Board 8 > So I was in the hospital the past few days...

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blogfaqs but just needing to post some stuff and I think it's important to know, because I sure didn't

So on Wednesday of last week I was bit by my cat. I've had her for over eight years and it's just something that happens because she's a cat and she gets riled up over nothing. She's scratched and bit me in the past but it's normally just something that heals on its own and leaves me with a scar for awhile. The first 24 hours were normal, but after that, my entire forearm where she got me proceeded to swell, become inflamed, and got to the point where it traveled to my wrist and I couldn't even make a fist without almost doubling over in pain. I went to urgent care where they told me it was cellulitis and if I didn't go to the emergency room they feared it would ruin my tendons to the point where I might never regain full function in my hand. Cut to less than 6 hours later and half my hand and my entire arm up to almost my armpit was swollen and on fire.

Cellulitis is where bacteria enters the deep tissue of your body and creates an incredibly fast moving infection that spreads across your body. Worst case scenario is sepsis, which is where bacteria enters your bloodstream and your body has a reaction to 'fix' the infection that ends up damaging your organs with the potential of going into shock, or even death. I was hooked up to IVs pumping antibiotics into my body for almost 72 hours, with constant blood tests and vital tests to make sure that this was not occurring. Thankfully it's something easily curable if you catch it early enough, and I've been home for about a day and a half with the infection slowly curing.

This is not meant to be a woe is me type post - this is a "I had no idea that not treating a wound as seriously as possible could lead to this" type post. I know most people here have pets and I just want this to be a warning that it doesn't matter how many times your pet might nip you as you take their food away, or play with them, or whatever. Take it seriously because I learned the very hard way just how quickly and awful things can turn even if you're completely healthy with no history of something like this

I dunno. It's been a weird few days.

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I also struggled to make this post because I'm the last person to post personal details on this board but it just took me by complete surprise, and if I encourage at least one person to flush out their next open wound, gauze it, and bandaid it instead of just thinking 'whatever' I'll be happy

I thought just washing it out was enough but clearly not

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Huh. Glad you came out of it and didn't need anything amputated.

But absolutely, cat mouths are major reservoirs for bacteria and I've known of people who have lost fingers to infections from cat bites.

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Esuriat posted...

Huh. Glad you came out of it and didn't need anything amputated.

But absolutely, cat mouths are major reservoirs for bacteria and I've known of people who have lost fingers to infections from cat bites.

Thanks.

Yeah, I've heard those stories before but put me in the category of stupid impervious "I'm healthy and have never had anything happen to me before!". I've owned pets all my life and can't even count the amount of times I've had some slight open wound from an animal that heals on it's own perfectly. This was nothing different from all those experiences at the time, and the initial swelling looked exactly like any other cut or wound I've had before. It was very scary to see how quickly it spread from the wound to take over almost my entire arm.

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Happy you're alright man.

Thanks for sharing it too. It's good to know.

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Yikes, reminds me of that story of that guy who lost his arms and legs after being licked by his dog. Are you keeping the cat, out of curiosity?

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guffguy89 posted...

Are you keeping the cat, out of curiosity?

Of course I am, she's my baby. I'm going to try my best to keep her more stimulated because I think that's part of what it was. I live alone and she's my only pet so when I come back after work she can sometimes be in hunt mode and if I'm the only movement she sees she takes it out on me.

95% of the time she's as cute and sweet as can be - she's not stressed or anything like that. She's just good once every two or three months to attack me. She doesn't hiss at me, doesn't fight over food, doesn't hate being touched, etc. She just goes from zero to a hundred within a few seconds

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glad you made it out all right

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Glad to hear you and your arm are okay

The topic title definitely made me assume covid btw

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guffguy89 posted...

Yikes, reminds me of that story of that guy who lost his arms and legs after being licked by his dog.

wait what

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But yeah, glad you're okay. Kinda crazy how quickly these things can happen.

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MZero posted...

The topic title definitely made me assume covid btw

Before they would even let me past the ER I had to pass a covid test. If I got anything brought to me the nurses had to go retrieve it from the lobby and sanitize it. Or maybe sanitize themselves I dunno it was a blur

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Yeah I pretty much always wash out any bite from a pet with Hydrogen peroxide etc

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That's a true horror story. I'm glad you're okay now. That reminds me I got scratched by not one, but BOTH my cats in the last two days who poorly attempted to climb up on me to escape the attention of my new puppy. I just let the wounds ride since I had to be at work a couple hours afterwards. I hope I don't get cat scratch fever.
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Damn that's crazy. Curious though, is she an inside or outside(or both type) of cat?

I have a couple of cats so I'm keenly aware that this can happen, and I always make sure if they do get me with their claws or teeth to clean it appropriately.

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I dunno man, I'm definitely stronger than a cat so I'm not washing shit

This happened to my mom (who was a crazy cat lady) actually when I was like 10. Super scary. Good parenting is I was able to get your lesson without going to the ER myself I suppose.

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I once heard a doctor say a cat's mouth is the second dirtiest thing in the world.
I never did find out what number one was

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DeepsPraw posted...

I once heard a doctor say a cat's mouth is the second dirtiest thing in the world.
I never did find out what number one was

ur butt

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god damn, that's a scary story

glad you're okay

is this going to incur a big medical expense on you?
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Glad you're OK. I had no idea that pet bites could do anything close to that level of harm

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I'm glad you're okay! I'm sure your cat is, too

I hadn't heard of that specific condition, but I've known other people to have other fairly serious health problems related to their pets

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VintageGin posted...

wait what

It was a news story from a few years back. A man had a cut on his leg, like a small scratch from something. His dog lick his legs occasionally and he licked the scratch, unknowingly passing on an infection similar to the OPs. He didnt go into the doctor soon enough and the infection spread to all his extremities. He lost both arms, legs, and his nose. All from a dog lick.

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Dogs and cats both have pretty dirty mouths, unless you brush their teeth all the time. The idea of a dog's mouth being clean is a myth. Human mouths in their natural state would be about as dirty but since our dental health is more monitored we'll usually be a bit cleaner

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Brayze_II posted...

Human mouths in their natural state would be about as dirty but since our dental health is more monitored we'll usually be a bit cleaner

you should still 100% seek medical care if you get a serious bite

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DeepsPraw posted...

you should still 100% seek medical care if you get a serious bite

Absolutely

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guffguy89 posted...

It was a news story from a few years back. A man had a cut on his leg, like a small scratch from something. His dog lick his legs occasionally and he licked the scratch, unknowingly passing on an infection similar to the OPs. He didnt go into the doctor soon enough and the infection spread to all his extremities. He lost both arms, legs, and his nose. All from a dog lick.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcyJt0mySKc

I don't know if this is referring to the exact story, but it's basically the same deal. Same pathogen involved.

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Damn dude, glad youre ok.

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SeabassDebeste posted...

is this going to incur a big medical expense on you?

What hospital visit wouldn't! I'm now in the process of billing, we will see what happens.

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God damn man, glad you're healing up, and I hope the hospital bill isn't another disaster.

Not trolling, but this is now another reason I'm glad I've never had a strong desire to get a pet. >_>

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CaptainOfCrush posted...

Not trolling, but this is now another reason I'm glad I've never had a strong desire to get a pet. >_>

Nah, still worth it.

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