Think your cat’s love nips are harmless? Think again. According to Mercury News, cat bites can be more serious than you might have expected.
Feline bites can become more prone to infections from the bacteria found in cats know as Pasteurella multocida. This bacteria can mix with the bacteria found in human skin named Staphylococcus and streptococcus and sometimes can even become deadly. MedStar Georgetown University Hospital reported that close to 50 percent of all feline bites become infected
If you or someone you know is bitten by a cat you should not underestimate the dangers. Most people do not realize that you have a 1-in-2 chance of the bite becoming infected. These injuries can lead to bone infections, septic shock and surgery to clean out the wound.
It is recommended to always go to the hospital if you are bitten by a cat and the wound punctures the skin deep enough. It is likely that you will need prophylactic antibiotics that is not available through self-treatment methods.
Surprisingly enough cat bites are often more serious than dog bites. This is because the bite from a cat penetrates further into the skin causing more bacteria to be spread from their long teeth. Whereas a dog bite tends to be more of a crushing bite closer to the surface of the skin.
There are several reported cases seen each year in emergency rooms for treatments of these type of attacks. Doctors urge people to always seek professional medical attention to help prevent possible infections from occurring from puncture wounds.
If you want to take steps to avoid a possible animal attack by a feline there are several tips that you can implement. You should never corner a cat as this might invoke them to be defensive. Also you should never try and pick up, kiss, or hug a cat that seems frightened. If a feline is hissing, growling or arching their backs they are probably scared or angry and it is best to steer clear of the animal. Felines also will become angered by rough handling. So it is very important to keep watch over children handling cats as they may not be fully aware of the dangers they can pose.
I’m Ed Smith, a Sacramento Personal Injury Attorney with the primary accident information site on the web, https://www.autoaccident.com/.
If you or someone you love has been involved in an animal attack, call me now at 916-921-6400.
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