Before I talk about cat bites signs of infection, I would like to put cat bites into perspective. A cat that is adequately socialised (raised to behave reasonably in relation to other animals and people) and is decently treated will not normally bite you aggressively. They may bite instinctively in play because, for a domestic cat, play is play-hunting which involves biting. Good cat caregivers learn to understand how to interact and handle their cat to avoid bites and scratches at all time and for the lifetime of the relationship.
Also, a cat might bite gently as a form of ‘kiss’. In the wild a tigress will “kiss” the male by biting him gently and then rubbing against him during mating (Sunquists). Or rarely, a cat might transfer aggression onto their owner because they have been wound up by something outside or even inside. A classic situation would be when a cat is chased by a fox let’s say and the cat can’t retaliate against the fox and so he expresses his aggression against his human companion. This is transferred aggression.
My cat occasionally bites me gently as a friendly gesture. He might also bite me gently and lick me in succession. These are all signs of friendship and not to be confused with unprovoked aggressive behaviour. Occasionally, the gentle ‘love bite’ might become too strong for me.
Sometimes people do get bitten hard by a cat and that will often, I believe, be the fault of the person or the problem can be traced back to human behaviour somewhere along the line so please don’t retaliate. It may be the result of a playful child being unaware of how to handle and treat a cat or usually a kitten – a recipe for possible problems. Admittedly, there are occasions when a cat will bite for no apparent reason but the hidden reason might be transferred aggression to name one example.
RELATED: Bacterial infection: cat bites versus human bites
Bacterial infection
You can tell quickly if a cat bite has become infected because of the usual inflamed (red) skin around the bite. See photo above. You have to take antibiotics immediately to kill the bacteria otherwise it gets worse and can be serious. Don’t delay.
The key point to take note of here is that if you are genuinely bitten by your cat or another cat for whatever reason and the skin is broken, you should carefully watch and wait. You should clean the area perhaps use an antiseptic spray and wait to see if your body’s immune system can deal with the bacteria that will inevitably be injected under your skin. In my experience 95% of the time or more there will be nothing to do because there will be no bacterial infection which develops.
However, if the immediate area around the bite hole becomes red and inflamed as shown in the photograph then you must take steps quickly to kill the infection with antibiotics. Speed is important and I have a page on the best antibiotics for a cat bite which may help. But see your doctor ASAP. Don’t think that it will go away because it almost certainly won’t. It will almost certainly get worse. The red area will expand.
Occasionally people have to go to hospital for a cat bite that they neglected to deal with. And an elderly neighbour of mine was bitten by a stray cat and she had a very bad infection which put her in hospital for quite a long time. Elderly people are particularly vulnerable in this regard. If they mishandle a stray cat, this is how a bite can happen.
RELATED: Health tip: preventing a toxoplasmosis infection from cat faeces
And now on to something similar: cat scratches.
Cat scratch fever(disease)
The first point to make about cat scratches is that they can be avoided. I have not been scratched for many, many years by my cat and he is an active, socialised feral cat. So, if you are being scratched you’ve got to learn to understand your cat and when he might instinctively take a swipe. They will nearly always be in response to what he thinks is play.
Secondly, cat scratches which lead to cat scratch fever are very rare. So once again if you’ve been scratched you just watch and wait. Almost on every occasion nothing will happen and the skin will heal naturally. But if cat scratch fever develops here is some information about it.
This is what the infection looks like although it varies in its extent.
It is believed that the cat carries an organism called Rochalimaea henselae or less often a bacteria called Afipa felis. The organism lives in the mouth of an infected cat and causes no symptoms of illness to the cat. The organism is transferred to the cats claws and paws during grooming. Accordingly, the organisms can be transferred to people from a bite or a scratch. It has never happened to me and I am sure that it is very rare. It is called Cat Scratch Disease.
The cat is only able to transmit the disease to people during a window of 2 –3 weeks. Let’s say it will be unusual if you have been infected by Rochalimaea henselae.
The cat bites signs of infection (symptoms) are:
| Event – cat bite signs of infection | Timetable – % of cases – occurrence |
| Raised red sore at the site of the bite or scratch | 3 – 10 days after the bite or scratch. There may be redness up the limb |
| Tender lymph nodes in the armpit (or neck and groin) | This may last for 2 – 5 months |
| Low level of fatigue, headache etc. | Less than 5% have this symptom |
| Other organs involved such as spleen, joints, eyes for example | Rare |
| Life threatening | Very rare and applying to people with suppressed immune systems |
Important note: Cat scratch disease is rare and it is positively not a reason to declaw a cat. There are almost no reasons to declaw. Please see Declawing Cats.
Preventative common-sense measures can be taken with children (teach how to handle a cat) and with people with defective immune systems. Young cats are more likely to scratch and bite it seems due to youthful vigour and lack of conditioning/socialisation.
More reading:
- Cat Scratch Fever (another post with slightly different information)
- Cat Scratch Fever Symptoms (new window). This is more medically orientated.
From cat bites signs of infection to Cat Health Problems
Source: Book 1 of PoC Medical References and Methods
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I have been fostering a kitten for a week now. He passed away today. We believe from respiratory problems. As tiny and fragile as he was, he was struggling with each breath, and as I held him in my hand, he bit the fool out of my pinky finger! He didn’t let go either. I had to pry his mouth. I won’t put blame on the little guy, but, it was of no fault of mine! I did not provoke him. I also remember a cat my grandparents had. He would hide underneath the dining room table and as people walked through, he would attack their legs. I have seen MANY terrible bites and scratches done by that cat. He was NEVER provoked!!
It does not look like provocation but inadvertently and unintentionally it is. This is because when you walk through the dining room a cat would see the legs as something to play with. In presenting yourself in their position at that time you are presenting to your cat a thing to play with and that it could be argued is a form of provocation or stimulation. It is stimulating your cat to play. As for the kitten it is hard to say exactly why he bit your little finger. Whatever the cause it would have been a natural response to the circumstances under which he found himself. For example, he may have felt that by holding him you were provoking play in him. My cat does this sometimes when I hold him. By holding a cat in a certain way it can stimulate them into playing with you and when a cat plays they want to bite it is perfectly natural. Alternatively, the fact that he couldn’t breathe and was ill may have provoked him to bite your finger possibly as a suckling response or something like that.
The point I’m making is that cats respond entirely naturally and if they bite or scratch it is a natural response to the circumstances that are occurring around them so under all circumstances the bite has occurred because of some form of provocation when the word “provocation” is used very widely.
Thanks for commenting and visiting this website.
And yet dogs are destroyed all the time for their confirmed antisocial behavior. This is how you domesticate any species. You destroy the genetic lines of that which is harmful to humans and keep only those genetic lines that are beneficial and non-harmful to humans. You are only guaranteeing that more dangerous cats are allowed to be born which will only make owning them even more of an unwanted thing by everyone and even more cats destroyed at the first signs of aggression. Nice plan. Blame the human for any cat-attack — blame yourself, you are perpetuating the existence of vicious animals just from your own ignorance. That’ll help! The days of cats being a desired “pet” are numbered, all thanks to people like you. Good.
Cat bites are nothing to play with. Puncture wounds run deep and close quick leaving harmful bacteria behind. 1 in 3 cat puncture bites to the hand require hospitalization (source: mayo clinic). If you get a puncture wound from a cat, even if it seems small, just go to the Dr and get some antibiotics and a tetanus shot. they are highly, highly infectious infectious. And no cats don’t always warn you… One minute purring and the next in a full attack.
Thanks Michelle. My cat bites me in play and the skin can be broken sometimes but only in a minor way. I wait and watch. People should never get into the situation where they can get bitten badly by a cat. Cat bites can always be avoided I feel with common sense, care and respect for the cat.
I respectfully disagree with you and would caution anyone with a puncture would to wait and watch.
Fair enough. For me it depends how bad the bite is. A serious bite should be dealt with by a doctor. A neighbour of mine some years ago ended up hospitalised because of a cat bite. She was an old lady who did nothing about the bite. I was entirely her fault.
As cat lover I must say to you sir that you are very misguided to believe that every cat gives fair warning and that cat attacks are always provoked. Forgive my honesty but you are not an authority on cat behaviour or medicine. My message is simply that in the event of a cat bite, regardless of who is at fault, it is important to seek medical attention and crucial if it is a puncture to the hand area. You are far too concerned with blame for your opinion to be taken seriously.
I agree with you–cat bites and scratches are common and rarely become anything more than a minor annoyance during healing. I’ve been bitten/scratched before (mostly during play time with young kittens) and have always been fine. However, last year I ended up in between a stray dog and cat and during their fight, I was bitten by the cat and dog (my fault for being in the middle–the cat didn’t mean to bite me).
I immediately washed with soap/water, used peroxide, bandaids to keep the wound clean. The next morning, my finger felt like it was broken and I went to the doctor to get a splint. I had a raging infection and the doctor said if I had waited any longer, I could have lost my finger or even hand. I had a quick recovery (just needed antibiotics). If you ever have pain worse the next day or see red streaking around the wound, immediately seek medical attention for a dog or cat bite).
Thanks for taking the time to pass on your personal experience. Very useful.
Hi, thanks for visiting. This is a matter of personal preference. If you are the cautious type there is no harm in seeing a doctor but you might not get to see one until several days have passed. At which point you will probably discover that the swelling etc. is due to the bite and not an infection.
Personally, I would keep the wound clean, apply antiseptic cream and wait and watch. You will know if you have an infection soon enough! Then you can get some treatment.
Another page on cat scratch fever:-
http://cat-chitchat.pictures-of-cats.org/2008/10/cat-scratch-fever-symptoms.html
Good luck.
Hi all! I have a question, my house was broken into a couple days ago, & since then my cats have seemed stressed, night before last 2 of them got into a HUGE fight, total ball of fur, my knee jerk reaction was to reach in & grab one of them, who didnt see me coming & of course, turned & bit me, he got my finger & broke thru the skin & I do believe to the bone, it has scabbed well but is very swollen & painful, I can barely bend it… do I need a dr you think or is it from the tooth going so far? by the way, once my cat realized what he did he will not leave my side, I cant even use the restroom without him staying right by my feet… LOL