What to do if a cat was bitten by a wasp?

When the weather is warm and many insects are flying, any person or animal on the street can be bitten by a wasp, bee, horsefly and other similar air inhabitants. Typically, the cat itself causes an attack, trying to catch something flying, moving and buzzing. Or stumble upon a hornet’s nest and begin to explore - what is it? As a result, the case ends with a bitten muzzle and even (sometimes) tongue. Insects do not reach the body to protect themselves - thick fur rescues the furry huntress. How can you help an animal that has been attacked by biting insects?

How dangerous are insect bites for cats?

When a cat is young and inexperienced, everything is of interest to her - including insects. First of all, they are interesting as an object with which you can play catch-up, trying to catch it. So, do not be surprised that this often ends with bites.

When a cat bites an insect, it is necessary to determine where exactly the bite was produced. If any of the hind legs or the back of the body is affected, this does not matter. The body of a healthy cat will independently solve such a problem without the intervention of the owner. Maximum - the paw will swell, and the purr will not be able to run fast for a couple of days, but the body will quickly put everything in order. But a bite in the head or throat is already a more serious situation. The poison enters the bloodstream near the muzzle, mouth or nose of the animal and leads to swelling of the respiratory tract, which often results in suffocation.

If the defending wasp bites the animal in the eye, serious complications can occur in the form of inflammation and suppuration. For allergic cats, insect bites are quite dangerous.

Important! Aspen or bee stings are quite capable of leading to the death of an animal that is sensitive to poison - two or three bites cause intoxication and death.

Symptoms

1. Some place was swollen and everything turned red around.
2. The animal shakes its paw or head.
3. The cat has a lot of saliva.
4. The animal behaves uneasily, trying to reach its sting with a paw and scratch it.

If the animal is allergic, then it is expressed as follows:

• difficulty breathing and shortness of breath appears;
• the heart begins to beat very often;
• impaired coordination of movements;
• a state of shock sets in.

Although any cat can be bitten in the city, but most often similar situations happen when the owners leave for the country, taking their pets with them. And far from always there is an opportunity to get (and get through) to the clinic treating animals. Therefore, in such cases, all hope is only on the knowledge of the owner and the ability to independently provide first aid.

What you need to do - first aid

If the cat suffered on the street (which happens most often), it must be immediately brought into the apartment, placed in some not the hottest place and left alone. After a while, she will come to her senses.

If a cat was stung by a wasp, then there is no sting in the wound, but a bee or a bumblebee leaves it when it bites, and they die. The owner needs to take the tweezers and carefully remove the sting left by the insect. The procedure is painful, so it’s better for someone to keep the animal. Upon delivery, care must be taken to:

• Do not hurt the cat;
• Do not crush the sting, otherwise the poison contained in it will fall into the feline organism.

With an aspen or bee sting, a cold compress must be put on the bitten place, which helps relieve swelling and eliminates itching. You can use ice - wrap it in a bag of polyethylene or put in a clean rag. Instead of ice, you can also put meat or chicken in the freezer.

In such cases, a compress from soda also helps: dissolve soda in boiled water, moisten a clean cloth and apply to a bitten place. When carrying out manipulations, it would be nice to talk with your cat, because he suffers and needs the caring hands of a loving owner.

Also, the bitten place should be regularly cleaned with a solution of nine percent vinegar - it mixes with water in a one to one proportion. You can wipe with a normal solution with dissolved soap.

Ordinary ammonia relieves pain well: a cotton wool is moistened in it and a bitten place is rubbed.

Medical assistance

Bee stings are quite painful, and the animal experiences all sorts of inconveniences:

• with a bite in the paw 3-4 days lameness persists.
• a bite in the nose or, worse, in the mouth - greatly interferes with eating.

In these cases, hormones are used against inflammation. Typically, corticosteroids are prescribed by a doctor, but owners who are already faced with similar problems of their pets sometimes use them themselves.

Most commonly used are prednisone, sometimes dexamethasone. Prednisolone is given either in tablets or by intramuscular injections.

For a cat weighing 3-5 kilograms, it is enough to give half a tablet of 5 mg. Of course, when a bitten pet is aggressive or has too much salivation, it will not be easy to feed him medicine.

Better get an injection. Injection has one significant advantage - it acts faster. Every experienced cat owner probably has a veterinary kit with the essentials for first aid to your pet. It is very good if there will always be an ampoule with Prednisolone and a pair of insulin syringes in it. If after an insect bite the animal suffers from pain, and the bite is swollen, an intramuscular injection into the thigh should be done. And do it twice a day for about 3-4 days.

Clinic visit

As a rule, when a cat is bitten by an insect, the owner is quite capable of fighting the consequences of a bite at home. But there are times when a visit to the veterinarian is simply necessary:

1. The animal develops allergic Quincke edema.
2. The cat was bitten by several insects and the amount of poison in the blood is large.
3. The cat is small - less than six months. Kittens have a great sensitivity to all poisons.

In adult cats, bee stings do not cause consequences. But if there are problems with the immune system, then bad consequences can occur up to anaphylactic shock and death.

After a bite has been discovered, you need to watch the animal for a bit - is your appetite okay, has the cat become listless and lethargic. In fluffy (Siberian, Angora and others) it is necessary to carefully look under the jaw - whether the neck is swollen.

What not to do

1. Use menthol topical irritants designed to treat a person (such as Fenistil).
2. Give your pet antihistamine pills like Suprastin or Tavegil. The effectiveness of them is zero and they will not help the animal.

With a slight reaction to a bite, the doctor will do an examination, prescribe treatment and send the owners home with the animal. Another thing is if he sees that anaphylactic shock is manifested. This type of reaction can occur immediately as soon as there was a bite. If the cat is not helped, then it will die within an hour or two.

Signs of anaphylaxis

• the animal is either lethargic or highly agitated;
• vomiting
• pallor or blueness of the mucous membranes;
• the cat breathes with difficulty, wheezing;
• the pulse becomes frequent, weakens;
• spasms go through the body, the animal spontaneously urinates.

The veterinarian inserts a special tube, delivers oxygen through it, injects adrenaline and puts a dropper. The cat spends in the clinic at least a day - the doctor must make sure that she is in order.

Prevention

1. Protect the room by placing mosquito nets on the windows.
2. Destroy all hornet's nests on the territory of the cottage.
3. Feed your pet by putting food and water indoors, not outdoors.
4. Treat cat with repellents.

Most cats carry bites of various insects without any negative consequences. But every one of the thousands of cats can experience anaphylactic shock, which is the cause of her death. Therefore, each owner should be ready to provide timely assistance. You need to know: if the cat was previously bitten, and there were no signs of allergies - the same, perhaps, will continue.

Video: what to do if a dog or cat was bitten by a bee and wasp