Cat scratch question

My cats are pain in the butts at wet food time , and i picked one up to put her to the food area and she jumped from my left hand with 3 claws scraping my hand until it bled pretty bad , i ran it under cold water but now its really stinging and all red around the 3 scratches , this happend about 2 hours ago , but i have heard horrendous stories of people needed tetnuses and antibitoics just from a cat scratch , so is their anything i can do to prevent infection?

Thanks guys xx
Jess x

Wash with running water for several minutes. Use alcohol or antibacterial wound cleanser. When bleeding stops, apply an antibiotic ointment. Keep an eye on it for redness or discharge.

Let me tell you story.

About 6 months ago I took Jack outside on his leash and harness--over to the neighbors porch. He was sitting on my lap being very good and unscared despite the traffic. And wouldn't you know a smart alleck (we'll use that word instead) my neighbors comes around the corner in his old chevy that is all supped up and burns out something fierce. As you can imagine it scared Jack. He dug in and tried to bolt. I knew if I let go of the leash he was gone. So I had to hold onto him, no matter how scared he was, and how much pain I was in. When my husband was finally able to get Jack off of me. He brought us back next door and me to the bathroom. I was crying, my shirt was torn and I was bleeding from my shoulder, neck/collarbone area and chest. Hubby assessed the situation and decided initially that I was "ok". He cleaned me up and put 6 bandaids on me--it hurt something fierce. I thought for sure I'd end up at the doctor but thanks to nurse hubby I never got infected. But I do have some lovely scars on my collarbone.

Stay on top of things, keep it clean--but remember that alcohol kills good tissue as well. So use your antibiotic cream and cross your fingers.

By the way--I never once blamed Jack for that day--it wasn't his fault. I did what I did to protect him--no matter how hard it hurt I wasn't letting go of him.

Leslie

Bless your heart, Leslie -- I know just what you mean about how sometimes you just have to hold onto the cat no matter what, and I admire you for doing it.

By the way... Harley and Jack are both gorgeous!

It's going to be a bit red and sore for a while. Cat scratches aren't cuts, they're tears. So they really hurt and, depending on location, may take a little longer to heal then a clean cut would. Keep ointment and it and cover the worst of the scratches if you need to (to keep stuff from sticking to it). You may end up with a few small scars - but using ointment can help with this, too.

Have you thought about training your cats to behave at meal times? Make them sit or lay down and wait for you to tell them they can get up and have their food, much like you would with a dog. Cats can learn to wait, too. Just be prepared to put them back in the spot you want them to wait and push them back down in a sitting/laying position... over and over again.

Thanks for your advice , and thanks for ur story lesly!

The cuts are in a awkward place on the side of the palm of my hand.. one scratch is about 4cm long and like 1 cm wide (Thats the worse one)its raised and is red all around it and stings.. the second one is 2-3cm long and half a cm wide and the last one is very small but VERY deep , a thick bit of skin that should be coverin it is half off my hand and hard again its sore and red , plasters keep comin off because of the location and im childminding today so im using both my hand a lot

Jess x

I spray medicine on me when it happens.
I use peroxide also.
I have been clawed really bad before also.
One time I got clawed over 20 times on my face and head.
The blood was dripping all over.
I was by the window with 3 cats and my brother let the dog out and she jumped at the window,
All 3 cats shreaded me.
I did not go to the dr but I am allergic to cats so I had huge hives all over my fave and head.
When my sister was almost 5 Whiskers attacked her and she was clawed in over 40 places.
If my manx had not pulled whiskers off her it would have been worse.
She attacked whiskers and pulled her off.
My sister was going to the dr the next day anyway she will did not call them
Nothing got infected and she says its amazing she likes cats after that.
The last time I was clawed bad was when we got Sasha.
She was terified of the fan and we did not know so my husband turned it on and she got my neck and hand and arm very deep.
I use solar cain also and it works great.
As long as you clean it good you should be ok.

No problem! I think it always helps to hear that someone was in a similar situation!

Like I said just keep an eye on it. Keep it clean and keep ointment on it.

Mine was so painful--for like 3 weeks.

CarolPetunia--Thank you for the compliment! I'd do anything for them, even if it means me getting hurt!

Leslie

I wash scratches out real well with soap and water, and then I spray them with Bactine; when that dries up, I put some triple antibiotic ointment on them. So far, even my bad ones have healed up. Just keep an eye on them, and keep them clean.

Harley got me good the day I brought her home - she had gotten out of her box in the car and I had to catch her, scruff her with one hand, scroop her up with the other, and carry her up the stairs real quick. She was terrified. By the time I was halfway up the stairs, she was trying to climb up my arm, and when I got in the door, she launched herself off the top of my shoulder; she about shredded my collarbone with her back claws. There was blood everywhere. That's been my worst one so far.

Chynna and Abby have gotten me quite good with their hind nails while they are leaping off of me. The scratches can look rather ugly and red. When you get a cut it's best to let it bleed for a couple of minutes, and if that means squeezing the wound to keep it bleeding, then do it. Then wash the area well with antibacterial soap and water, and cleanse with iodine or alcohol. Both will sting. Then put on Neosporin on the wound and cover it with a dry dressing. Keep the dressing dry and change the dressing every day, and more often if the dressing gets soiled or wet. A wet dressing is a portal to an infection. The moisture acts as a wick and sucks up the bacteria directly to the wound. If it doesn't look any better in 3 days, go see a doctor.

You said the one is a centimeter wide. Is that the actual cut or taking into account the red inflamed area around the cut? If it's the actual width of the wound itself, not counting the redness, then I advise you to go to the doctor tomorrow, because a one centimeter wide wound is pretty bad.

Originally Posted by junior_j

Thanks for your advice , and thanks for ur story lesly!

The cuts are in a awkward place on the side of the palm of my hand.. one scratch is about 4cm long and like 1 cm wide (Thats the worse one)its raised and is red all around it and stings.. the second one is 2-3cm long and half a cm wide and the last one is very small but VERY deep , a thick bit of skin that should be coverin it is half off my hand and hard again its sore and red , plasters keep comin off because of the location and im childminding today so im using both my hand a lot

Jess x

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Ouch, I got one like that on my hand last week. It's right on the meaty part of my palm by my thumb... It hurt really badly the first few days but Neosporin helped a bit. The worst part is it's difficult to get a bandage to stick there! It's finally healing up now.

Thanks, I was wondering the same since my cat made several scratches to my arm that made some around me ask if I cut myself

Jess, believe me you are not alone! Right now I have 3 new scratches on my hand and a few puncture wounds because I made the mistake of trying to hand feed the barn cats left over steak last night.

I agree with washing it out with soap and water, and neorsporin is great. I actually have a stash of that if you need some.

The worst I ever got clawed was with my first every kitty, Jasper (RB). I was holding him, saying goodbye to my boyfriend, and the neighbor's dog came into the yard. You would think the world was coming to an end...he went from a sweet purring kitty to a demon from hell. My chest was shredded in 5 or 6 places. Only one was real deep though, and I still have the scar after 7 years. I probably should have gotten stitches, but I wear that scar with pride. All scars from kittys are badges of love.

I don't really think you have to worry about infection as long as you treat it, and keep and eye on it. Now, feral kitty scratches can cause more problems.

Jess,

Well, I think that there are good things posted about what to do, but, as I just skimmed the replies, I didn't notice one that asked why the wet feeding time was one that set off the kitties. Is it because that they don't want to wait or because they don't like the wet food? Can you prepare their dishes somewhere where they cannot see you?

I maybe off base with this. Anyway, Betadine is a very good disinfectant that doesn't hurt. It is a relative of iodine but safer. It is reddish brown and could stain. I put it on in either the shower or over the sink. Dry it with a paper towel.

^Do you feed Butzie wet food, or is she just really well behaved?

I have a cat that absolutely loves his wet food. Tomas gets very excited over it and if someone was to make the mistake of holding him when a can of wet food (or similar sized can of food) was opened, they'd be scratched. He's ran over DH's feet and cut them open trying to get to his food dish before, too. Hence why I started making him wait for his food.
I'm guessing a lot of cats get excited like this.

My Sho, on the other hand, is gentle and patient at meal times. He calmly sits and waits near his food dish.