why in the hell is it the hospital's business about your cat? How is it the health department is calling you regarding this?

the spread of rabies.

but who knows in the future? He's getting up there in age.

It states that people who are bitten by animals have to report it. What I read was aimed at rabies, but it did not specifically say that was all they were checking for.
I am more likely to bite them than my 2 cats are.

the animal.


If you don't want to let them in, put Fluffy in a pet carrier and bring her out to the porch.

Inspecting the animal doesn't necessarily mean they get to strut through your house.

They are going to call him.
The pet carrier is a good idea. I really don't want them checking my apartment. I don't have anything to hide that I know of. I just don't want them going beyond their mandate.

You would have been fine

What would John Wayne do?

I always clean it thoroughly and put Neosporin or something on it. It's a puncture wound and whatever germ she has living in her mouth is deadly to me. No matter how much I try to clean it using various substances, the area around the bite will be all swole up in an hour.

a couple years ago my knee starting hurting and swelling up, doc put me on antibiotics..didn't work..


Ended up having to be put under and they sliced my knee open to clean and drain it- Most pain I've ever felt in my life- Best I and doc could figure is I got it from a thorn or something working outside.






Prepatellar bursitis
Prepatellar bursitis (also known as beat knee,[1] carpet layer's knee, coal miner's knee, housemaid's knee[2] rug cutter's knee, or nun's knee) [3] is an inflammation of the prepatellar bursa at the front of the knee. It is marked by swelling at the knee, which can be tender to the touch but which does not restrict the knee's range of motion. It is most commonly caused by trauma to the knee, either by a single acute instance or by chronic trauma over time. As such, prepatellar bursitis commonly occurs among individuals whose professions require frequent kneeling.

A definitive diagnosis of the condition can usually be made once a clinical history and physical examination have been obtained, though determining whether or not the bursitis is septic is not as straightforward. Treatment of prepatellar bursitis depends on the severity of the symptoms. Mild cases may only require rest and icing of the knee. A number of different treatment options have been used for severe septic cases, including intravenous antibiotics, surgical irrigation of the bursa, and bursectomy.

This is a swelling of the bursa in the back of the knee. It can tear and the fluid can enter the lower leg. That's what happened to me.
Here's a pic-


It was a lot darker than that in the beginning. I felt awful and I finally went back to the doctor when it looked like a giant bruise. He sent me to the hospital.

They did an ultrasound on that leg to make sure there weren't any blood clots. None were found.

I felt so bad that I wondered if I was dying. I then decided I didn't care.

It took every bit of willpower I had to take care of the cats. It was a good 6 months before everything was really back to normal.

they were all quite nice. In college I managed restaurants and got along fine with them too.

perhaps some sort of fear of that? i hope you don't get the power-tripper either... good luck.

sP

I hear you and I hope it goes well.

Explaining to them about her being 16yo and deaf and an indoor cat and current on her shots should do the trick but I understand about 'power trips' and all,,,, Good Luck and ouch! on getting bitten

been there a few times. The last one was just a few months ago... my small cat, age 13, jumped on the bed about 5 am and startled my bigger, part-Maine Coon, age 12. The big guy was sleeping next to my right calf... seven puncture wounds later, he stopped biting. Thank goodness he has only one canine tooth or it would have been more. Went to the ER later in the day but major infection and cellulitis had already set in, doctor wanted me in the hospital overnight but I refused, went to the ER three nights in a row for IV antibiotics and minor surgery to drain the wounds.

When I was triaged, the nurse filled out a form from the county health department, wanting to know all about he cat, his living conditions, inside or outside, had he bitten me before (yes, like yours, he gets startled... a big fraidy cat), and details of what happened. The nurse told me that the paper would be filed with the health department. Never any mention of anyone coming to visit and never had a follow-up. I suppose all jurisdictions are different.

I know it hurts, so rest and take all your antibiotics.

Feel better soon.

I was teasing the cat, he bit - hard. I cleaned the cut, but it still got infected. I had to fill out the form in the emergency room, but there wasn't any followup. Rabies is common in the local rodent and raccoon population, though.

A still have some discoloration on the other arm where the ER people kept hunting for a suitable vein, but the bite itself healed quickly - after 3 sessions of IV antibiotics and 2 weeks of oral ones. The cat is fine.

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It was just another cat day for her. Biting me was not on her concern list.

mitts that go halfway to the elbow!!! That should cut down on the bites!

I have a poorly behaved rescue parrot that likes to bite on occasion--I use heavy leather garden gloves to thwart him! He is a little shit--when he gets in a mood, he'll bite, laugh, and say "No biting!"

I will use them with a long sleeve shirt.

They work in keeping her from biting me if I clip her nails.
I get her attention by shaking something she is on. I never put my hand on her if she is asleep or unaware of my presence.

The morning of the 2000 election, my cat nailed me on the base of my left thumb. By midnight when I finally gave in and let my wife take me to the ER, the infection had spread to the point where the doc said if I had waited 'til morning they probably would have not been able to save my arm; another day and they wouldn't have been able to save my life.

I had to have my vet produce the cat's medical records, vaxes, etc. I was visited by a guy from the CDC and apparently the antibiotic cocktail they used was so complicated, a technical rep from the pharmaceutical company showed up too.

But there was never an mention of quarantining or taking my cat.

Take care, follow the instructions for the antibiotics to a tee, and give profuse thanks to whomever you give profuse thanks to for antibiotics. Without those, you probably wouldn't make it.

No one asked me anything about the cat's health or records. Must be the difference in local or state laws.

I was pretty disgusted by the number of people who assumed that I either had, or was going to kill the cat that bit me.

A family member's dog was quarantined for 45 days. At first it was hard because he loved to run around in the back yard. And then he got VERY used to being in the house and didn't want to go out.

you make every effort to not startle her.

I think the state is correct to make sure you sign that paper about keeping her inside, and I don't blame them for making sure you appear capable of doing so (for example, no cat door.)

My niece almost died from a cat bite.

I just wonder what happened to a report the last 2 times I was bitten.
And as I said, I just hope the person they send isn't a jackass and the meeting is comfortable.

I am not going to give any attitude, but I am not going to take any either.

I also think that it is pretty remarkable I haven't been bitten more considering her age and condition.

I think you're remarkably patient with that cat.

or a couple days after? Possibly a culture turned up something that was reportable to the state and warrants extra caution?

Or, as others have written, are they concerned about rabies? Did she have a rabies vaccination? If so, you may want to have the certificate available...

I think there are more cases of rabies than usual or something.
If they want to check, ok. They have to be cautious.

They don't know me or the cat. They probably want to make sure she isn't wild as hell and unhealthy.(That would be me.)

But increased rabies cases would matter.

animal bite reporting and investigation as part of rabies control.

You just make the point that the bite was basically provoked since you startled her. They will tell you to keep her indoors, and if she dies or develops neurologic disease in the next 10 days, they will need to test for rabies.

I checked online and saw that SC had a law.
It makes sense. Nobody wants rabies or whatever to take off.

I am just going to tell them the story I just posted. I think it makes sense that an old deaf cat would bite if startled.

As I said, I just hope it's a cordial meeting.

Just last week, I got a letter from Veteran's Affairs about this. It gives a very brief and incomplete description of circumstances under which they will share information from my medical record -without my authorization-.

Among the various things is a statement that they will share information for "Health and Safety Activities", "Public Health Activities", and "Law Enforcement".

You can call me paranoid but I suspect these changes were motivated to insure information sharing to fill gaps in the FBI quick check database to get better compliance with existing laws/regulations about gun purchasing. The clarifications clearly impact broader areas of potential government concern...reporting cat-bites in the home is just an indication the policy is generally being followed.

As always, opening a door for one reason facilitates traffic for all reasons.

He was old and probably nearly blind. I forgot to wash my hands after eating and he mistook me for a chicken nugget. I had to get stitches at the ER and next thing I know the health department wanted to take him. I hid him at a friend's house and told them he ran away. I think they'd have killed him if I let them take him.