Does It Look Like A Bite Wound?

[lwndlnd]

Hi guys!
So I noticed today that one of my cat’s have these wounds on his head. They seem to be shaped differently and honestly it just looks like he scratched them himself, considering he has flea allergy and it could be affecting him now. I do think I saw one wound a few days ago and then the other one appeared or something but I’m not sure, because my other cat got sick so I was occupied these days. Simba didn’t lose his hair around those wounds, it was just me trying to look at it better. He has the exact same sore below, just smaller than these two. Also when looking at the wound that’s higher, you can see a few tiny scratches around it, like he did just scratch it himself. Once in a while he has those, they are mostly on his neck or back, sometimes on his head as well since he is allowed outdoors and fleas can get to him there, even tho I use flea prevention monthly. Like it’s not unusual for Simba to have these types of wounds, that’s my point. Also I have seen bite wounds in cats, they look different than that. These ones look just like crusty sores. I know that all the evidence suggest that it’s not a bite wounds but I’m still very anxious about it, mostly because of their position so I’m kinda just looking for a reassurance to calm myself down. Simba feels completely fine and it’s not bothering him at all btw.
Considering how it looks on the picture and everything I’ve said, what do you guys think? Could it be bite wounds? They seem not deep at all, just like scratched skin, once again.

 

[silent meowlook]

Yes, it could be a bite wound. It doesn’t look self inflicted.

 

[Caspers Human]

Questions:

1) In your picture, the cat's nose is facing camera-right. Correct?
2) The cat's left ear is at the top of the frame and the camera is looking down, on top of the cat's head. Yes?
3) You say that there is another "mirror image" set of wounds on the bottom of the cat's head? Is that true?
4) Does the cat go outdoors? Especially at night?

If this is true, I've got a serious concern! It seems like your cat might have had his head in another animal's mouth! Possibly a coyote or something like that!

If this is true, your cat narrowly escaped with his life!

I suggest getting that cat to the vet, toute suite!
1) Have him get a rabies booster, even if he's already up-to-date on his shots!
2) Have the vet check and clean those wounds, just to be sure. A course of antibiotics might be in order if your vet agrees.
3) Have the cat examined for other, possibly hidden, injuries. X-rays might be prudent, per your vet's advice.

I'm not saying that this is true but it sure makes me think it might be, just looking at those pictures and reading your story.

The reason I think of this is because our youngest cat, recently rescued from outdoors, has probably had run-ins with coyotes.

He had an injury on his head, similar to yours that had gotten infected and began to abscess. He also has scars, under his fur, around his face and neck. They have all healed but you can still feel them if you know where to look. His ears are tattered around the edges, too.

Not long after we took him in, he was sitting on the open window sill, one evening, watching rabbits and stuff. I was sitting in the same room with him. It was, maybe 10:00 pm. Off in the distance, I heard a pack of coyotes start a howling chorus that lasted for about half a minute.

The cat jumped down from the window, ran across the room, hopped up on my lap and cowered! He's obviously afraid of coyotes!

Given his situation when we took him in, his other injuries and his behavior when he hears coyotes howl, I'm 90% sure that he's had a bad mix-up with coyotes or, at least got chased by them.

I'm worried that your cat might have had a tangle, the same as our cat.

If he's an outdoor cat, consider keeping him inside. He's probably used up most of his nine lives!

 

[lwndlnd]

Questions:

1) In your picture, the cat's nose is facing camera-right. Correct?
2) The cat's left ear is at the top of the frame and the camera is looking down, on top of the cat's head. Yes?
3) You say that there is another "mirror image" set of wounds on the bottom of the cat's head? Is that true?
4) Does the cat go outdoors? Especially at night?

If this is true, I've got a serious concern! It seems like your cat might have had his head in another animal's mouth! Possibly a coyote or something like that!

If this is true, your cat narrowly escaped with his life!

I suggest getting that cat to the vet, toute suite!
1) Have him get a rabies booster, even if he's already up-to-date on his shots!
2) Have the vet check and clean those wounds, just to be sure. A course of antibiotics might be in order if your vet agrees.
3) Have the cat examined for other, possibly hidden, injuries. X-rays might be prudent, per your vet's advice.

I'm not saying that this is true but it sure makes me think it might be, just looking at those pictures and reading your story.

The reason I think of this is because our youngest cat, recently rescued from outdoors, has probably had run-ins with coyotes.

He had an injury on his head, similar to yours that had gotten infected and began to abscess. He also has scars, under his fur, around his face and neck. They have all healed but you can still feel them if you know where to look. His ears are tattered around the edges, too.

Not long after we took him in, he was sitting on the open window sill, one evening, watching rabbits and stuff. I was sitting in the same room with him. It was, maybe 10:00 pm. Off in the distance, I heard a pack of coyotes start a howling chorus that lasted for about half a minute.

The cat jumped down from the window, ran across the room, hopped up on my lap and cowered! He's obviously afraid of coyotes!

Given his situation when we took him in, his other injuries and his behavior when he hears coyotes howl, I'm 90% sure that he's had a bad mix-up with coyotes or, at least got chased by them.

I'm worried that your cat might have had a tangle, the same as our cat.

If he's an outdoor cat, consider keeping him inside. He's probably used up most of his nine lives!

Hello!

1) Yes.
2) Yes.
3) No. Another small wound, just one, not two or a mirror image of those.
4) He is allowed outside, but never at night.

We don’t have coyotes and any other wild animals. Even if it’s a bite, it only can be like a bite from another cat. But it doesn’t look like it. Like how would another cat even bite his head? Especially without leaving another set of teeth marks below or above. As I’ve said, it looks like crusty sores, not like his skin was ruptured by someone’s teeth or something. It isn’t deep and I’ve seen wounds just like that on Simba when he had his flea allergy. Placement of those wounds is the only thing that suggests it’s a bite wounds, that’s why I got worried. I still think I saw just one sore a few days ago, and then the second one appeared like yesterday. I’m not 100% sure, but yeah.

Oh, and I’m so glad your cat is alright! It sounds so scary.

 

[lwndlnd]

Hi guys!
So I noticed today that one of my cat’s have these wounds on his head. They seem to be shaped differently and honestly it just looks like he scratched them himself, considering he has flea allergy and it could be affecting him now. I do think I saw one wound a few days ago and then the other one appeared or something but I’m not sure, because my other cat got sick so I was occupied these days. Simba didn’t lose his hair around those wounds, it was just me trying to look at it better. He has the exact same sore below, just smaller than these two. Also when looking at the wound that’s higher, you can see a few tiny scratches around it, like he did just scratch it himself. Once in a while he has those, they are mostly on his neck or back, sometimes on his head as well since he is allowed outdoors and fleas can get to him there, even tho I use flea prevention monthly. Like it’s not unusual for Simba to have these types of wounds, that’s my point. Also I have seen bite wounds in cats, they look different than that. These ones look just like crusty sores. I know that all the evidence suggest that it’s not a bite wounds but I’m still very anxious about it, mostly because of their position so I’m kinda just looking for a reassurance to calm myself down. Simba feels completely fine and it’s not bothering him at all btw.
Considering how it looks on the picture and everything I’ve said, what do you guys think? Could it be bite wounds? They seem not deep at all, just like scratched skin, once again.

Just for a reference. So these pictures are from internet. Flea bite allergy on the first picture and a bite on the second one. As I’ve mentioned, my cat suffers from flea bite allergy and his sores look exactly like this (first picture with allergy, I mean), nothing like a bite wound. Only like placement maybe, but still, it wound be four wounds then I suppose. Like, it’s not a leg or something, it’s a head. If another cat bit my cat, where are marks from the other two teeth?

 

[Caspers Human]

Thanks for your support!

He got in a fight before we brought him in. We were feeding him at our back door for two or three months. Since he was already an outdoor cat, we figured he was street smart, if you know what I mean. He showed up with a wound on his head and, few days later, we noticed it was starting to fester. We were planning on catching him and getting him neutered but when we saw this, we decided to bring him in, right away. The rest is, pretty much, history.

I see your location: Ukraine. No, you don't have coyotes but there are foxes, jackals and other animals that prey on cats. Don't forget raptors: Hawks, owls and eagles. They kill as many cats in this area as coyotes. Especially Great Horned Owls and Barred Owls.

No, I can't be certain that a wild animal got his teeth or claws on your cat but it sure looks like it from the picture. It is a very similar look and placement to what happened to our cat. It could have been another cat, too.

I don't know... Does you cat get "spooky" when he hears animal noises from outside? That would be a clue. It's what made me understand what happened to our cat.

Regardless of the cause, it's good to know that your cat has somebody looking out for him. I suppose you can just keep the wound clean until it heals and take him to the vet if there's trouble.

Hope he gets better soon!
Sending get-well vibes!
Thoughts and prayers be with you!

 

[lwndlnd]

Thanks for your support!

He got in a fight before we brought him in. We were feeding him at our back door for two or three months. Since he was already an outdoor cat, we figured he was street smart, if you know what I mean. He showed up with a wound on his head and, few days later, we noticed it was starting to fester. We were planning on catching him and getting him neutered but when we saw this, we decided to bring him in, right away. The rest is, pretty much, history.

I see your location: Ukraine. No, you don't have coyotes but there are foxes, jackals and other animals that prey on cats. Don't forget raptors: Hawks, owls and eagles. They kill as many cats in this area as coyotes. Especially Great Horned Owls and Barred Owls.

No, I can't be certain that a wild animal got his teeth or claws on your cat but it sure looks like it from the picture. It is a very similar look and placement to what happened to our cat. It could have been another cat, too.

I don't know... Does you cat get "spooky" when he hears animal noises from outside? That would be a clue. It's what made me understand what happened to our cat.

Regardless of the cause, it's good to know that your cat has somebody looking out for him. I suppose you can just keep the wound clean until it heals and take him to the vet if there's trouble.

Hope he gets better soon!
Sending get-well vibes!
Thoughts and prayers be with you!

Thank you for your support and concern, it means a lot!

We do have those animals in Ukraine, of course. Not where I live though. Here you can only occasionally see bats, but I haven’t seen them for weeks because it’s getting cold. Oh, also squirrels and hedgehogs. That’s it. No one ever saw any other wild animal where I live, so on that one I’m like 100% sure it’s a no.

I was only concerned about it being a bite wound from another cat. Not because of a bite itself but because of possible rabies transmission. My cats are not vaccinated, that’s why I got very anxious at first. We haven’t had any rabies case in the area since 2009, so I don’t really think it’s something that’s possible now, honestly. Especially without wild animals here or any new cats, dogs or other animals in the neighbourhood. Now I think it’s more like a scratch or something, maybe he got into a fight with our neighbour’s cat. Her cat attacks Simba once in a while because he is not neutered, even tho Simba is. They don’t really fight hard or something but still. I also supervise my cats’ outdoor times as much as I can. I don’t let them outside and just forget about it. I check on them every 30 minutes or every hour, they usually just hang out on our yard. When I’m going out, they are always inside. When I’m home, I can sometimes hear cat fight noises and come straight to the rescue. I haven’t heard it for some time now, though.

We don’t have any wild animals making noises here, so he can’t get spooky because of that. He gets spooky hearing dogs’ barking but that’s because he is afraid of dogs and it’s very loud so it’s understandable.

Considering all of that, I do think Simba either has flea bite allergy or got into a fight with another cat. It doesn’t look like a bite, although picture might not show it.

Thank you so much once again! Those sores don’t seem to bother Simba, I’m keeping them clean and will be monitoring it. If problems occur, I will get him straight to the vet, of course!

 

[Caspers Human]

I’m not arguing with you but I bring this up for the benefit of others who might read this in the future…

There are coyotes living on the streets of every major city in the US. Even New York and Los Angeles. They are very cunning. Even though people don’t think there are wild animals in the city, there are. Yes! They attack cats and small dogs! Hawks and falcons live in cities, too.

I live in the suburbs. I hear coyotes howling on a regular basis. I have seen them in my back yard. I also hear owls at night. We have Barred Owls which can grow even bigger than Great Horned Owls. There are Bald Eagles, too. Those suckers are huge! Their wings can stretch wider than my arms. All of these predators can easily take down a house cat.

You know what animals live in your area. I understand that. I just want people to understand that, even if they don’t think there are predators, THERE ARE! We just don’t see them all the time.

Im glad you are keeping your cats safe!

 

[silent meowlook]

It’s amazing the wildlife people don’t know about, living in our back yards.

 

[lwndlnd]

I’m not arguing with you but I bring this up for the benefit of others who might read this in the future…

There are coyotes living on the streets of every major city in the US. Even New York and Los Angeles. They are very cunning. Even though people don’t think there are wild animals in the city, there are. Yes! They attack cats and small dogs! Hawks and falcons live in cities, too.

I live in the suburbs. I hear coyotes howling on a regular basis. I have seen them in my back yard. I also hear owls at night. We have Barred Owls which can grow even bigger than Great Horned Owls. There are Bald Eagles, too. Those suckers are huge! Their wings can stretch wider than my arms. All of these predators can easily take down a house cat.

You know what animals live in your area. I understand that. I just want people to understand that, even if they don’t think there are predators, THERE ARE! We just don’t see them all the time.

Im glad you are keeping your cats safe!

Yes yes, of course! I know you’re not arguing and the information you are providing is really helpful and might save someone else’s cats for sure. Sorry if it looks like I’m arguing with you, I was just trying to explain what we have in the area and what we don’t so it would be more clear and understandable for you since you seem to live in quite different area!

This sounds so dangerous, OMG!! I’m honestly so grateful we don’t have those in our region, really. I hope you and your cat (or cats) will be safe! I mean, I love all the animals but it’s quite terrifying because of all the danger wild animals bring with themselves.

Yes, definitely!! We can’t always know what’s waiting around the corner so better be safe than sorry. So your point is very valid and important, even though it’s not quite applying to my own situation but maybe it will help others!

 

[Caspers Human]

I get accused of arguing, a lot, even when I don't think I am. Just making sure.

I don't worry about coyotes and other things. Most of the time, they shy away from people. Coyotes do come up to people's back yards looking for garbage to eat. That's why we have garbage ordinances that say you should keep your garbage cans inside or locked up until garbage day. It keeps animals from digging through the trash and prevents the spread of diseases.

I like seeing wild animals as long as they stay outside, where they belong. The only times I get upset is when they come too close to inhabited areas. The problem is that it's mostly humans' fault. Usually, it's the animals that lose out. That's what bugs me the most!

Our cats are indoors. We don't let them out at all. Casper, the oldest, doesn't seem to even want to go outside. He is a rescued cat, too. Elliot, the younger cat, seems to be content to live indoors, too. After seeing him get spooky after hearing coyotes, I think it's for the better.

Our cats, both, know which side of their bread has the butter on it!

(BTW: We have White Tailed Deer in our back yard, too! There's a mother and a fawn that have been hanging around, all summer! )

 

[lwndlnd]

I get accused of arguing, a lot, even when I don't think I am. Just making sure.

I don't worry about coyotes and other things. Most of the time, they shy away from people. Coyotes do come up to people's back yards looking for garbage to eat. That's why we have garbage ordinances that say you should keep your garbage cans inside or locked up until garbage day. It keeps animals from digging through the trash and prevents the spread of diseases.

I like seeing wild animals as long as they stay outside, where they belong. The only times I get upset is when they come too close to inhabited areas. The problem is that it's mostly humans' fault. Usually, it's the animals that lose out. That's what bugs me the most!

Our cats are indoors. We don't let them out at all. Casper, the oldest, doesn't seem to even want to go outside. He is a rescued cat, too. Elliot, the younger cat, seems to be content to live indoors, too. After seeing him get spooky after hearing coyotes, I think it's for the better.

Our cats, both, know which side of their bread has the butter on it!

Yes, it is true. Animals just want to live their own lives and often they are the ones who lose out because of people.

Do you have raccoons in your area as well?

I have four cats and they are allowed outdoors since the day they were born. Thankfully, everything is fine for decades with our cats. But I still worry about them so much. I want to keep them indoors, it’s that I don’t live alone and people I live with don’t care. Even when I ask them not to let cats outside, they still do that. I would walk my cats on a leash but I don’t have like 6 extra hours to do that, unfortunately. And they won’t like it at all. I’m thinking about building a big catio for them though! I do plan to move out in a year or something like that, and when I do, I will keep them indoors for sure. I just need to think of ways how to keep them safe until then and how to not become insane constantly worrying about them.

Also OMG DEERS??? How cool is that. Wildlife is so amazing, honestly.

 

[Caspers Human]

Do you have raccoons in your area as well?

All over the place!
You can hear them fighting at night. They make one HECK of a racket! Sounds like some kind of monster!

We have deer in our back yard, all the time. There's a set of railroad tracks, 1/4 mile away. There's a spur line that branches off the main track and goes up, through the trees, about a block away from our house. Trains might use that track once per week, at most.
The deer like to walk along the track, through the woods. It's an easy path to walk. There's lots of vegetation to eat and, because it's a clear-cut, it's easy to see any predators coming.

I work the late shift and drive by those tracks every night, after midnight. Sometimes, I see deer two or three nights a week.
I've seen that mother deer and her yearling a dozen times.

And, this is the 'burbs. There are houses spaced less than 100 feet apart. You wouldn't think you'd have deer in your back yard but they are there!