Cats can be playful and quirky, but they sometimes get aggressive. If you spend time with your four-legged friend, it is quite possible that sooner or later he can scratch you on some area of the body. Cats have sharp claws that they use to defend themselves and can sometimes cause a few deep scratches. If you have also been a victim of their "exuberance", you must take care of the wound appropriately, to avoid possible complications.
Steps
Part 1 of 5: Assessing the Severity of the Scratch
Step 1. Identify the cat
It is important to have information about the cat that scratched you. If it is your own pet, that of a family member or friend, then it is a domestic cat. You can heal the wound yourself, if it is not too serious and you are sure that:
- The cat was adequately vaccinated;
- He enjoys good health in general;
- He spends most of his time indoors.
Step 2. See your doctor if you have been scratched by a cat you don't know where it came from
In this case, you may not be vaccinated and you should be given preventive treatment against bacterial infections, tetanus or rabies. You should seek medical attention especially if you have also suffered from bites, as these types of wounds are about 80% likely to become infected.
Step 3. Treat the wound
Based on the severity of the injury caused by the scratch, you will need to find appropriate treatments. All scratches are painful, but their depth determines their severity.
- A superficial wound that involves only the top layer of the skin and causes minimal blood loss can be considered mild.
- A deeper wound that cuts through several layers of skin and bleeds moderately should be treated as a serious wound.
Step 4. Establish Appropriate Care
A superficial wound from a domestic cat you know can be treated at home. However, any scratches caused by an unknown cat and all serious (deep) wounds generated by domestic cats must undergo medical evaluation.
Part 2 of 5: Treating a Superficial Scratch
Step 1. Wash your hands
Before treating the wound, make sure your hands are clean and disinfected. Wash them using warm (not hot) water and soap for at least 20 seconds. Do not neglect the area between the fingers and under the nails. At the end, rinse them well with water.
Step 2. Rinse the wound
Run running water from the tap to rinse the scratch and the surrounding area. Don't use the water that is too hot, you could make the existing bleeding worse.
Step 3. Wash the scratch area
Gently clean it with mild soap. Try to wash the entire area, as well as the scratch itself (for example, if the wound is on one forearm, wash the entire limb, don't just scratch). After washing the area, rinse it thoroughly with running water.
Do not rub the skin while you wash it, you could do other damage (bruising) to the injured tissue
Step 4. Apply an ointment
It is important to smear an antiseptic product. You can use an antibiotic ointment with three active ingredients, such as Neosporin, which contains neomycin, a very effective antibiotic to help heal cut injuries.
- You can apply it to the wound three times a day.
- Bacitracin is a valid alternative for those who are allergic to ointments with multiple active ingredients.
- It is not necessary to take oral antibiotics to treat superficial scratches caused by domestic cats.
Step 5. Do not cover the injured area
If you can treat it at home, this type of wound should be shallow enough not to require a bandage. Keep the scratch clean during the healing process but leave it exposed to fresh air.
Part 3 of 5: Treating a Deep Scratch
Step 1. Contact your doctor
Deeper wounds can also bleed heavily and oral antibiotics must be taken to prevent possible infections, even if the cat has been properly vaccinated. Very often the doctor may prescribe Augmentin 875/125 mg, to be taken twice a day for 7-10 days.
- Before going to your doctor for professional treatment, you can start treating yourself at home.
- Make sure you go to the doctor after taking the following steps to treat the wound.
Step 2. Stop the bleeding
If the scratch is bleeding a lot, apply some pressure to the area with a clean cloth. Press the drape firmly until the bleeding begins to subside. You can also do this by lifting the affected area to a higher level than the heart.
Step 3. Wash the scratch area
After washing your hands thoroughly, gently clean the injured area with soap and rinse with water. Avoid rubbing the skin during this operation, otherwise the scratch may start to bleed again.
Step 4. Dry the area
Take another clean towel and dry the wound and surrounding area thoroughly.
Step 5. Cover the scratch
When the cut is deep it should be covered (or closed) with an adhesive bandage, butterfly patch or clean gauze.
- If the cut is extensive, try to bring the edges of the wound closer together so that there is no gap between them and put a butterfly band-aid, which should somehow "suture" the cut. If necessary, apply more patches to ensure that the edges of the cut remain together along their entire length; this allows the wound to heal more easily and quickly.
- If you don't have adhesive plasters, you can use gauze and tape it onto the wound with medical tape.
Part 4 of 5: Assessing the Risks of Scratching
Step 1. Prevent infections
Some scratch wounds and most cat bites can cause infections. Clean the wound thoroughly and apply an antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin or Bacitracin to significantly reduce the risk of bacterial contamination. Oral antibiotics may also be needed if the scratch is infected. Among the signs of infection you might notice:
- Increased pain, swelling, redness, or warmth in the area of the injury
- Presence of red streaks extending from the scratch;
- Pus leaking from the wound;
- High fever.
Step 2. Pay attention to cat scratch disease (bartonellosis)
This is the most common disease spread by cats and is caused by the bacterium Bartonella henselae. Cats act as the "source" of this disease, which is mainly present in young specimens and with fleas. About 40% of cats carry this bacterium at some stage in life without showing any symptoms.
- Some cats suffering from this disease may develop heart problems, mouth ulcers or eye infections.
- The first sign of infection in humans is usually a small swelling in the area that has been scratched or bitten by the cat, followed by swollen lymph nodes in the armpits, groin, or neck. Thereafter, fever, fatigue, red eyes, joint pain and sore throat develop.
- If left untreated, this disease can cause severe damage to the eyes, brain, liver, or spleen.
- People with weakened immune systems are at increased risk of developing complications or even dying from the fever caused by the disease.
- Diagnosis is usually made from positive serology for B. henselae, which can be verified by culture, histopathology, or polymerase chain reaction. The disease is treated with antibiotics such as azithromycin, rifampicin, gentamicin, ciprofloxacin, clarithromycin or bactrim.
Step 3. Check for ringworm
This is a fungal infection characterized by round, swollen, scaly patches on the skin.
- Ringworm is often accompanied by severe itching.
- It can be treated with antifungal ointments such as miconazole or clotrimazole.
Step 4. Find out about the risk of toxoplasmosis
This is a parasite sometimes found on the body of cats that can spread through their feces. This pathogen, Toxoplasma gondii, can infect people through a cat scratch, especially if there are traces of excrement on the claws.
- Infection in humans causes fever, body aches and swollen lymph nodes. In severe cases it can cause damage to the brain, eyes or lungs; it is a particularly serious disease in pregnant women, who therefore must avoid going near the cat litter box or feces during pregnancy.
- To treat toxoplasmosis, it is necessary to take anti-parasitic drugs such as pyrimethamine.
Step 5. Look for symptoms of other diseases
Cats can be healthy carriers of deadly diseases to humans. Contact your doctor immediately if you have been scratched by a cat and have any of the following symptoms:
- Fever;
- Swelling in the head or neck
- Red, itchy, or scaly patches on the skin
- Severe headache, dizziness or vertigo.
Part 5 of 5: Prevent Scratches
Step 1. Don't punish the cat if it scratches you
This is his normal defensive behavior and if you punish him he may become even more aggressive in the future.
Step 2. Trim the cat's claws
You can do this at home with a regular homemade nail clipper. You can shorten them once a week to reduce the severity of future scratches.
Step 3. Avoid violent games
Don't play rough or aggressive with your cat or puppy, otherwise you can encourage them to bite and scratch you and other humans.
Step 4. Adopt an older cat
Most cats do not bite and scratch excessively once they are over a year or two of age and then transitioned from juvenile to adult stage. If you are particularly sensitive to scratching or have a compromised immune system, you should consider adopting an adult cat rather than getting a puppy.
Advice
- Treat your cat to flea treatment. This won't change your scratching habits, but it will minimize the risk of complications from scratching. Consult your vet to find the best flea treatment.
- Consider clipping or filing your cat's nails.
Warnings
- Always seek medical attention if you are being scratched by an unfamiliar cat, if the wound is deep or if you are immunosuppressed.
- Avoid touching feral or stray cats as much as possible.
