cat scratches

[blacksalt]

Sara wrote:

> Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
> "cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)

My biggest worry would be a down right mauling when the cat gets sick of
it. If it were my cat, I'd protect it from maulings from baby, even if
it means using a squirt bottle to train cat to get up and leave when
baby approaches. Just because deep bites haven't happened yet, doesn't
mean they won't, nor that an eye won't be scratched. I've seen both. I'm
lucky, my cat naturally votes with its feet when baby is afoot.
blacksalt
who took the next polite moment to extract baby from an co-worker's lap
at a party when she lowered baby and let him pull a handful of hair from
a strange (sleeping) dog's tail. Boy was this party an eye-opener.
Another co-worker let her 13 month old crawl up 5 big outdoor steps (no
backing) onto a burning hot deck unsupervised (watched from at least 20
feet away). And these were NURSES!

[Sara]

My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.

Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
"cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[silvasurfa]

"Sara" > wrote in message
...
> My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
> to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
> there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
> stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.
>
> Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
> "cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)
>
> --
> Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle
>
> << I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

Is there a relative you can send the cat to for a holiday until the baby can
talk... they are a *lot* easier to teach when they can talk... also taller
so their eyes are more out of paw strike range.

[Sara]

silvasurfa wrote:

> Is there a relative you can send the cat to for a holiday until the baby can
> talk... they are a *lot* easier to teach when they can talk... also taller
> so their eyes are more out of paw strike range.

Nope, the cat's here to stay.

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[Sara]

blacksalt wrote:

> My biggest worry would be a down right mauling when the cat gets sick of
> it. If it were my cat, I'd protect it from maulings from baby, even if
> it means using a squirt bottle to train cat to get up and leave when
> baby approaches. Just because deep bites haven't happened yet, doesn't
> mean they won't, nor that an eye won't be scratched.

That's what I'm most worried about -- that Ollie's eye will get
scratched.

We're trying to teach Telephone (the cat) to run away, and to take
naps up where Ollie can't reach him, but it isn't working. The cat
seems to really like Ollie -- he rubs up against him and purrs, and
likes to hang out with him. It just is every now and then when Ollie's
too rough, Telephone scratches him.

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[Sara]

P. Tierney wrote:

> I think if the child has "quite a few" scratches, then there is
> something
> to worry about. My 18 month old has received, maybe, three mild scratches
> from a combined four clawed cats. It sounds like yours is getting more
> than that from just one in half the time, so I suspect there's a
> relationship problem between the two.

The thing is, they get along well and usually enjoy each other's
company -- it's not that the cat doesn't like the baby.

> I'd try to gradually teach the child how to pet and treat the cat
> properly.

Any advice on how to do this? We're trying to teach him "gentle," and
show him over and over how to stroke the cat. Ollie's stopped biting
him and doesn't grab his fur with both hands any more, so there's been
progress.

> Until your child learns, which should take awhile considering his age,
> I'd monitor their "playtime" pretty closely.

They're together all day and night, so it's pretty difficult. On the
plus side, Ollie's trying to say "cat," we think -- he makes this
coughing sound only at the cat -- so at least I get some warning when
that's who he's focusing on.

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[Sara]

Sue wrote:

> You need to begin to teach the baby to pet the cat nice and how to treat the
> cat. Also, you might want to give the cat a safe place he can escape to when
> h/she has had enough of the baby.

He's got a few places he can go -- he just would rather hang out with
me and the baby. Sigh.

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[LFortier]

Sara wrote:

>My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
>to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
>there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
>stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.
>
>Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
>"cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)
>
>
>
Scars. My 9 yo dd has a thin scar on the side of her nose from a cat
scratch when she was a baby or toddler. I second the idea of the cat
having lots of safe places to hide, and really work on the concept of
gentle. With time and repetition, Ollie will catch on.

Lesley

[Sue]

You need to begin to teach the baby to pet the cat nice and how to treat the
cat. Also, you might want to give the cat a safe place he can escape to when
h/she has had enough of the baby.
--
Sue
mom to three girls

Sara > wrote in message
...
> My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
> to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
> there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
> stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.
>
> Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
> "cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)
>
> --
> Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle
>
> << I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[GI Trekker]

<<Ollie's trying to say "cat," we think -- he makes this
coughing sound only at the cat>>

I'm sorry, I know this is a rather serious issue, but I can't resist...

Are you sure this coughing sound isn't a hairball?

[Sara]

llama mama wrote:

> we have one cat
> that will let Boo maul him, a deaf cat named Faucet. he *will* scratch if
> extremely provoked, but it takes a lot to get him to. i can't remember
> him scratching more than 4 or 5 times before Boo got the hint that tails
> aren't pull toys, and they were always very light scratches.

Our cat is deaf. I wonder if there's a connection? Anyway, I'm hoping
Ollie will learn soon. He's had about four or five scratches -- not
all that many, but the problem is that they're on the face and head.
We're afraid the cat is aiming for the eyes.


> http://www.tarogue.net/~tom/brennan/more/1-home/mvc-011f.jpg Faux meets
> the baby

Maybe our cats are related:
http://chatteringmind.com/photos/2002/December_16-22,2002/quit_taking_o
ur_picture.jpg

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[Sara]

LFortier wrote:

> ...really work on the concept of
> gentle. With time and repetition, Ollie will catch on.

Good to know. Thanks.

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[silvasurfa]

"Sara" > wrote in message
...
> llama mama wrote:
>
> > we have one cat
> > that will let Boo maul him, a deaf cat named Faucet. he *will* scratch
if
> > extremely provoked, but it takes a lot to get him to. i can't remember
> > him scratching more than 4 or 5 times before Boo got the hint that tails
> > aren't pull toys, and they were always very light scratches.
>
> Our cat is deaf. I wonder if there's a connection?

Possibly. Most very small kids squeal as they run towards a cat... so most
cats get prior warning to clear out.

Anyway, I'm hoping
> Ollie will learn soon. He's had about four or five scratches -- not
> all that many, but the problem is that they're on the face and head.
> We're afraid the cat is aiming for the eyes.

Very likely... that's one of the ways they fight when they fight each other.

[iphigenia]

Sara wrote:
>>
>> Heh. Actually, we've wondered if he's trying to say "cat," or if he's
>> making cat sounds.
>>

That could be amusing when other people ask him if he knows what a cat
says...

"Hack...hack...hack"

--
iphigenia
www.tristyn.net

[silvasurfa]

"Sara" > wrote in message
...
> silvasurfa wrote:
>
> > Is there a relative you can send the cat to for a holiday until the baby
can
> > talk... they are a *lot* easier to teach when they can talk... also
taller
> > so their eyes are more out of paw strike range.
>
> Nope, the cat's here to stay.
>


There are ways of blunting claws just a bit that don't involve declawing.
I've heard of a stick on product called soft-paws (i think that's what it is
called) and some people just regularly trim off the very end of the claw to
make it slightly less pointy. I doubt this will solve the problem
completely, but it may be worth it as a temporary extra precaution until
your child reaches an age of more sense.

[Andrea]

Sara > wrote in message >...
> My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
> to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
> there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
> stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.
>
> Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
> "cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)

Sara,

I have a great online reference for you about Cats & Kids found at the
address: http://www.flippyscatpage.com/health.html#children .

Please let me know if this helped.

Andrea :)

[Mary W.]

Sara wrote:

> My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
> to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
> there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
> stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.
>
> Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
> "cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)
>

Glad to hear the cat is here to stay :) We've got a cat and two dogs
and a 2 yo daughter. No major mishaps yet. Lots of supervision.
The cat, smartly, keeps her distance from DD (although she does
sleep on her bed at night), and DD went through a stage of
hitting the dogs. Correction, redirection and supervision eventually
prevailed.

For your immediate problem, while Ollie is still little you might
look into those plastic coverings for kitty claws. Vet offices
sell them. They just glue onto the claws. This should
provide some measure of protection for the baby. Continue
to supervise, and redirect Ollie and provide a safe haven for the
cat.

Mary

[T.R.H.]

This is very simple to me.

The baby doesnt know better when it comes to handling a cat, and won't for
quite a while.

The cat doesnt care if the baby knows better or should know better.

The cat will react defensively and most likely with aggression to discourage
it when it goes to far (and it will)

Your baby is in real danger of getting very badly scratched/mauled or worse,
his vision permantly damaged.

You need to separate the cat from the baby until he knows better, end of
story.

cheers


"Sara" > wrote in message
...
> blacksalt wrote:
>
> > My biggest worry would be a down right mauling when the cat gets sick of
> > it. If it were my cat, I'd protect it from maulings from baby, even if
> > it means using a squirt bottle to train cat to get up and leave when
> > baby approaches. Just because deep bites haven't happened yet, doesn't
> > mean they won't, nor that an eye won't be scratched.
>
> That's what I'm most worried about -- that Ollie's eye will get
> scratched.
>
> We're trying to teach Telephone (the cat) to run away, and to take
> naps up where Ollie can't reach him, but it isn't working. The cat
> seems to really like Ollie -- he rubs up against him and purrs, and
> likes to hang out with him. It just is every now and then when Ollie's
> too rough, Telephone scratches him.
>
> --
> Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle
>
> << I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[silvasurfa]

"T.R.H." > wrote in message
...
> This is very simple to me.
>
> The baby doesnt know better when it comes to handling a cat, and won't for
> quite a while.

> The cat doesnt care if the baby knows better or should know better.
>
> The cat will react defensively and most likely with aggression to
discourage
> it when it goes to far (and it will)
>
> Your baby is in real danger of getting very badly scratched/mauled or
worse,
> his vision permantly damaged.
>
> You need to separate the cat from the baby until he knows better, end of
> story.
>
> cheers

And the humanest way to do that IMHO is give the cat a holiday at a friend's
house. Even 6 months to a year would help a lot, although 2 years would see
the kid pretty much out of major danger. Many animal loving people are
thrilled to take care of someone's pet for a while if the owner supplies
food and pays for any vet costs. An elderly relative or neighbour might be a
good option.

[P. Tierney]

"Sara" > wrote:
>
> > I'd try to gradually teach the child how to pet and treat the cat
> > properly.
>
> Any advice on how to do this? We're trying to teach him "gentle," and
> show him over and over how to stroke the cat. Ollie's stopped biting
> him and doesn't grab his fur with both hands any more, so there's been
> progress.

That's sort of how we've done it. "Gentle" was always said when
she petted the cat, which used to be always in a very rough manner.
She now does okay most of the time. "Off limits" is a catch-all
phrase that we use for several areas (behind the TV, the street, etc.)
and have applied that to the tail area, for now. "No chase" has
been used a few times too. (I try not to use "no" at all, as suggested
by many, but there are a few areas in which I can't think of any way
to phrase things positively, such as the above.)

> > Until your child learns, which should take awhile considering his age,
> > I'd monitor their "playtime" pretty closely.
>
> They're together all day and night, so it's pretty difficult.

Then it's hard to say. Maybe the advice of some others might work.
Our cats keep to themselves a lot, and go outside, so they don't have a
huge amount of face time with the child. When they do, I'm usually there.



P. Tierney

[llama mama]

Sara > wrote in
:

> llama mama wrote:
>
>> we have one cat
>> that will let Boo maul him, a deaf cat named Faucet. he *will*
>> scratch if extremely provoked, but it takes a lot to get him to. i
>> can't remember him scratching more than 4 or 5 times before Boo got
>> the hint that tails aren't pull toys, and they were always very light
>> scratches.
>
> Our cat is deaf. I wonder if there's a connection? Anyway, I'm hoping
> Ollie will learn soon. He's had about four or five scratches -- not
> all that many, but the problem is that they're on the face and head.
> We're afraid the cat is aiming for the eyes.

not that likely. it's just that the face is usually the closest thing to
the cat's paw. Boo did get a couple face scratches, one next to his eye
(but that was from Bran, not Faux).
>
>
>> http://www.tarogue.net/~tom/brennan/more/1-home/mvc-011f.jpg Faux
>> meets the baby
>
> Maybe our cats are related:
> http://chatteringmind.com/photos/2002/December_16-22,2002/quit_taking_o
> ur_picture.jpg

oh, he does look like Faux. does he have one blue & one yellow eye or
both blue? the gene for deafness is linked to the blue-eyed gene in cats
(and llamas, it seems)
lee
--
It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate
between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital
connection between them. -Leo Buscaglia, author (1924-1998)

[Sara]

llama mama wrote:

> oh, he does look like Faux. does he have one blue & one yellow eye or
> both blue? the gene for deafness is linked to the blue-eyed gene in cats
> (and llamas, it seems)

Both are greenish-blue. He's completely white, every hair on him --
I've been told that white animals frequently are deaf.

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[Sara]

Andrea wrote:

> I have a great online reference for you about Cats & Kids found at the
> address: http://www.flippyscatpage.com/health.html#children .
>
> Please let me know if this helped.

There's some good information there -- thanks.

I'm going to supervise them better and hope they both grow to behave
themselves soon. When they _do_ get along, it's wonderful; I love
hearing the cat purr as the baby pets him, or seeing the cat rub his
head against the baby.

Thanks to all of you for your advise!

--
Sara, accompanied by the baby barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[Plissken]

"Sara" > wrote in message
...
> My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
> to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
> there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
> stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.
>
> Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
> "cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)


I don't post here much but just had to say that I now have that damn Ted
Nugent song running through my head!!

Nadene

[dragonlady]

In article >,
Sara > wrote:

> P. Tierney wrote:
>
> > I think if the child has "quite a few" scratches, then there is
> > something
> > to worry about. My 18 month old has received, maybe, three mild scratches
> > from a combined four clawed cats. It sounds like yours is getting more
> > than that from just one in half the time, so I suspect there's a
> > relationship problem between the two.
>
> The thing is, they get along well and usually enjoy each other's
> company -- it's not that the cat doesn't like the baby.
>
> > I'd try to gradually teach the child how to pet and treat the cat
> > properly.
>
> Any advice on how to do this? We're trying to teach him "gentle," and
> show him over and over how to stroke the cat. Ollie's stopped biting
> him and doesn't grab his fur with both hands any more, so there's been
> progress.
>
> > Until your child learns, which should take awhile considering his age,
> > I'd monitor their "playtime" pretty closely.
>
> They're together all day and night, so it's pretty difficult. On the
> plus side, Ollie's trying to say "cat," we think -- he makes this
> coughing sound only at the cat -- so at least I get some warning when
> that's who he's focusing on.

Depending upon how bad it gets, you might need to find a way to lock the
kitty in another room unless you can be right on top of the two of them.

I know how hard this can be to do, but even if it means locking the cat
in the bathroom for a while, if it means protecting the cat and the baby
from each other while you are, for example, cooking dinner, you might
have to.

I got lucky, and my cat trained my kids with only one scratch -- and
that one was deserved. (Child was older, and when I asked what she was
doing when the cat scratched her, she said she was "just petting her
under her tail". Never did that again.)
--
Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care

[silvasurfa]

"dragonlady" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> Sara > wrote:
>
> > P. Tierney wrote:
> >
> > > I think if the child has "quite a few" scratches, then there is
> > > something
> > > to worry about. My 18 month old has received, maybe, three mild
scratches
> > > from a combined four clawed cats. It sounds like yours is getting
more
> > > than that from just one in half the time, so I suspect there's a
> > > relationship problem between the two.
> >
> > The thing is, they get along well and usually enjoy each other's
> > company -- it's not that the cat doesn't like the baby.
> >
> > > I'd try to gradually teach the child how to pet and treat the cat
> > > properly.
> >
> > Any advice on how to do this? We're trying to teach him "gentle," and
> > show him over and over how to stroke the cat. Ollie's stopped biting
> > him and doesn't grab his fur with both hands any more, so there's been
> > progress.
> >
> > > Until your child learns, which should take awhile considering his age,
> > > I'd monitor their "playtime" pretty closely.
> >
> > They're together all day and night, so it's pretty difficult. On the
> > plus side, Ollie's trying to say "cat," we think -- he makes this
> > coughing sound only at the cat -- so at least I get some warning when
> > that's who he's focusing on.
>
> Depending upon how bad it gets, you might need to find a way to lock the
> kitty in another room unless you can be right on top of the two of them.
>
> I know how hard this can be to do, but even if it means locking the cat
> in the bathroom for a while, if it means protecting the cat and the baby
> from each other while you are, for example, cooking dinner, you might
> have to.

You can plan it so sometimes the baby is strapped in the highchair near you,
and sometimes the cat is the one locked out of the way... that would
distribute the burden so neither of them would be likely to notice it so
much. Also good is if you try to plan something to distract the restrained
small creature with during their incarceration... crayons and paper for the
baby, schedule a feed for the cat when the cat gets locked away.

If the weather is cold, then making the place you want the cat to sit be
warm will mean the cat is a lot more likely to hang out there. Also, if the
weather is good and the cat doesn't get out the house much then buying an
outside cat run that attaches to a window (depends a lot on your house
design) might be a good thing.

If you think the deafness might be an issue, and you are lucky enough to
have hard floors, maybe putting improvised tap shoes on the baby would help
give the cat warning of when the baby is descending fast on him, by
vibrations through the floor.

[Sara]

silvasurfa wrote:

> If you think the deafness might be an issue, and you are lucky enough to
> have hard floors, maybe putting improvised tap shoes on the baby would help...

If nothing else, this would be good entertainment for me...

--
Sara, accompanied by the shufflin'-off-to-Buffalo barnacle

<< I check this e-mail account infrequently >>

[T.R.H.]

"snipped
> I don't post here much but just had to say that I now have that damn Ted
> Nugent song running through my head!!
>
> Nadene

Me too! but I LIKE IT! :-)

[Plissken]

"T.R.H." > wrote in message
...
>
> "Candio" > wrote in message
> s.com...
> > On 23 Jul 2003, "T.R.H." > wrote in
> > :
> >
> > >
> > > "snipped
> > >> I don't post here much but just had to say that I now have that damn
> Ted
> > >> Nugent song running through my head!!
> > >>
> > >> Nadene
> > >
> > > Me too! but I LIKE IT! :-)
> >
> > it's only rock 'n' roll but I like it like it yes I do
>
> and Ted helps get me pumped for the up-n-coming hunting season - YEAH!
>

So you need Ted to get you pumped up to kill Bambie ;-)

[T.R.H.]

"Plissken" > wrote in message
. ca...
>
> "T.R.H." > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "Candio" > wrote in message
> > s.com...
> > > On 23 Jul 2003, "T.R.H." > wrote in
> > > :
> > >
> > > >
> > > > "snipped
> > > >> I don't post here much but just had to say that I now have that
damn
> > Ted
> > > >> Nugent song running through my head!!
> > > >>
> > > >> Nadene
> > > >
> > > > Me too! but I LIKE IT! :-)
> > >
> > > it's only rock 'n' roll but I like it like it yes I do
> >
> > and Ted helps get me pumped for the up-n-coming hunting season - YEAH!
> >
>
> So you need Ted to get you pumped up to kill Bambie ;-)
>
>
nope, don't need anything, the adreneline gets going on its own once I'm
stalking something.

And its usually swamp donkeys I go after, but will take "bambi's" dad if he
crosses my path and the freezers getting low. :-)

[The Visionary]

"LFortier" > wrote in message
...
> >
> Scars. My 9 yo dd has a thin scar on the side of her nose from a cat
> scratch when she was a baby or toddler. I second the idea of the cat
> having lots of safe places to hide, and really work on the concept of
> gentle. With time and repetition, Ollie will catch on.

It's not just babies that get scratched from cats either.
My 15 year old son pushed our cat just that little bit too far couple of
weeks ago. He wasn't being cruel, just messing about, but the cat didn't
appreciate it! I heard a terrible hiss from the cat then a loud wail of pain
from said teenage son. The cat had left a bloody scratch the complete
length of one of his thighs.
I had little sympathy for him as he winced as I dabbed Dettol into it!

[E]

"GI Trekker" > wrote in message
...
> <<Ollie's trying to say "cat," we think -- he makes this
> coughing sound only at the cat>>
>
> I'm sorry, I know this is a rather serious issue, but I can't resist...
>
> Are you sure this coughing sound isn't a hairball?

this actually got an OUT LOUD laugh from me. I usually just grin big at
funny things on here :)
Edith
nak

[E]

"LFortier" > wrote in message
...
> Sara wrote:
>
> >My nine-month-old baby loves our cat. Loves to chase him, to pet him,
> >to try to eat him. The cat is surprisingly tolerant, but... well...
> >there have been incidents. We keep the cat's claws trimmed and try to
> >stop the violence, but even so Ollie's getting quite a few scratches.
> >
> >Is there anything to worry about with these scratches? I've read about
> >"cat scratch fever," but anything else? (He's an indoor, healthy cat.)
> >
> >
> >
> Scars. My 9 yo dd has a thin scar on the side of her nose from a cat
> scratch when she was a baby or toddler. I second the idea of the cat
> having lots of safe places to hide, and really work on the concept of
> gentle. With time and repetition, Ollie will catch on.
>
> Lesley
>

my 18 yo still has a scar on her arm from when she was around 10 or so. she
was introducing our cat to her new puppy, but for some (unknown by me)
reason, she put the _cat_ on a leash first... I thought we might have to go
to the ER, but after cleaning her up, it wasn't as bad as I first imagined.
scared the daylights out of me though...
--
Edith
oht nak