To call NHS 24 over a minor cat bite?

I would normally have thought overreaction, but I bumped into an old friend the other day who said she’s just come out of hospital after being very unwell with sepsis. Caused by her cat biting her when it was distressed at the vet’s. Definitely get antibiotics it’s not worth the risk.

its not an overreaction
cat bites are filthy and notorious for getting infections that can go down to the bone if they break the skin

Dh is bitten by his arsehole of a cat regularly. It did swell up and get nasty once; it was obvious within a few hours there was a problem, he nipped to minor injuries and was dosed up with antibiotics. We don’t rush off every time he gets bitten.

Small deep puncture wounds are buggers for infection anyway - they seal over on the outside quickly, sealing in anything nasty.

If that puncture wound is made by a filthy bacteria ridden object like a tooth (human, cat, dog, mosquito, spider) then you increase that risk more.

If friend will not go to A&E at least get them to cover the wound with a WET dressing, ideally Manuka honey, so that the wound does not seal up and the honey can deal with any festering bacteria.

I was badly bitten and scratched by a feral cat, since the bite penetrated my skin quite deeply, I ended up having to go to a&e for a tetanus shot and a course of antibiotics just to be safe. (Doctors surgery was closed)

Had a vet friend explain to me why cat bites are bad. The quick version is cat canines have grooves and bacteria. They are like a hypodermic needle and penetrate deeply, getting the bacteria in deep. As the tooth is withdrawn, the wound seals shut, due to the shape of the tooth, trapping bacteria deep. It then causes infection or abscess. I've had cellulitis before (from insect bites) - very painful.

Handy link - screenshot of the part around what I said above https://www.pethealthnetwork.com/cat-health/cat-checkups-preventive-care/dr-ernies-top-10-cat-dental-questions-and-his-answers

I've been bitten a couple of times recently by one of mine, but it bled a lot, I did a thorough soak with antiseptic and kept an eye out and was fine. But you do need to monitor them thoroughly, any sign of spreading redness/swelling etc. and it's straight to A&E or minor injuries. They're carnivores, their bites are nasty.

I know someone who got sepsis within two days through a cat bite. Your friend needs to get some antibiotics straight away.

I was bitten by a feral kitten I was trying to rescue from inside a tractor. My neighbour said hospital now. Felt like such a fool, nurse saw me straight away, one tetanus shot and a bag of antibiotics later. The nurse said I'd done the right thing. The bite was in the same place as your DH. God it hurt and throbbed.

My understanding is that if there are no concerning signs it should still be seen within 24 hours.

If any of the concerning signs of infection/blood poisoning start then that is an urgent ASAP emergency.

Cat bites are notorious for turning into something much much worse it’s always worth getting them checked out its better to be safe than sorry.

I'd ring 111 for advice.

Antibiotics starting within two hours, I was told in hospital. Mine was a really deep bite from a panicked/injured cat.

if he gets any lines running off the bite or signs of illness he needs to be in a and e swiftly.

I'm on drugs which means my immune system is none existent and I have been bitten and scratched by cats and ferrets hundreds of times. I'd be in A&E all the time! If it gets hot or inflamed then yes, but personally, no. I'd just keep clean and keep an eye on it

All cats carry nasty bacteria in their mouths so you have to be wary with bites, they can turn nasty very quickly.

My old girl bit me really badly earlier this year and it was worrying. But I kept an eye on it and it turned out to be just badly bruised. She was a fiesty torbico that made it to 20 🥲

Same!

Keep an eye on it, and go to a walk in centre if it gets any worse.

I've had thousands of cat scratches with no issue over the years, but the one time I was bitten I got a nasty infection and needed two rounds of antibiotics to clear it. I've got permanent damage to the joint in my thumb from it too.

He bit me mid seizure while I was trying to get him in the carrier to take him to the emergency vet. They kept him in overnight but decided the next day to put him down as they couldn't get the seizures under control and with his brain cancer he wasn't going to recover. I had go go directly from that appointment to the walk in centre as the vet saw it and made me promise I would.

I work with cats and recently got bitten on the same place . GP has no appointments but said to get to minor injuries asap for tetanus. I was also given antibiotics. The nurse said they automatically give antibiotics to bites to the hand , especially the meatier parts of the hand . It may not look much now but cat bites are nasty and this will become swollen and bruised over the coming days .

I'd usually say overreaction to something like this, but my dad got sepsis from a cat bite and was incredibly ill in hospital for a few weeks (years ago in the 90s) so might be best to check.

I would have just put some sudocreme on thought no more of it. Clearly from the replies I am completely wrong 😂

Puncture wound or scratched the skin?

His fingers look like blown up balloons

An animal (or human) bite that breaks the skin need to be checked and needs preventative antibiotics, so yes call 111.

That's what I thought!! Our late cat 🐈 was also an arsehole 😍🤣

I just googled and apparently you should only worry about a tetanus if it's deep and/ or dirty. This just looks like a small scratch tbh.