Do I Need To See A Doctor For This Cat Bite?

[butterflyrose]

Last night my cat woke me up at 5am screaming because there was a feral outside. I was half asleep and stumbled over to where she was to investigate, and she freaked out and bit on the toe. I was bleeding a bit but now that the bite's healed over a bit I can see it's not a puncture wound, more like her tooth got caught on my skin and cut it open.

It's been about 13 hours since she bit me and while the area is a little sore and slightly red around the cut, I feel generally fine and my toe isn't warm to the touch. Everything I'm reading online is saying that it doesn't matter how deep a cat bite is, you MUST see a doctor or you'll die of something like sepsis.

I'm not insured, not working at the moment, and don't have much in the way of savings. I'd like to avoid a doctor's visit if possible. What should I do?

 

[butterflyrose]

One more thing - is it safe to take a shower? I'm worried that the dirty water in the shower might not be good to get in the cut right now.

 

[lavishsqualor]

I think you'll be okay, and I think showering is fine. If you're not painfully swollen by now consider yourself lucky. Cat bites can be especially bad because their teeth are long and sharp and can deposit bacteria deep into the skin when they bite. If the area where you were bitten starts to swell or get more painful then you definitely need to seek medical care.

 

[mani]

B butterflyrose we have a good article on this:
Cat Bites - What Every Cat Owner Needs To Know
Keep a close eye on it.

 

[vyger]

Many doctors ( and by that I am meaning that it was not a study done but just in general conversations) have said that much of what they do is unnecessary because people heal and get better with out them really doing anything. This is why people don't die in large numbers in places where there is not much in the way of medical facilities. Some things and conditions and injuries do need attention but many just need simple first aid. If you were bitten by a venomous snake then yeah, you need help. But cats don't have venom. Actually bites from other people are usually worse and get infected more often. I would say don't waste your money. And there is a worst case scenario that can happen also. You could get some over zealous inexperienced medical zealot who would insist your cat get put into quarantine and kept for observation just to make sure it doesn't have rabies. Or even that your cat get labeled as a public threat and put down by some nut case rookie police officer who wants to try out his gun and hates cats anyway so why not?
I am sure you have more serious things to worry about. But then, what do I know, I grew up with lead paint and no seat belts in cars, much less kids car seats, and no helmets for bike riding. I remember picking little pieces of gravel out of a big patch of road rash that was the result of a kid in a car leaning out the window and pushing me off the road and crashing my bike. No doctor, no police, no councilor, just a retaliatory bash with a lunch box when I caught up to him at school. Dog bites, cat bites, people bites, survived them all. Actually the worst bite I ever got was from a horse, bit me right on the shoulder in the back. Big monster bruise from that and super painful. Learned not to turn my back on horses with a mean disposition. Many things in life are learning experiences. Having a lot of scars usually means your a slow leaner.

 

[catsknowme]

Ouch!! I hope that there is a TNR group in your area that can help get those ferals neutered!
You mentioned that the bite bled a bit so hopefully that washed out most of the germs. You can try soaking the wound in epsom salts bath or wash with Betadine or Phisohex and apply Neosporin afterwards. My daughter recently got cellulitis from a cat bite - when the infection kicked in, it happened rapidly - like within hours, her finger got very hot, bright red and oozed. I took her to ER and the ER doctor started her on antibiotics and told us to cleanse it daily and apply antibiotic ointment and keep it wrapped up. That's what I did for myself when I got a slice in my finger from a cat food can lid in the trash (without taking oral antibiotics) plus I took 1 gram (1000 mg) of L-lysine for 3 days and I recovered.
I agree with Vger about reporting it. I was bitten by a feral kitten and I panicked and rushed to the doctor who had Animal Control seize the kitten for quarantine and when her time was up, I could not afford to bail her out. I cried for days because the doctor did nothing except tell me to keep an eye on it and to return if my finger got signs of infection; I healed on my own while the poor kitten went to the high-kill shelter. She had been thrown out of a car and was terrified and possibly injured; the kids chased her to a laundry room and then sent for me to rescue her. I have tiny hands but with gloves, there wasn't enough room for my fingers to reach in and grab her. I wish that I had devised some sort of trap - where I lived, there were too many dangers including mean old men and loose dogs so I felt compelled to act hastily.

 

[jcat]

I work at an animal shelter (that also has a feral colony), so I have some experience with cat bites and advise you to take them very seriously!!!! If there's any swelling, soreness, or redness, go to an ER. You know what happens there? As soon as you say "cat bite", you jump to the head of the waiting line.

My latest experience was a bite in the wrist from a dying feral at the end of April. I let it bleed, cleaned and disinfected it with the same stuff (Octenisept) they use in the hospital, and made a doctor's appointment for the same day. He opened the wound more, cleaned and bandaged it, and prescribed antibiotics.

The next day it looked much worse, and the doctor sent me to the ER where they gave me IV antibiotics, reopened and cleaned the wound, then immobilized my arm up to the shoulder. I had to either stay over night (their advice) or come back early the next morning (my choice, against doctor's advice) so they could decide whether or not to operate under full anesthesia. Luckily it wasn't necessary because the second antibiotic had started to work. Altogether it meant 3 ER visits, 4 doctor's appointments, one week in a cast and another week in a splint. Three doctors and two nurses told me all about a woman whose arm had to be amputated last year due to a cat bite, and that wasn't their first case.

That was very similar to what I experienced in 2010 when my own cat bit me in the hand. A co-worker at the shelter got bitten in the upper arm three years ago, got blood poisoning, and ended up in the hospital for a week and spent several more at home.

A cat bite, no matter how small it looks, is a serious matter, because it's deep and closes too quickly. Play it safe whenever you get a puncture wound from a cat bite, especially if it's in your hand or wrist.

 

[posiepurrs]

Cat bites are nothing to be ignored. How nasty it gets can depend somewhat on your own immune system. Cats have mixed microbial flora in their mouths. The most common is Pasteurella multocida, while Staphylococcus and Streptococcus are typically present and some less common bacteria can be in the mouth. I have been bitten numerous times with no issues other than soreness. I have been lucky. My husband however was bitten by one of the same cats that got me and he required 2 ER visits. He has some permanent nerve damage in his hand from the bite. My husband made a rookie mistake reaching in to break up a fight. The cat is question was neutered after that, by the way. Here are a few things to consider from an article that I wrote for Cat Talk magazine. In the February 2014 issue of The Journal of Hand Surgery they had a small 3 year study of people with cat bites to the hand treated at the Mayo Clinic. It said that a third of all treated required hospitalization, of which 2/3s those admitted required surgery. One of the people I talked to for the article is a breeder and is in the medical field. She said that people automatically reach for Hydrogen Peroxide but that is a mistake. It will kill healthy tissue. The best thing to do in her opinion is encourage it to bleed profusely and scrub it in as hot of water as you can stand with soap. The cat show judges that I know have a bite kit they carry that includes a drawing salve, Ichthammol and most importantly antibiotics prescribed by their doctors in case of bites. So to answer your question, I don't know if you need to go to the doctor. Only you can judge that. If it was me, truthfully from what you describe. I would probably not go - but that is me and I am NOT a doctor! Sometimes it is best to err on the side of caution.

 

[denice]

I had a very similar bite, it was on top of my big toe and was more of a tear then a puncture type bite. It bled which I allowed it to do for awhile and it didn't get infected. I didn't want to go to the doctor because my cat didn't have an up to date rabies vaccination for medical reasons and I knew what would happen. It was sore for a couple of days but didn't get infected. If it begins to swell, starts to get red and warm to the touch get to an emergency room. Figure out the bill later. They can get really nasty and they get that way quickly.

 

[butterflyrose]

Thanks everyone for the input! I've been reading your responses and closely monitoring my toe. It's been about 32 hours since she bit me and the toe looks okay, no redness, swelling or heat. It sounds like infection sets in quickly when it does, so I'm hoping I'll be fine.

catsknowme It was my own jerk cat that bit me, haha. She's not the nicest cat in the world but she has good bite inhibition and has never bitten me like this on purpose in the few years I've had her. It was my mistake approaching her when I did, she was seriously agitated and screaming at the time. Next time this happens I just need to avoid her until she calms down.

 

[catsknowme]

I am happy to read that you are doing okay! I will show you a picture of my daughter's finger. She brought the bite on herself by grabbing her cat roughly - she has intellectual disabilities as well as physical and was being impatient with him. I was so relieved that the ER doctor made no report to AC because he is our own cat.

 

[Willowy]

If it gets infected, go to an urgent care clinic instead of the emergency room. Much cheaper! But don't wait around once you see it's getting infected or they'll have to do a lot more and that will cost more too. And they may be less likely to call Animal Control.

My mom once was bitten by my dog (her dog bit him and he tried to bite her back but my mom stuck her hand in the middle of everything) and went to the ER. They called the police (I think they're required to), but once the cop heard it was our own dog, he just signed off on it and left. But then another time she was bitten by one of her own cats and went to Urgent Care, and they didn't call the cops at all.