cat scratch fever...
okay -- here's what happened a week ago: my "baby" cat, bartok (he's a year old, but still the youngest), can open our doors throughout the inside of the house -- they're the bar type, with a horizontal handle and a little decorative curlicue on the end. well, he tried to open the door to the basement, it sometimes closes because the floors are uneven (it's an old house), and somehow got one claw caught. i heard a *horrible* screaming and thumping, thought the two cats were wrestling way more vigorously than usual (and perhaps
killing each other), ran downstairs to see what was going on, and saw my poor kitty hanging by one claw about a foot off the floor, unable to get any purchase on the door. so i grabbed him, trying to get him loose, and he didn't know what was going on -- twisting and screaming -- i was afraid his little leg was going to break right off! -- so i tried to free him, and he bit and scratched the living daylights out of me. kabuki, the older cat, didn't know what to do, and probably thought i was killing bartok, so he jumped on me and bit me three or four times. they got my right hand but good, the left a little less, and tore a couple of big chunks out of the top of my ear. there was blood *everywhere*! it was soooo gross! (like a bad horror movie and a stupid sitcom had a baby.) so he finally got loose (this was about a minute total) and ran off to hide. i was bleeding from my hands, neck, and ear, and freaking out -- about my injuries, but mostly about the "baby".
i finally got cleaned up and went to the er... where i waited for five hours for a rude nurse practitioner to tell me: "it'll heal." so for the last few days my hand muscles have been all stiff, as are my neck, arms (had to get a tetanus shot, too), and leg. and my ear hurts. so does my head, because kabuki bit my head, too! mostly, though, i'm irritated because the nurse guy could have at least treated me like i was a person who'd wasted my whole day waiting to be looked at. and the entire "visit" with the guy was about five minutes total.
grrrr. at least i got some antibiotics that make me nauseated! bartok is okay -- we took him to the vet friday -- he broke his toe, and we had to let the vet remove that claw and a bit of the toe bone that had broken completely off. he was all "drunk" from the sedative, and in a big bandage that he couldn't walk on. poor baby. it was a rough day. but at least i had the day off... i'd hate to have had him get stuck when nobody was home.
killing each other), ran downstairs to see what was going on, and saw my poor kitty hanging by one claw about a foot off the floor, unable to get any purchase on the door. so i grabbed him, trying to get him loose, and he didn't know what was going on -- twisting and screaming -- i was afraid his little leg was going to break right off! -- so i tried to free him, and he bit and scratched the living daylights out of me. kabuki, the older cat, didn't know what to do, and probably thought i was killing bartok, so he jumped on me and bit me three or four times. they got my right hand but good, the left a little less, and tore a couple of big chunks out of the top of my ear. there was blood *everywhere*! it was soooo gross! (like a bad horror movie and a stupid sitcom had a baby.) so he finally got loose (this was about a minute total) and ran off to hide. i was bleeding from my hands, neck, and ear, and freaking out -- about my injuries, but mostly about the "baby".
i finally got cleaned up and went to the er... where i waited for five hours for a rude nurse practitioner to tell me: "it'll heal." so for the last few days my hand muscles have been all stiff, as are my neck, arms (had to get a tetanus shot, too), and leg. and my ear hurts. so does my head, because kabuki bit my head, too! mostly, though, i'm irritated because the nurse guy could have at least treated me like i was a person who'd wasted my whole day waiting to be looked at. and the entire "visit" with the guy was about five minutes total.
grrrr. at least i got some antibiotics that make me nauseated! bartok is okay -- we took him to the vet friday -- he broke his toe, and we had to let the vet remove that claw and a bit of the toe bone that had broken completely off. he was all "drunk" from the sedative, and in a big bandage that he couldn't walk on. poor baby. it was a rough day. but at least i had the day off... i'd hate to have had him get stuck when nobody was home.