Scratched by cat

[golddustgirl1000]

I’m gonna be short and sweet, yes rabies is one of my buggiest fears...

Yes I’m thr past I’ve worried about bats.

Today I was at a barn with a model I photograph who keeps her horses there...I did nothing,I’ve finally in a lull of anxiety ... the barn cat starts to follow me.. great... I tried to get away but it kept following me- finally when I stopped to pet a horse it put its front paws up on my thigh ( this was a tall, lean cat) and started to stretch... I instantly felt a scratched and quickly move away.. I checked and it had indeed drawn blood, I washed it with all I had, Purelle.

When the owner got there I told her.. look I have health anxiety.. this cat scratched me and drew blood..

She told me it had been vaccinated, and it was also wearing a flea collar. At the end of the day.. after noticing a cat box for it in the garage, 2 cat carriers, and a food and water bowl I asked her again if she was sure they had been vaccinated as this was not her house, and it was something I really struggle with. She said she understood and that she had paid personally to have her have all her vaccinations... and when I asked if they were recent she said yes, she then went to find the cat to bring him in for the night and I left..

I’m really struggling if course.. do you think I should take her at her word?

How do I know she isn’t just saying this to make me feel better

[textsfromthemoon]

Yes you should take her at her word, I don't think that she would lie about something like this, especially after you spoke to her about your anxiety.

I know where you're coming from, I had a rabies fear in 2017 that was triggered by being scratched by a stray cat after I tried to help her out from underneath my parents deck, ultimately you're going to KNOW if a cat has rabies, we all have met cats and know what normal cat behavior is, a cat with rabies do not exhibit normal cat behavior, it sounds like this cat was just a nosy boy/girl who wanted some of your attention and stretched against you to make themselves known, my parents have a cat like that, he will literally "bap" me with his paws/claws if he wants me to pet him and I'm checking my phone, watching the tv, talking to my boyfriend etc.

Of course since I'm typing this 1.5 years later, I can tell you the cat that scratched me didn't give me rabies, she was just annoyed with me for trying to move her from under the deck, I still see her chilling in my parent's yard from time to time too when I'm there. I know how hard it can be when these thoughts start but try your best to distract yourself, counter your negative thoughts with positive ones and remember that you do not have rabies! You got this!

[golddustgirl1000]

Moon;

Thanks.. it’s bad enough I already struggle with this fear, and now to have a legitimate reason of the cat scratching me and drawing blood... uhh.. all day the spot has been aching/ hurting.. I’m hoping it’s just my mind.

Yeah, im hoping she didn’t just say that to say it :/ the cat seemed fine.. didn’t seem sick.. but you never know..

[AMomentofClarity]

If rabies was that common/that easy to get, everyone would have it. You do not have rabies. Period.

[lofwyr]

In the US there are between 1 and 3 rabies fatalities in a year.

There is an average of 51 lightning strike deaths a year in the US.

You are, on average, 50 times more likely to be killed by lightning than rabies in the US.

Finally, a scratch doesn't and cannot transmit rabies anyway. You would need to have saliva or brain tissue from that animal enter your body via that wound to even have more than a zero percent chance of rabies. So, you say you never know, but you really do know.

[venusbluejeans]

Rabies is 99.999999999999% caused by saliva from infected animals!

Rabies has to be passed on via the bodily fluid of the infected animals

Animals do not have bodily fluid on their claws

Your chance of having rabies is 0%

[golddustgirl1000]

Right.: but in the past ( I know cause of my past of looking up stuff) I would always read that it wasnt as common but it could be spread via scratch because cats lick their paws and clean themselves...

[AntsyVee]

Right.: but in the past ( I know cause of my past of looking up stuff) I would always read that it wasnt as common but it could be spread via scratch because cats lick their paws and clean themselves...

You DON'T have rabies.


The cat was tame and was reaching up to you to get you to pet it. That's not a rabid animal.


I suggest doing some reading on this site. Not one of these people who've ever been scratched or bitten have ever gotten rabies.


Focus on getting some help for your HA.

[lofwyr]

I am guessing you didn't read my post either. At most 1 in 100 MILLION people get rabies in a year in the US, and that is a bad year. Usually it is 1 in 350 million.

Literally every single thing in the Physician's Desk reference that can kill you has a much greater chance of doing so than rabies.

You absolutely need help with your HA, I hope you are seeing someone who can guide you professionally.

[mn_guy]

To put your fear in perspective: I grew up on a farm where we had many outside semi-tame cats for years. These cats loved to scratch even when playing and I got dozens of scratches throughout my childhood. I also remember these cats being harassed from time to time by skunks and raccoons; I even had to shoot an especially aggressive raccoon that had scared the cats so much they wouldn't approach their food dish.

Many years later, I learned that my mom had never bothered to have any of these cats vaccinated; apparently in Wisconsin in the 80's and 90's no one ever vaccinated barn and outside cats. Somehow, nearly 20 years later, we are all still alive. This same situation would have been the case for all of my friends that lived on farms as well as pretty much every farm in every small town across all of Wisconsin when I was growing up. I think there has been one case of rabies in Wisconsin ever, so that shows you the absolute unlikelihood of getting rabies from a cat. Now that I think about it I'm reasonably sure that no one has gotten rabies from a cat in the US in at least 20-30 years.

Positive thoughts! I realize you won't be able to prove to yourself that you're fine, but if you realize how slim the odds are hopefully you can force yourself to power through the uncertainty.