How To Treat a Cat Bite

While cats are great pets, they are also a little moody and thus they are more prone to biting than dogs are.  If you get bitten by a cat, you need to take it seriously because of all of the bacteria that is in a cat's mouth.  Therefore, if you neglect a very small bite you can end up in big trouble.  This is because 40% of them will become infected.  With this in mind, it is important to know how to take the following steps in order to treat a cat bite:

1. The first thing that you will need to do in order to treat a cat bite is immediately flush it out well with warm water and an anti-bacterial soap.
2. After you have washed the cat bite, make sure to rinse it with hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol.  This will cause a bubbling action that will help to rinse out the wound.  Make sure to rinse it off with water again after using the hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol.
3. Use Betadine to treat a cat bite.  This is a brown surgical scrub.  It will kill any bacteria that are still there and sterilize the area.  Make sure that you don't get the Betadine on anything or it will stain.
4. Apply an antibiotic ointment to your wound in order to prevent an infection from occurring.
5. Put a band aid over your wound.  If the band aid is too small, use a gaze patch and some medical tape.  This will help to keep any dirt or grime from getting into your wound.
6. Visit your doctor if the cat bite has broken your skin, the bleeding does not stop in 15 minutes or if you have any other concerns.  The wound is probably a lot deeper than it looks.  You may also need to take some prescription antibiotics in order to avoid getting a staph infection.  This step is especially important if you have any redness, warmth or swelling in the area or if you get a fever.  While there you may need to get a tetanus shot if you have not had one in the past 5 years.  Your doctor will also determine if you need rabies shot which is not something to mess around with since this can be a fatal virus.