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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / February 2005Cat Scratches can be a pain in the a.s
So I broke up a fight a few days ago in exactly the wrong way, but grabbing one of the pugilists with my bare hands. Intellect gave way to emotion, I guess. Henry got me really good on my hand, a really deep claw-puncture. Mistake #1, don't grab fighting cats. They tend to lose track of who they're killing, and will happily turn to killing you. Maybe this is some evolutionary strategy for late-night bar fights, where your opponent's buddies may show up and try to sucker-punch you. I ignored it for a couple days, as I have all my various cat-maulings over the decades. However, this one started hurting. Then my hand started getting red and warm and really sore. Mistake #2. Cats have a few incredibly nasty bacteria that like to hang out with them. These bacteria can easily send you to the hospital, maim or even kill you. Okay, so great. I've got an infection. Tried to schedule an appointment and they said they were all full, but given the nature of the injury I should come in and wait for an opening. So I went to the doctor and waited 3 1/2 hours. He came in, took one look and proceeded to give me a drivers-ed-video version of the possible consequences of cat maul infections. I nodded my head - yes, yes, I know all this. As expected he gave me some oral antibiotics. But he thought I should get an injection too, just to be safe. So I waited another hour, and to my delight two very attractive nurses came bouncing in and announced they were going to give me my shot! I started rolling up my sleeves, and one said, "no, in your butt.". Great. So now I'm back home, my day is shot, my hand still hurts, I get to worry about being hospitalized for weeks with doctors scraping poisonous cat venom out of my hand, and now my a.s hurts, too. (Oh, and the cats? Despite dislodging a pillow-case's worth of fur from one another, they emerged without a scratch.) Sometimes it sucks to love cats. Mostly it sucks to love cats and do stupid things like grabbing them when they're in a blind berserker rage attempting to disembowel each other. Ow. I think I'll lay down for a while. On my stomach. BLink > So I broke up a fight a few days ago in exactly the wrong way, but > Ow. I think I'll lay down for a while. On my stomach. LOL! A delightful, cautionary tale. May I recommend that if those antibiotics don't say "Avoid Alcohol" on the front, you pour yourself a stiff drink as compensation as well? And just before I get flamed by those who believe the myth that all alcohol is contraindicated with any antibiotics, stop and read: http://xtramsn.co.nz/health/0,,8089-2495043,00.html http://www.gpnotebook.co.uk/cache/-946208714.htm http://www.drweil.com/u/QA/QA326593/ > So now I'm back home, my day is shot, my hand still hurts, I get to worry > about being hospitalized for weeks with doctors scraping poisonous cat venom > out of my hand, and now my a.s hurts, too. Yes, but at least you got to expose yourself to two attractive and bouncy nurses! I mean, how often do you get to do that?  Signaturemonique, roommate of Oscar the (female) grouch ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Eros was adopted! Eros has a home now! *cheer!* >Sometimes it sucks to love cats. Mostly it sucks to love cats and do >stupid things like grabbing them when they're in a blind berserker >rage attempting to disembowel each other. Great storytelling. I hope your hand feels better soon. I haven't had any infections yet, but I have been known to break up a fight in the wrong way, but I can't help it. Kira uses me as a shield, so I wake up in the dark with a cat fight on top of me, and all I can do is hope to fling them in different directions. I have had cat claws in my face and in my ear. Signature-- Meghan & the Zoo Crew Equine and Pet Photography http://www.zoocrewphoto.com > So I broke up a fight a few days ago in exactly the wrong way, but > grabbing one of the pugilists with my bare hands. The first time I did it, one of the cats sprayed IN MY FACE. That would be the last time, too. >> So I broke up a fight a few days ago in exactly the wrong way, but >> grabbing one of the pugilists with my bare hands. > >The first time I did it, one of the cats sprayed IN MY FACE. That >would be the last time, too. The first week I had Jenny (the rescued and *not* housebroken dog), I caught her peeing in my room. I had this stupid idea that if I caught her, she would stop and then finish outside. So, I picked her up to haul her outside. There I was with pee running down my nightshirt and leg. I never did that again. Dumb human :) Signature-- Meghan & the Zoo Crew Equine and Pet Photography http://www.zoocrewphoto.com >Sometimes it sucks to love cats. Mostly it sucks to love cats and do >stupid things like grabbing them when they're in a blind berserker [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > >BLink Awww. Sorry. I know what you mean though. I don't have much of a reaction to scratches, but every, single time I've gotten bitten, it turned nasty and required antibiotics. Sherry > Awww. Sorry. I know what you mean though. I don't have much of a reaction to > scratches, but every, single time I've gotten bitten, it turned nasty and > required antibiotics. I am sooooo lucky in this regard. Maybe next week I'll post a link to a photo of my bitten leg. Signaturehttp://www.slywy.com/pages/hodge.html > >Sometimes it sucks to love cats. Mostly it sucks to love cats and do > >stupid things like grabbing them when they're in a blind berserker [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Sherry I've developed a fear of shaving cats ever since we tried to do a VERY matted cat a favor and clip him while he was conscious. He managed to snag my hand with his claws, and when I tried to remove the claws, he got in about four bites between the two hands. Four shots (tetanus and three of rosefin (sp?)) - tetanus in my shoulder, and the antibiotics in my a.s and then both hips. I couldn't move my left wrist - one of the bites was very close to the bone and swelled up, and my right index finger was punctured just behind the second knuckle - couldn't move it properly for weeks, couldn't bend it completely for months. Still hurts when it's cold. And this was in June. lol...very funny story about a not so funny incident. Cat scratches can do some nasty damage. A couple of weeks ago my indoor baby managed to slither out the front door late at night as I opened the door to break up a fight between two neighborhood cats. He tried to get away to run with the big boys but mommy had other plans. I was sure if he got away I'd never see him again. I managed to grab him as he bounded over a snowbank after the two fighting toms. My hand was so bruised and swollen from the punctures from his nails that I couldn't use it at all for several days. Two weeks later I'm still wearing bandaids! A small price to pay for hanging on to my first born! Whenever I get a scratch or bite, I immediately put peroxide on it and try to squeeze blood out of it. If it looks deep I then put antibiotic ointment on it. ---MIKE--- > Whenever I get a scratch or bite, I immediately put peroxide on it and > try to squeeze blood out of it. Nursing manuals recommend strongly against peroxide; it has little antibiotic effect, and it can get into the bloodstream, which can be ugly. I wash and use Neosporin or equivalent. Signaturehttp://www.slywy.com/ >>Whenever I get a scratch or bite, I immediately put peroxide on it and >>try to squeeze blood out of it. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > I wash and use Neosporin or equivalent. I used to use neosporin, but found that tea tree oil, neat, actually works better. YMMV. jmc > >>Whenever I get a scratch or bite, I immediately put peroxide on it and > >>try to squeeze blood out of it. [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > I used to use neosporin, but found that tea tree oil, neat, actually > works better. YMMV. As long as it's not peroxide! Signaturehttp://www.slywy.com/pages/hodge.html > > >>Whenever I get a scratch or bite, I immediately put peroxide on it and > > >>try to squeeze blood out of it. [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > As long as it's not peroxide! You know that this does not ring true with many because their mothers used it, their grandmothers used it, and nothing bad happened, right? Just like today's "don't put STUFFING INSIDE the BIRD" nonsense. People have done it for centuries with no ill effects. With peroxide, I no longer use it as a mouthwash as my dentist convinced me that it actually sloughs off gum tissue--but I still do use it on minor cuts, and it still prevents infection. Diane, I checked google and it seems peroxide IS recommended as an antiseptic. Some doctors even recommended ingesting FOOD GRADE (35% - NOT the 3% you buy in the drug store) to treat certain ailments. ---MIKE--- We do that, too. We have really, really big bottles of peroxide from Sam's Club. By the way, anyone else have cat scars down your wrist that looks like you once tried to slit your own wrists? That can be a bit embarrassing at times. Rhonda > Whenever I get a scratch or bite, I immediately put peroxide on it and > try to squeeze blood out of it. If it looks deep I then put antibiotic > ointment on it. > > ---MIKE--- I'm not sure of this but I suspect that peroxide weakens after the bottle has been opened. For that reason, I would rather buy several small bottles at Walmart. ---MIKE--- >We do that, too. We have really, really big bottles of peroxide from >Sam's Club. > >By the way, anyone else have cat scars down your wrist that looks like >you once tried to slit your own wrists? That can be a bit embarrassing >at times. I do, but they faded into the normal wrinkles, so I have to look really hard to see them. The first day at work though was embarrassing. I had guaze wrapped all the way around my wrist. I had to keep explaining over and over. By the way, even if the directions say to spray the flea spray directly on the cat, don't do it. Or at least, don't be the person holding the cat. Signature-- Meghan & the Zoo Crew Equine and Pet Photography http://www.zoocrewphoto.com > By the way, even if the directions say to spray the flea spray > directly on the cat, don't do it. Or at least, don't be the person > holding the cat. I learned very early on in my cats' life that if something has to be delivered by spray, and there is no alternative, it will not be delivered. As it is, I have to take one by complete surprise just to get the Advantage on him! >>We do that, too. We have really, really big bottles of peroxide from >>Sam's Club. [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] >directly on the cat, don't do it. Or at least, don't be the person >holding the cat. Our first stray, Howard, got into a fight with Tiger (who was only 2) when a cat was strolling outside our porch. I got in the middle of the fight, and still have the scars of Howard's teeth in my wrist. He was the best kitty I think I've ever had, and I have the most bizarre reaction to seeing those tooth-marks. He died of a mysterious cat disease five years ago, but he'll be with me till I die because of his cat-tattoo. Good ol' Howard.. BLink > By the way, anyone else have cat scars down your wrist that > looks like you once tried to slit your own wrists? That can be a > bit embarrassing at times. I have scars on most of my arms and hands. Light ones, mind you, and you wouldn't even notice them except maybe during the summer when I get tan. Now though, I'm getting scars on my ankles and lower legs from Shamrock over the last 3 years. He's an ankle-biter and leg- swatter. SignatureCheryl Very good story. Sorry you had to be hurt to entertain us. The nurses were attractive, but you were unhappy to drop your drawers? That's the part I don't get. Hope your hand is better. To cheer you up more, I know a vet tech who received a nasty cat bite. I think the main bacteria culprit in their mouths is pasteurella, but there're probably a ton of others. She ended up in the hospital with an infection, recovered from the bite, but then got a staph infection in the other arm from the IV. Just to cheer you. Good luck. Rhonda > Ow. I think I'll lay down for a while. On my stomach. > > BLink > Very good story. Sorry you had to be hurt to entertain us. > > The nurses were attractive, but you were unhappy to drop your drawers? > That's the part I don't get. He just didn't like what he was dropping them for! ;) >Hope your hand is better. To cheer you up more, I know a vet tech who >received a nasty cat bite. I think the main bacteria culprit in their >mouths is pasteurella, but there're probably a ton of others. She ended >up in the hospital with an infection, recovered from the bite, but then >got a staph infection in the other arm from the IV. I have a bad fear of needles. I finally gave in and got blood test for chlorestorol. That went okay, only to find out that I am horribly allergic to their bandaids. I had to wear guaze around my elbow for 2 weeks because of the reaction. Next time, I take my own bandaid. Signature-- Meghan & the Zoo Crew Equine and Pet Photography http://www.zoocrewphoto.com Scratching is a sign of your cat's love. I'm well-loved. >So I broke up a fight a few days ago in exactly the wrong way, but >grabbing one of the pugilists with my bare hands. Intellect gave way [quoted text clipped - 43 lines] > >BLink > So I broke up a fight a few days ago in exactly the wrong way, but > grabbing one of the pugilists with my bare hands. <snip> Next time, soak your hand 3 times daily in extremely hot salt water for 5-10 minutes. It draws out the infection and takes the pain away almost instantly. -L. > > So I broke up a fight a few days ago in exactly the wrong way, but > > grabbing one of the pugilists with my bare hands. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > -L. LOL! Guess your really weren't "done," eh? firstly anyone with cats should be upto date with there tetanus jabs?.then if you are bitten or scratched by a cat please make it bleed it minimises the risk of infection.but perhaps the most important item of all is if you know your cat or cats are argumentative make your you have a water spray handy it always works and theres no harm done to anyone.a pheramone plug in should help to maintain calm the vets sell them.
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