Just been bitten by my hamster - my own fault; I woke him up! It drew a little blood. Cleaned it straight away - I'm not too concerned but just wanted to check with you knowledgeable folk as to whether I should consider getting a tetanis. Not sure when I had one last...
And if I should where should I go? GP?
Thank you
2007-10-23 20:41:10 · 12 answers · asked by Mary-Jane 2 in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ First Aid
No - you lot are better and give more varied, interesting responses! Have cleaned it very well with Dettol.
2007-10-23 20:50:22 · update #1
You should be ok. Tetnus usually comes from metal or things like that but you should get a tetnus booster anyway when you can just in case you get cut outside later.
2007-10-27 19:37:09 · answer #1 · answered by bssd12000 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Tetnus shots are once every 10 years.
If you think you have been exposed to tetnus and have not had your shots, you can go to the doctor immediately and get an tetnus shot. If you have a tetnus shot right away it has a high probabiliy of stopping a tetnus infection.
PS. Do other things, such as clean the bite, put on antiseptic cream and dress it with the appropriate bandaid.
Like, go right now. Don't bother to vote me best answer, just head out the door to the nearest open doctor's office and tell them what happenned. Get your shot.
2007-10-24 03:47:27 · answer #2 · answered by flingebunt 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The chance of you contracting tetanus from just a hamster bite is only like a 1 out of 50,000 chance. I have been bitten by hamsters and know others who have been bitten too. It is not likely that you will get it. I wouldn't worry.
2007-10-24 03:48:22 · answer #3 · answered by Bridgee 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Tetanis comes from an exposure to animal dung. So unless your hamster has been eating horse poo in the barnyard, you probably have no worries. Now rabies on the other hand...
2007-10-24 03:45:22 · answer #4 · answered by MadGeniusClown 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
u should be fine, just run some peroxide over it, and if it is red and swollen tomorrow when you get up, go to your doctor and he will prob just give you an antibiotic cream to rub on it, but i dont believe you need a tetnis shot, but you might want to look into getting yours anyways, it sucks having to get it when something happens...i was in a really really bad car accident and in a lot of pain the nurse came in myhospital room like an hour after i got there and i was still in a neck brace and both arms were broke, she had no mercy!! she stabbed my arm so hard i thought i was going to die!! so take care of it before it makes your situation worse like it did to me!!
2007-10-24 03:47:01 · answer #5 · answered by kaligirl...xxx 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The organism that causes tetanus is usually found in the soil, so unless your pet has been crawling around outside you're probably OK. If it worries you your regular doc can give you one.
2007-10-24 03:44:57 · answer #6 · answered by barbara 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
your more then likely good to go. if you feel otherwise just go down to the docs later on today. no need for a mad dash. i got bit about 5 times in 2 days with our old hamster. he hated me. i couldnt stand him eithor. my fingers swelled up a little but not for long. i am not sure why he died but it wasnt long afterwords. kinda glad the ill tempered thing is gone.
2007-10-24 03:45:17 · answer #7 · answered by Ida 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
tetanus shots usually last 7 years. try to remember the last time you had stitches, or a bad cut, and went to the doctor. if you're a teen ager, or younger, ask your parents if they still have your shot records. your shots have to be kept up to date to enroll in schools. so every school you went to from elementary through high school would request your shots to be up to date.
2007-10-24 03:49:39 · answer #8 · answered by Barbara L 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
the last time i looked, there were no disease that transmitted between hamster to human.
you might want to check that on the net to see if it is still true.
2007-10-24 03:43:57 · answer #9 · answered by nickipettis 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you're gonna resort to getting medical advice on the web, don't so it on Yahoo Answers! Go to webmd at least!
2007-10-24 03:44:13 · answer #10 · answered by powerfantastic7 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋