Self treating a cat bite.

[russ1a]

I got bit by a neighbor's cat two days ago, while I was petting it. It was rolling around like it was enjoying being petted, but that was a wrong assumption. No more petting that cat! To sterilize the would as best I could, I flooded it with 5% iodine solution for about 5 minutes, within about 5 minutes of being bit. I used finger nail clippers to trim off the small flaps of skin around the punctures. I used an ice pick to work the iodine into the one deep puncture (that hurt!). I half saturated a bandaid  with iodine and left it on for about 24 hours, at which point there was just a slight redness and heat from the inflammation. No puss. When I put a new dressing on, I again saturated a small bandaid with iodine and covered that with a piece of one and a half inch wide bandage tape to keep out dirt. I left that bandage on for 24 hours. When I took it off, all the inflammation had gone. For my latest dressing, I have switched to honey instead of the iodine, as iodine can interfere with healing if left on too long. Honey is a lot milder. Because it is a "wet" dressing, it will prevent a scab from forming and the wound will stay open until it heals from within. Which will probably take a couple of more days. I've also upped my vitamin c to 3grams/day and my vitamin d to 5000IU/day, to enhance healing, in addition to all my regular vitamins. I have not sought help from my doctor or a hospital, which are likely to do me more harm than good, at this point. I'll report back tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Russ1a

 

[jennyr]

Deep puncture wounds from a cat are not to be messed with. Apart from ordinary infection there are several actual diseases you can get from cat bites. After I had had two infected bites at different times my doctor made me promise I would seek medical help in future within 24 hours of being bitten. The third time I went straight to ER, got treated (needed stitches that time too) and I still got abscesses that took 6 weeks to heal with lots of antibiotics. Is there any special reason you cannot go to a doctor? Because that would be my advice. Certainly if you experience any further pain or there is any redness get to an ER fast. Honey is a good natural antibiotic but it does not replace professional help.

 

[denice]

I have heard from several different sources that deep cat bites should always be treated by a doctor because they don't bleed enough to get everything out of the wound.  Hopefully your home treatment works and you don't have any problems.

 

[just mike]

I hope your treatment of this bite takes.  I have had a couple of serious bites and my doctor has always insisted I come in for shots and antibiotics.  Apparently there is a multitude of serious issues that can result from a serious cat bite.
 

 

[stephanietx]

I got bit by my cat a couple of years ago.  I tried to treat it myself and ended up having to go to the doc for heavy duty antibiotics.  Those deep puncture wounds really need to be addressed by a physician.
 

 

[jcat]

The first time I was bitten in the hand I treated it much the way you did and ended up having to have surgery and an arm cast. The wound had to be opened and drained daily, then every other day, and I was on antibiotics for weeks. I was told to get to the ER immediately the next time, which I did. They take cat bites so seriously that my hand was attended to ahead of all the people waiting.

 

[feralvr]

I have colloidal silver on hand for minor cuts and scrapes. Works very well for minor cat bites too. I would definitely get to the doctor if is were a deep bite. Hope you did?!

 

[russ1a]

Hi all,

Thanks for your concern.

Wound update: 24 hours after my last post I removed the honey soaked bandage. The wound had completely healed. There was no redness or swelling. the skin had healed over.

Honey is a great natural antibiotic. It produces hydrogen peroxide at a slow steady pace. That and the sugar concentration kill bacteria without interfering with natural wound healing.

I am averse to going to an ER because hospitals are loaded with really nasty bugs like MRSA. I prefer to avoid that environment unless absolutely necessary. By the way, MRSA is NOT resistant to iodine, or honey!

Regarding stitches, I think they are a BIG mistake in most cases. Why would one seal up a deep wound when drainage is a critical part of natural healing? Because you might get a little scar? As had been mentioned by many, abscesses are a big (perhaps the main) problem with deep puncture wounds. Sealing in the bacteria by stitching and removing a natural channel for drainage of the wound seems counter-productive to me. Of course, keeping the wound clean with a bandage is essential.

I avoid taking systemic antibiotics as they will kill off the microflora of the gut, opening the way for a C-Diff infection. There is no free lunch.

Sincerely,

Russ

 

[catspaw66]

Originally Posted by Russ1a

I avoid taking systemic antibiotics as they will kill off the microflora of the gut, opening the way for a C-Diff infection. There is no free lunch.

I don't take antibiotics, either, yet still had c.diff last year.  I had to take Cipro and Flagyl to get rid of it.    They saved my life.

 

[denice]

I too avoid hospitals because they are an obvious breeding ground for antibiotic resistant infections.  Luckily I go to a physician's practice that will see patients that need to be seen that day, I may not see my usual physician and there may be a longer than normal wait but I will be seen.  The only way I would go to an urgent care or hospital emergency room for a deep cat bite is if it happened on a weekend or early in the day on a holiday.  I hope you have no further problems with the bite.

 

[mrblanche]

I too avoid hospitals because they are an obvious breeding ground for antibiotic resistant infections.

One of the first terms we learned in nursing school was "nosocomial infection."  It means an infection a patient picks up in the hospital.

 

[mpay]

Honey is good for hives and rashes to. I have a cat bit right now. It's deep and Pain level went up to 8 after icing it. But went back down after applying honey. It better then apple cider vineage. I sterilized the bites with the vinegar and it got some redness down. I am at pain level 4 now. Every time I go to the er. I level in more pain then when I came in or just the same all dopped up and sick from the medicine . you tell them your problem and they have blank,"duh" look on their face. I being treatmented for chronic headaches and migraines with insaids drugs that just make me sleepy and nausea all the time. These drugs don't prevent headaches or any other pain from building during the day. Even take the pain the pain down ,but they think if I take it for a while it will help. I been on these drugs fees times with 4different doctors and it's all the same. Doctors are there for profit only. Millions of cats,dogs,rats,monkeys,and mice get tortured to death in the fda labs for the medical world to get vacations and bonus. Now the pain is at a level 3. I had so many antibiotics in my life it not funny. My stomach is very sensitive to medicine and got food allergies from it. You see. I was born premature and was in the hospital for 6 months and during that time. They pumped me with different antibiotics and other drugs. People whom disagree with my post need to think about what methods was taken before our modern medical services. Yes people died,but that because they didn't know what serial was.I got a headache from the pain in my hand and typed on the cell phone. Great!

 

[mpay]

Swelling went down by applying wrap soaked in warm ,apple cider vinegar. I let stay on for 30 minutes. I boil for 2 minutes on medium heat. I put 2 tsp of ACV in 20 oz of water and took two tsp of honey 3 times a day. This help me get vitiman c. For now the pain and swelling is gone until I use my hand,lease my home treatment is working.

 

[mpay]

Cat bite is healed with ER!YES!

 

[catspaw66]

Cat bite is healed with ER!YES!

ER? I thought you were treating it at home?

 

[donutte]

My little ol' man Lucky bit me and bit me hard last month. October 29th (yep, remember the date well, two days after being told he had stage IV renal failure). Was trying to give him meds, and he bit me. Tooth firmly in the thumb, next to the nail, nice and deep. The other tooth nicked the pad of my thumb. It bled like crazy.   Both my mom and my vet tech friend said bleeding was a good thing here, flushes out the bacteria. It oozed like a mini-volcano for about three minutes straight so yeah, it bled a lot. Poured alcohol on it - I didn't even feel it - then wrapped it up with a bandage.

It healed pretty quickly, within a week. I still feel it to this day though. Not really pain, but... something hard to describe. I'm guessing scar tissue pulling maybe. Anyway, having lost my little ol' man since then, every time I feel it, I think of him. Yeah, weird thing to have as a reminder.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Got to say I'm always tickled when I hear of someone using honey.  We used to use it on show horses when they got scrapes, nicks and cuts, to heal without scarring.  Used it on my kids for the same reason.  Use it simmered with white onions for coughs.  Honeybees are nature's little miracles.

 

[dbljj]

hope you are ok! My friend at work got bit by his own cat that was vaccinated and everything; cost him a trip to emergency room and 3 weeks out of work! his hand swelled up 3 times normal size in less than 12 hours after he and peroxided and achohled it. cat bit thru the skin between thumb and forefinger...

 

[dbljj]

I am so glad you are ok . Whatever works I say go for it..

 

[natalie_ca]

 
Got to say I'm always tickled when I hear of someone using honey.  We used to use it on show horses when they got scrapes, nicks and cuts, to heal without scarring.  Used it on my kids for the same reason.  Use it simmered with white onions for coughs.  Honeybees are nature's little miracles.

Honey is a desiccant. It sucks the moisture out of tissue and kills microbes. Honey (and sugar in general) is excellent for healing and preserving.  In fact Alexander the Great was preserved in a coffin of honey for 3 years while his body was shipped back home for burial.

http://cass.ucsd.edu/archive/personal/ron/CVNC/byline/bugs_96mar.html

http://factstore.info/corpse-of-ale...n-a-vat-with-honey-for-2-years-before-burial/