Pets can make our lives much happier. We must be very careful, though, when it comes to being hurt by a pet. Playful scratches and bites are common, but some of these bites can become serious and cause complications.
Animal Bites
The American Pet Association reports that there are about 150M dogs and cats living in the United States, with cats outnumbering dogs. Animal bites are therefore very common in the US, with about two to five million people being affected each year, accounting for one percent of emergency room visits. It is estimated that bout 10-20 people die yearly from animal bites.
Children are the most likely victims, and dogs are the most likely attackers. In fact, up to 90% of all animal bites are caused by dogs, with cats coming in second, followed by other animals such as rodents, ferrets, rabbits, and farm animals. Although most bites are caused by dogs, cat bites are the most likely to cause serious infections.
Why Cat Bites are Risky
Cats have very sharp, long and pointed teeth that can bury themselves deep into the flesh, causing puncture wounds. Cats usually bite when provoked, especially the female felines. These bites can be much deeper than the victim thinks because the skin can seal off the small punctured site, thus preventing open drainage and leading to infection. While only one percent of dog bites lead to infection that requires hospitalization, up to 10% of cat bites send victims to the hospital for treatment.
About two-thirds of cat bites involve the hands and arms of the victim. When bitten, the skin and tissues can be infected by bacteria. When not treated immediately, the tendons, bones and joints may be affected, causing deep tissue infection such as cellulitis (soft tissue infection), tendos...
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... additional treatments (e.g, surgery) are recommended.
Works Cited
Babovic N, Cayci C, and Carlsen B. Cat Bite Infections of the Hand: Assessment of Morbidity and Predictors of Severe Infection. J Hand Surg, 2014 Feb.Vol 39, Is 2 , pp 286-290. http://www.jhandsurg.org/article/S0363-5023%2813%2901539-6/abstract;
USA Today. A cat bite can turn into a hospital stay, study. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/09/cat-bite-hospital-stay/5276997/;
ASSH. Animal Bites. http://www.assh.org/Public/HandConditions/Pages/AnimalBites.aspx;
Medscape. Pasteurella Multocida Infection. http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/224920-overview;
Medline Plus. Cat Scratch Disease. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001614.htm;
UpToDate. Patient information: Animal bites (Beyond the Basics). http://www.uptodate.com/contents/animal-bites-beyond-the-basics
National Canine Research Council. Investigative Report for Dog-Bite Related Fatalities 2009. National Canine Research Council, 2010. 6-48. Print.
All members of the cat family (Felidae) are susceptible to infection with feline panleukopenia virus (FPV), as are raccoons, and minks, in the family Procyoniclae. Three major body sytems are affected by FPV. FPV specifically depresses the white blood cells and thus the immune system of the host, it attacks the rapidly reproducing cells lining the gut, and FPV affects the reproducing cells of the cerebellum and the retina of the eye when they are in their developing stage. The system it chooses depends on the age of the cat at the time of infection.
Breed Specific Legislation and Dangerous Dog laws are two ways states and counties deal with dog-bite related attacks. Dangerous Dog Laws regulate or prohibit ownership of a dog that has already shown signs of aggression or violence. According Hussain (2006) “dangerous-dog laws tend to be more effective, efficient, and addresses the problem of the ‘dog-bite epidemic’ by objectively examining a dog’s prior conduct rather than making subjective evaluations of viciousness based solely on breed” (pg.2). Breed-Specific Laws severely regulate or prohibit ownership of a d...
According to the article “Pet Statistics” by the ASPCA estimates there are 70-80 million dogs and 74-96 million cats owned in the United States. It is impossible to determine the number of stray dogs and cats, but the ASPCA estimates there are 70 million cats alone that are strays in the US (“Pet Statistics”). The overpopulation of dogs and cats live either on the streets and die each day, they live in a shelter and try to get adopted, but even then they die. The ASPCA states that nationwide about 7.6 million companion animals enter the shelter and of the 7.6 million approximately 3.9 million are dogs and 3.4 million are cats (“Pet Statistics”).
Pet monkeys also have a tendency to bite. They have different personalities so one cannot generalize, but some monkeys will be very aggressive, and
This is not the case however, because research has been done at the University of Liverpool by Biologist Lynne Sneddon stating that "Animals show reflex responses similar to our own. For example, when we accidentally touch a hot iron, we respond almost immediately by retracting our hand. There is a lag period following this when no adverse sensations are felt but, if left untreated, the burn begins to throb and we alter our behavior to guard the affected area. Animals respond to painful damage in a similar way. Their responses comprise sever behavioral and physiological changes: they eat less food, their normal behavior is disrupted, their social behavior is suppressed, and they may adopt unusual behavior patterns, they may emit characteristic distress calls, and they experience respiratory and cardiovascular changes, as well as inflammation and release of stress hormones." (Sneddon). So not only has the "Animals don't feel pain the way humans do" argument been refuted, but it has been proven that animals do feel similar pain to humans.
Declawing solves the issue of torn up furniture and unnecessary scratches. Having a cat declawed puts an end to ruined furniture, torn up carpet, and having the household look a wreck. If that’s a pet owners concern, then they should definitely reconsider even having a cat. A cat's claws can inflict a considerable amount of pain and damage to their owners. Cat scratch disease may also be a result of having a cat declawed. This disease is caused by a bacteria known as Bartonella henselae. Statistics show that About 40% of cats have this bacteria at some point in their cat lives. This bacterial infection shows no signs in a cat. Kittens are also more likely to scratch and bite while they play with their owners. Although, your cat might use your hands or furniture for clawing and scratch, declawing is certainly not the
Third, you should contact a firm of personal injury lawyers. The legal issues surrounding dog bites are often complex because most states (but not all) are strict liability jurisdictions. This means that dog owners are civilly liable for the dog bite as long as the victim neither trespassed nor provoked the dog. In some states, liability is automatic, while in others there are limitations upon it. A dog bite victim should seek counsel to determine if they reside in a strict liability state and to ensure they receive the maximum compensation allowed under the law.
Seeing maimed animals are not pleasant images. Those images sometimes appear across computer and television screens. The advocacy groups who place these images in the public’s view are trying to jolt people into the realization that abuse exists. For every ten seconds that goes by an animal is getting abused (“Animal… Statistics”). One statistic states that “71% of pet-owning women entering women’s shelters reported that their batterer had injured, maimed, killed or threatened family pets for revenge or to psychologically control victims; 32% reported their children had hurt or killed animals” (“Animal… Violence”). Animal cruelty comes in several forms, some of which people do not know. There is animal experimenting, animal abuse, and mistreatment of animals. and through revealing the results from research, one discovers the horrific effects of animal abuse.
“The infliction of physical pain, suffering or death upon an animal goes back to ancient times”(Animal cruelty history). For several years animals have been abused and neglected for unreasonable purposes. The human society of the United States believes that “People with emotional problems may beat, shoot, or stab animals or set them on fire”(Animal abuse and neglect). From this point of view I believe that those who abuse animals are more likely to be violent towards others especially their families. Other then that animals all over the United States are abuse by “intentional abuse which occurs when a person purposely cause physical harm, injuries or the death of an animal”(ASPCA). Intentional abuse has been the cause of million of animals deaths and investigations and is a serious problem. Next would be neglect, which is an important one because it’s when an owner fails to “pro...
Overpopulation of unwanted pets has become a major issue in the United States. According to Oxford-Lafayette Humane Society, there are 70 million stray cats and dogs in the United Stated. 6 to 8 million of those enter shelters each year. An estimated 3 to 4 million are euthanized in shelters
Ressel, L., Hetzel, U., & Ricci, E. (2016). Blunt Force Trauma in Veterinary Forensic Pathology. Veterinary Pathology, 53(5), 941-961. doi:10.1177/0300985816653988
Cats are natural born hunters. A 2013 study revealed that each year, domestic cats kill 20.7 billion smaller animals, including mice, chipmunks, voles and 3.7 billion birds. Cats are actually the number one killer of these animals. Cats spend one-third of their day just killing animals, and they don’t even do it because they’re hungry. They do it because they feel like it.
Dogs are the most common victims of animal abuse with cats, horses, and livestock not following far behind.
Animal abuse is a very big part of many animals lives and because of this we need solutions for this situation. Animal abuse has taken many forms, the most common forms are passive abuse and intentional