Stray cat scratch

[catsnatcher-CDN]

A stray cat scratched my hand (not alot but just a small dot where the nail made contact). Should I be worried about anything? Diseases? Rabies?

[cpietra16]

I ferrel cat did that to me and it was very deep....I put some polysporum(sp) on it. You can always call CSLC and see what they would suggest

[catsnatcher-CDN]

I'm worried about rabies or the bird flu...I'm not kidding, I'm so paranoid!

[poodletalk]

I was bitten by a stray cat, my hand swelled and I had to go to the hospital to get a tetnis (sp) shot and I was on medication. Clean it well, if it swells go to the clinic asap!

[catsnatcher-CDN]

I just got back from the SPCA MTL and they looked at my "wound". They said, I had nothing to worry about but I'm still paranoid.

I'm up to date on my tetanus shot. It's been an hour an no swelling.
I just don't want to catch rabies or the bird flu.

[Lucky Rescue]

Since rabies is usually transmitted by saliva, I wouldn't worry about that.

Superficial scratches need only be washed with soap and water, since the cat probably has dirt on it's nails.

It is the bites that are very dangerous.

[cpietra16]

A bite is way worse because there is saliva to deal with...But when I got scratched....I had a bruise that was the size a a baseball...it was a deep cut, and nothing came if it. If the CSLC said not to worry, then don't worry. I'm sure they would have asked for asecond opinion or atleast consulted someone....wait a while and see what the wound looks like. If it gets worse see someone else. I hope you'll be ok...I know you will worry knowmatter what I say...sorry

[catsnatcher-CDN]

Originally Posted by cpietra16

...I know you will worry knowmatter what I say...sorry

You know me well cpietra

The "wound" is a little dot where his nail made contact....I'm still disenfecting it.

[cpietra16]

I just know me and when I got cut I panicked for a few days until I realized my leg was not falling off

[chico2]

I get scratches from my own cats ever now and then and it usually swells a little and if they they hit a vein it will get bruised.
However,when Rocky went ballistic a couple of years ago and bit me in the ankle,it got so badly infected I had a one inch whole in my leg,my foot was twice the normal size,I was under wound treatment for 6 weeks.
Now I have a dented ankle that will always remind me of Rocky
Not to scare you or anything,your was a scratch not a bite

[Prin]

I got one of those from a cat at the vet clinic I worked at- he pierced my vein and a tendon. He wasn't too healthy, but I didn't have any trouble. I don't even know if I had time to disinfect it.

BTW, bird flu hasn't officially jumped to humans yet, so don't worry about that yet. I just hope you didn't watch that stupid "before the headlines" tv movie about it. Just enjoy life now. You know? A flu pandemic is supposed to happen someday- they're cyclic- but it's not something to worry about. You can't stop it, we won't be ready for it, and that's just the way it is. Same as a car crash, right?

[catsnatcher-CDN]

So it's been 24 hours since my "wound" and there is no bruising or inflammation but my arm and hand are sore.

Is it psycholoical or does anyone have horror stories of a sore arm resulting from a stray cat scratch that then develops to a serious infection/disease/problem?

[chico2]

Don't worry,other than flesh-eating disease or leprocy you have nothing to worry about Just kidding!!!
Depending on how deep the claw went,you will be a bit tender,I am sure,but you'll live and keep your arm

[catsnatcher-CDN]

Ya, the actual puncture doesn't hurt so much as the surrounding area. But no blue and no swelling, just a sore hand and arm.

[Prin]

The only horror stories I've ever heard were from bites, not claws. So you might survive this one. Maybe.

[catsnatcher-CDN]

I once saw a judge judy episode where this guy got all scratched up from trying to help a cat and a month later ended up in the hospital with some bad infection that nearly killed him. I can still picture him saying " I had no idea. I had forgotten all about the scratches." Things like this FREAK me out!

If you even knew how paranoid I was about these things, you would be amazed that I even feed stray cats daily.

I've been staring at my "wound" all day and have left a message with the nurse at family medecine at St. Mary's Hospital.



Here's a pic of my wound:

[cpietra16]

Catsnatcher, I'm not a doctor and we can't make any diagnose on line, or this thread will be closed...please see a vet.....oops, sorry wrong one, I mean please see a doctor, if this will bother you so much... . I'm sorry I don't want to make light of it and your concerns, but I have seen my kids come home with really bad cuts, and yours really looks clean and not infected...

[poodletalk]

I know you are very nervous, maybe it's best to speak with a nurse to see what they say. My personal advice, you will be fine just keep it clean.

[mafiaprincess]

Cider and I were playing a few months ago, and it was getting really high energy, and she broke my skin. Didn't worry, forgot about it. Cleaned it with soap and water, and left it. 3 days later it began to hurt, and the pain was radiatign outwards. I went to a walk in and got antibiotics.. though the doctor threw a fit on me that it was from a dog 'bite' and couldn't prove it was infected.. It was one tiny mark from a canine.. but It was seriously starting to scare me so I got antibiotics anyhow.

I totally know where you are coming from, I'm now pretty paro about that too. I'd go get it looked at, just in case, especially for the level of worry you seem to be expressing. You'll feel better after.

[catsnatcher-CDN]

Thanks everyone,

I know it's like I'm going overboard but I'm always afraid I'm gonna be that "1 in a billion" cases.

I'm gonna speak to the nurse tomorrow and keep you posted.

Today, I saw the stray cat who scratched me hanging out with my " 5 homeless" and was so scared of getting too close. I don't know who he is or where he comes from. I'm gonna try and snap a pic of him from far away.

[chico2]

C-S,if you are THAT worried,please go and see the doc,it looks fine to me..
Looking at your hand,it looks like you never had cats
I have little old scars all over my hands and arms,mostly from when my cats were kittens,dumb? I know,but they are hard to resist

[catsnatcher-CDN]

I was going through old posts and found this one..

For any of you who remember this thread, the cat that scratched me is currently sleeping on my bed and now goes by the name Martin!

[chico2]

I can just picture him sleeping all comfy
He is one lucky boy,any problems with his FIV??

[duttypaws]

and you never got Rabies

[14+kitties]

Not to make light of your "injury" from way back when but I WISH my hands had a day when they didn't have scratches, bruises, etc on them!!! I think it's a fact of life when you have or feed kitties. little things

[catsnatcher-CDN]

Chico,

Martin is on meds most of the time for either an eye infection or ear infection. The meds work by clearing it up but one or the other always comes back.

[Jim Hall]

lol from scratch to bed cat lol good luck martin

[kiara]

This is an old post, but I have a few comments. If you are a rescuer of homeless animals, you need to get a tetanus vaccine, which is good for 10 years. Also try not to touch strays because of biting or getting ringworm from them, which is highly contagious and takes a long time to treat. Having said this, my husband was holding our sick male cat at the vet and since he was in a lot of pain due to heart disease, (males are prone to heart disease) he bit my husband. His arm swelled up terribly and he needed to be on antibiotics for a long time. So we really have to be careful of cat bites even if these cats are our own. I don't know about dog bites, haven't had a dog for a long time.

[catsnatcher-CDN]

Originally Posted by catsnatcher-CDN

I was going through old posts and found this one..

For any of you who remember this thread, the cat that scratched me is currently sleeping on my bed and now goes by the name Martin!