My Son Was Biten By A Stray Kitten.?

Question

It punctured the heel of his hand. I called his doc and they said he needed another tecnis shot and to take antibiotics for 10 days. Also we have to keep the kitten that he caught for 10 days to watch how it acts before we can give it over to animal control (by the way animal control had been contacted twice to pick up these animals but has never kept their word).
So he had the shot yesterday, today he is in a lot of pain from that arm. Is this normal? I was just checking here because it is so early in the morning and the doc office hasn't opened. So all you that are concerned, don't worry I am calling a professional as soon as I can.

When he went to the doc's office the doctor didn't see him. They just had the nurse to give him the shot. She didn't even look at the wound. Then they just called in a perscription for the antibiotics and that was it.
His arm is hurting from the shot but he said this morning that now the bite is puffy and hurting.
I will call to see if I can give him something for the pain.

This neigborhood is full of strays. Our cat is nuetered.
Mother's Day we discovered that a stray had had kittens underneath our home.
He was trying to gather them up for animal control. No one would take them and we cannot keep them.

Answer 1

Your son is having a local reaction to his tetanus shot. You can give him some aspirin or Tylenol, whatever you usually give him for a headache or sore muscles, and it will help. Also, some Benadryl or whatever you might give him for allergy might help too, as the reaction is a local allergic reaction, and not serious, but it is uncomfortable.

There are two types of tetanus shots: tetanus toxoid and tetanus anti-toxin. Find out which he had and make note of it in his little health record that you keep of his vaccinations. Because in 10 years when he has his next shot, he should get the other kind, whichever he didn't get this time, and there may be no local reaction.

Keep your little feral kitten in a cage if you have one, draped on all sides except the side with the door with a sheet or blanket, so he feels secure. This will make him a little more comfortable and even more sociable.

Your animal control folks probably didn't come because they are so over-extended they can only respond to real emergencies. There are lots of little strays and abused animals, and most animal control officers are stretched too thin to respond to someone who just wants some (apparently healthy) kittens picked up. Next time, you should ask if there is a cat rescue group in town. The ASPCA and Humane Society usually know about small private groups of animal-loving citizens who feed, rescue and get vet care for kittens just like the one you are holding. Groups like this (Bob Barker's lifetime girlfriend heads a group like this) will usually come out with humane traps (little cages that they put food inside of, and when the kitty goes in to eat, the door shuts; that is how many kitties get rescued), and get the little guy you found into a cage and on its way to a new good life in someone's home.

Don't worry. Sounds like you have a basically healthy little guy there who nipped because he was terrified. And your son's arm will come down in a day or so. It is not serious.

Addendum, 2 hr later. Put some triple antibiotic ointment or Neosporin on the bite and put a bandage over it. It is infected.

With respect to the vet tech from the NY/NJ area who answered that it is probably rabies and that there are no private citizens who rescue animals, cats included, I suggest she look into Kittykind at Union Square Petco; Manhattan Valley Cat Rescue; Angelica; City Critters; Might Mutts. And not just dogs and cats, either. A couple of years ago, when I found a wild bird with a damaged wing, I called the humane society who sent me to a very senior lady in a doorman bldg in the E. 30's. She took the bird, identified the species at a glance, caged it, treated it and released it. All at her own expense. Every neighborhood has someone who feeds strays, and oftentimes captures them and gets them vet care. Some groups capture strays and if they are willing to be socialized, they get them homes; but if they are not, they get the animals fixed and give them their shots, then release them again. (Read "Ginny, The Dog Who Rescues Cats")

I have volunteered for and been around rescue groups like this since the late 90's, and neither I nor anyone I know has ever rescued or trapped a rabid cat. That does not mean people should throw caution to the wind. Cats can get rabies, but in 9 years, I have never seen it or heard of it, and it is based on this that I assure the woman that the kitten who bit her son is probably relatively speaking healthy and free of rabies.

Answer 2

Wow, where do you live, USA? Around here animal bites are serious. We've been having an increase with rabies. The police are called to file a incident report, they contact the health dept, they do the leg work. You have enough to do: taking care of your child. Never heard of regular people gathering up unvaccinated animals. Don't! What's the point so more and more bites to occur? Shame on the doctors, staff and whoever isn't giving a damn.Rabies is fatal, you never know. Better be safe than sorry. Get medical treatment, ie- possible rabies post exposure vaccines. In NJ/NY area this is a must!Once a human shows signs of rabies it is too late.....So call the health dept/police not just the lovely Dr's office (who didn't even examine your child in the first place). I am hoping you live outside US as this is totally unacceptable protocol.

Answer 3

Just be aware that there could be a concern of contracting rabies. Make sure you keep the kitten to have it observed for rabies symptoms. If you don't have the kitten that bit your son, it's possible that he would have to go through a series of shots in the stomach to treat rabies even if it's not definite that he has it...it's just a precaution. Make sure you take him to the doctors as soon as possible to have him taken care of.

One of the most distinctive signs of a rabies infection is a tingling or twitching sensation around the area of the animal bite. It is often accompanied by a fever, headache, muscle aches, loss of appetite, nausea, and fatigue.

I hope nothing is seriously wrong with your son.

Answer 4

I take it their mum has abandoned them? First make sure they are healthy if you want to raise them and ensure they are not sneezing, have no eye discharge/nasal discharge - if you want take them to the vet for a check up. Raising 3 week old kittens involves a lot of work can they toilet by themselves yet? If they can't you need to stimulate this as the mum would. Take the corner of a paper towel and run it under warm water then wipe over the kittens genitals to stimulate urine and faeces production if they can do this on their own it's better. Try them with a dry animal milk replacement which you will need to make up as per instructions you should be able to buy it from a pet shop/vet and feed the required amount to them either in a small saucer/lid or if they won't drink on their own you will have to feed them yourself via a syringe which you should be able to get from a vet/shelter usually 4, 3ml syringes full 5-7x daily is ok. The kittens may even eat small amounts of kitten food so try this first as the more they can do themselves the less there is for you. You need to keep them warm too. If you prefer you can take them to the shelter but bear in mind the shelter may think they are too young so they may not keep them or may have too many to foster out. But if you ask if you can foster them and once they are big enough (around 1kg) would they be able to find them homes. Unless you want to keep them.

Answer 5

Call again and have them come and get the kittens and the one that bit your son keep off by itself and have someone get the kitten. When I was younger I got bitten by a cat and they came and got the cat and they did tests on the cat while I had to put my hand in the bowl with a liquid in it to get rid of the infection. The pain in the arm is normal because they have to get the shot into the muscle. Make sure you wash the wound with stuff that will get rid of the infection on your sons hand. And keep an eye on it to make sure it won't get infected worse. Good luck.

Answer 6

cat bites are very painful because they make deep punctures in the tissue but you are right call your doc this morning he may suggest something that will help. your doctor should have irrigated the site to insure the wound was cleaned to lessen the chance of infection

Answer 7

you have done what u can. its fairly normal as far as i know for it to ache for a few days.

the kitten probably bit him because it was terrified but it is perfectly able to be tamed and could be a nice pet for you too!!

Answer 8

thats horrible....irrisponsible people are the blame for stray animals.

I dont think he should be in a lot of pain...doesnt sound right!!
Has his arm changed colour? is it red keep a close eye on him.

Can you take him to the hospital?

Answer 9

well it wasnt a lion cub but talk to a doctor