Ever had a play bite go too far?

[Tina B and crew]

Doc often does play nips at our hands when we are in bed and he wants us to pet him. Never hard, never painful. Last night he went too far and bit the loving crap out of me! Broke the skin and went pretty deep. I was half asleep when he did it. Bled badly but I got it stopped, washed it, put antibiotic ointment on it and bandaged it. It's on the pad of the finger. I'm concerned about infection so i will watch closely. If I have to go to the doctor will they have to report it? He's up to date in his rabies. Not sure why he but so hard, unless he was mad because I've been gone and just got back last night.

[Tina B and crew]

I'm going to go have my doctor look at it. It is pretty swollen and red and hurts like &^%$. The skin is broken in two spots. I think it is best to have it looked at early rather than wait to see if it gets infected. I checked with my state department of health website and they do suggest animals who have bitten to be quarantined but it can be at home. Thankfully I'm up to date on my tetanus too.

[Traci]

In my area, any cat bite, regardless if your own cat and up-to-date on rabies, may have animal control knocking on your door (yes, physicians are almost always required now to report animal bites to AC). If Doc is up to date on rabies, all you have to do is have them call your vet for confirmation, (depending on how your local AC works), otherwise, they may ask for proof of his rabies certificate by you. If you live in city limits, they may REQUIRE you to get a city tag.

You could always tell your doctor you fell on a nail or stuck yourself with a pin or nail or something to avoid all the hassle, treatment would be the same (oral antibiotics, topical antibiotic, possible tetanus shot if you haven't had one within 10 years) - your call.

Yes, I've had it happen a few times, bad cat bites, stupid enough to tell the physician, AC waiting at my house by the time I left doc's office. UGH! Next time will be a little fib. While I do have a permit, it is not worth it to hassle with AC, I despise them.

That said, of course it depends on the situation. Of course we want humans to be safe, other pets, etc, and those with rabies certificates for proof have little to worry about.

[Tina B and crew]

I live rural and AC here is a joke. I doubt they will be knocking on my door but I can certainly go to my vet and get a rabies certificate. It's actually looking and feeling better now so I've debated canceling the appointment. It's still pretty swollen but not as painful. As I said I'm UTD on my tetanus and he just got his rabies vac back in September. Just concerned about infection.

I've tried calling my vet to get input but they must be busy. Either get VM or busy signal.

[Tina B and crew]

Here is what our dept of health website says about bites:

Don't panic...but don't ignore the bite, either. Wash the wound thoroughly with soap and lots of water. Washing thoroughly will greatly lessen the chance of infection. Give first aid as you would for any wound.

If possible, capture the animal under a large box or can, or at least identify it before it runs away. Don't try to pick the animal up. Call an animal control or law enforcement officer to come get it.

It's critically important that you notify your family doctor immediately and explain how you got the bite. Your doctor will want to know if the animal has been captured. If necessary, your doctor will give the anti-rabies treatment recommended by the United States Public Health Service. Your doctor will also treat you for other possible infections that could be caused from the bite.

Report the bite to the local health department.

[Tina B and crew]

Ok...I just called my vet office and they said it really depends on the doctor. She said usually it is the ER's that report these but if I have a good doctor- patient relationship we can probably not worry about it. She also said they'd be glad to fax over a copy of the rabies certificate if needed, which is usually all the doctors ask for. So apparently there is no state or local laws that require these to be reported. I think I'll be OK.

[Tina B and crew]

No report to AC. Just antibiotics and keep an eye on it.

Now to figure out why he bit without provocation! I'm scared to have my fingers exposed at night now!

[Traci]

Just a warning, don't be too sure!!

I too have a long relationship with our physician and the clinic, however, it doesn't matter, the physicians follow the law (or what "passes" as the law in communications with everyone except the public, ugh).

As long as you can provide a valid rabies certificate, you're fine. If any holier-than-thou AC officer says or does anything differently, you have the right to observe "quarantine" in your own home.

This might be a lot different if a pet bites a visitor, guest etc in your home, the guest may not have had a tetanus booster in some time, they may require wound care and their physician might report it unbeknownst to you.

The crux of the issue is human health safety (it's the law). Rabies being fatal and all, while they are all doing their job, it can sometimes get messy for pets and their owners.

Part of the problem in my area is that we are seemingly under constant county quarantine because of a skunk or racoon etc, nothing to do with pets, but god forbid a pet WITH a valid rabies certificate bites someone, everyone seems to think they have to stick their noses into your business.

On another sad note, just barely over a year ago, a neighbor down the street had a dog whom they kept tied in the yard one day. Sadly, it was that day the dog bit someone (not viciously, mind you), but because he had no verifiable rabies certificate..... the entire family had to receive rabies vaccine series, and the entire neighborhood was scoped for anyone else in contact with the poor dog. The dog never had a chance, thanks to his idiot good-for-nothing owners.

Anyway, I'm just saying, don't assume what one health official says, someone else involved may say something entirely different.

[Traci]

BTW, something that works very well is soaking your entire hand in a solution of warm water and epsom salts, twice a day - the epsom salts help clean, reduce swelling and ease the pain a little. Then apply topical antibacterial ointment (leave an entire dab on the wound and bandage over it) - change bandage every time you soak your hand. Vet-wrap works great for keeping the bandage in place wrapped around your hand

If red streaks appear and seem to be traveling up your hand and arm, see your doc ASAP for oral antibiotics and a more heavy-duty topical antibiotic. Beg and plead not to report.

[Traci]

Yes it could be delayed agression/upset if you were gone for some time. Or, one of those flukes when you're petting/playing and they just decide they don't want you to at that moment and let you know about it.

If he's never done it before, I would wager a guess it was that you were gone, he was saying don't do it again, or you inadvertently were touching him longer than necessary (according to him). When you ARE awake tho, and during playtime, be cautious and teach him biting is not acceptable.