definitly be putting antiseptic all over the area and giving it  a very good clean out as yes you are right bacteria in cats mouths is everywhere. Apart from cleaning it and wrapping is to keep out germs just watc it over the next few days for any signs of infection. If infection does begin just book a consult at your local docs. THIS IS NOT AN EMERGENCY! In my proffession I have been bitten a number of times and never needed a trip to the emergency room.