Guest guest Posted March 16, 2010 Report Share Posted March 16, 2010 > > How does one work with the government to get body fluids off an unknown animal? Is this needed by me for testing? I don't think collecting body fluids and testing them makes much sense in this case. You are not likely to come into contact with the cat's blood in this case, which makes some types of infection unlikely. Even with infections that are in the saliva or on the claws, I doubt if testing the cat or its fluids has much value (maybe ask a vet?). I have read lots of articles about the pros and cons of having ticks tested after you got bitten, and I don't think it makes much sense. A tick byte is more dangerous than a cat byte, regarding infection potential. It does not give any guarantees ... > Not knowing the cat or its history I am very nervous, I have Lyme and was just bitten by something that was made mean, a neurotics or something, maybe bad treatment by humans. Having lyme is probably a risk factor because your immune system is weak. The tetanus shot and 200 mg doxy dialy sounds like a good precaution IMHO. Just watch out for new symptoms over the next days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 16, 2010 Report Share Posted March 16, 2010 Hi, Cats are known carriers for bartonella. Cats can be symptomatic (causes fever and/or inflammation of the eyes, respiratory tract, GI tract, mouth) or asymptomatic. They can get it from fleas and ticks, so a stray has an increased chance of having it. People can get a bartonella infection from a cat( " cat scratch disease " ) through a bite or scratch. Watch for fever, inflamation, redness or red streaks at/near the bite wound. The people at animal control probably don't want to risk getting someone else bitten by handling the cat to get a urine sample and risk having to extend his observation time there. By law, they have to observe an animal who has bitten for " X " amount of time(I thought it was 4 weeks) to make sure it doesn't have rabies. Maybe they could get a blood sample when they euthanize him. There is a blood test available called " FeBart " that tests for bartonella. No matter what though, cat mouths are full of pretty bad bacteria so antibiotics are definitely the way to go, even if he didn't have bart. A veterinarian isn't allowed to give humans medical advice, but if you know one, he/she could give you some guidance... Good luck, Aviva On Mar 15, 2010, at 3:53 PM, tre dan wrote: > > > Dear Groups: > > Hello. Last Tuesday I was bitten by a feral cat in the neighbor > hood. This cat showed up five days before. It was very aggressive > and defensive. I tried to walk by it to go out our steps to my car > and it would not move off the narrow porch. I tried to scare it > off, but it kept licking its lips and became more fixture like. > > I clapped and shooed, it stayed. I got the idea to go get food for > it and I cautiously stepped out side and spilled the cat food over > an area on the narrow porch/steps. It must have been starving it > inhaled the food and still would not move. I final got my husband > to come and work with the cat. He gently moved a broom between me > and cat so I could walk to the car. That was five days ago. Over > the five days we feed it more and one family member sat with the > cat for a long time and was allowed to pick up the cat and cuddle it. > > Then came last Tuesday. It came out of now where for food again > and I fed it. I walked toward the steps and up them and the cat > followed leaving its food, so I turned around to take the cat to > the food and pointed at the food and it charged my hand bite in ans > shook it like a shark to tear me apart. > > I wigged out and called my husband and 911 and they called animal > control. My arm was becoming painful, by six hours afterward I was > at the Dr's office. NON Lyme literate. I had eaten so I had to > wait until about 11:30 PM to take my first pill. I was bitten > about 1:30 AFTER NOON. The next pill was a 1:30 PM on Wednesday > then I missed a dose and took the next dose at 6:00 AM. So My > dosing is off by five hours. The next day i went in for a tetanus > shot. At another office. > > They told me to take doxy because of my allergies to penicillin. > The dose ten days worth at 100 mg twice a day. It is my first time > on doxy in two years. Doxy for Lyme is 28 days or longer. > > Should I try to get it extended? > > The cat is under observation but is a goner on Friday. I asked for > a stool or and urine sample which i figured would be easy to get > because of the cage that the animal is in. They said NO! They > said the cat appears healthy so far, but mean and angry. > > How does one work with the government to get body fluids off an > unknown animal? Is this needed by me for testing? > > Not knowing the cat or its history I am very nervous, I have Lyme > and was just bitten by something that was made mean, a neurotics or > something, maybe bad treatment by humans. But I am edgy and > worried. I am having trouble spelling just like before with the > tick bite. I hope this brain fog is the doxy killing stuff, my arm > is no longer in pain. > > The claw makes are less red as is the bite. > > Please write. I welcome your responses. > > Lymeover and out > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 16, 2010 Report Share Posted March 16, 2010 > > People can get a bartonella infection from a cat( " cat scratch > disease " ) through a bite or scratch. Watch for fever, inflamation, > redness or red streaks at/near the bite wound. isn't this another type of Bartonella than the one you can get from a tick byte? In my country we are told the 'cat scratch disease' will almost always heal spontaneously (maybe just bad advice like with lyme disease?). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 18, 2010 Report Share Posted March 18, 2010 The " test " for rabies is the observation period, which is evidently in effect. It's usu. 8 or 10 days. If the animal shows no behavioral signs of rabies in that period s/he's considered negative. The cat will probably be killed after the observation period. At that time, if the euthanasia chemical used doesn't confound it, a post-mortem blood test for Lyme and/or the co-infections might shed some light. Hopefully you won't have to threaten legal action to get that done, but you never know; indeed it would be good to have that option up your sleeve. Posted by: " Cook " cookease2nd@... cookease2nd > > When a ferral animal bites someone, isn't animal control required to test for Rabies at > the very least? Where are you located? It sounds like a pretty draconian area. Maybe you > can have a lawyer contact them regarding having tests done on the cat for Lyme etc. --------------------- T. O'Leary Chronic Nuisance Madison WI USA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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