In agony with this cat bite :/

[Jadime23]

I work in a rescue centre and got bitten by a cat (not my first and won't be my last). I know that any swelling etc requires a hospital visit. But I'm not sure whether this is worth a trip. The puncture wound was quite deep. I am now feeling quite ill like groggy type feeling and my hand is really painful especially when I try and move it. It's red around the bite but not swollen..... Should I get it checked or am I just being a wimp??

Get it looked at. Someone I know got bitten by a cat and was told had she delayed seeking treatment much longer the likely outcome would have been amputation.

I agree - you need to get a doctor to look at it. Cat bites can be very nasty, and that looks sore. You may well need antibiotics.

I got bitten a few months ago by a stray cat; rang the nurse for advice and she was insistant I come done and have it looked at. Even though it didn't look too bad and I felt ok she prescribe anti b's as a precaution. She had seen a woman the week before who developed a raging infection due to a bite so def go and get it seen to; you are NOT being a wimp

You DEFINITELY need to get it seen. No question at all. Cat bites are notoriously likely to get infected and with your symptoms I wouldn't hesitate in getting seen. Please do go ASAP and if poss draw a light outline around the redness before you go and make a note of the time you do it so they can see if it is expanding. Good luck.

Go and get checked out today. Asap. If it is a localised infction they can treat it easily but you feeling groggy is not good. I could ask about differences in breathing, heart rate, temperature but much better if you get yourself checked over by professionals. Don't wait until tomorrow.

In the meantime, draw a line around the redness with biro and write the time (24hr) inside near the line.

I'd go to out of hours, puncture wounds breed anaerobic bacteria & they are nasty.

Best to go before its really bad.

Yes if you're feeling ill then you definitely need antibiotics. I've had around 50 or more bites probably. One required antibiotics and once put me in hospital for two weeks! I always wait to see what happens before I bother with doctors/hospital but if you feel ill with it and/or if the swelling and pain is severe and certainly if it doesn't improve after 24 hours, then you need treatment.

Bloody cats :) thanks for the advice!!!

Are you going Jadime?

You definitely need to get it checked out. Be prepared for them to have never heard of cat scratch fever, bartonellosis. On the couple of occasions I have had it the doctors have asked me which antibiotic they hours prescribe, tetracyclines, I always choose doxycycline as it is once daily dosing.

Another vote for antibiotics, I had a bite from a stray I was feeding that went like that, the OOH prescribed them with no problems.

I got scratched badly a few weeks ago, I called my doctors and because the cat had drawn a lot of blood I was asked to come straight in and had a tetanus and course of antibiotics, go and get it looked at.

I thought you knew that cat bites are quite serious puncture wounds due to the high risk of infection and depth. The wounds of cat bites are deceiving. I'm a nurse. You require a possible tetanus injection if you have not received a booster in the last 5 years, antibiotics (AUGMENTIN), and monitoring. If pain gets worse or condition changes, IV antibiotics straight away, with extra irrigation and draining.

Go to a pharmacy and see what they say, I think that’s your first step before going to the GP.

This threads so old the cats probably died of old age.