Close call with cat

[Imdanny]

I heard my cat chewing on a piece of plastic, so I ran over to where she was, and she was swallowing it! I pulled it out of her mouth, while trying to get control of her, and she put one of her claws deep in my hand. She didn't mean to, of course, she was choking.

So be warned- my cat doesn't eat anything it shouldn't but this piece of plastic was going to disappear down her throat. I'm sure she liked the texture of it. I've heard cats might do this, and I just wanted to warn you all.

 

[Prana]

yikes! It's a good thing you were there and that you investigated!

 

[ForteKitty]

omg... i'm glad she's okay! my cats like chewing on plastic too. or lick plastic bags. they get the spray when they go near any plastic bags.

 

[Jessie702]

OMG, i am so sorry Danny, it was a good thing you were home. That could have been really bad for her. My cats dont like plastic to chew on, they prefer Hair, and feet, and boxes

 

[athenaworth]

My cat ate plastic. I guess it's made out of geletin with is an animal byproduct. It's so bad. I used to have to spend $800+ to get him flushed every time we had an episode. Just be extra careful about plastic being on the ground or within her reach. So scary though.

 

[that_someone_special]

My cat likes to put his head through handles on bags. Yeah, one time he had a PLASTIC BAG wraped around his throat with some heavy things in the bag. Another time, he had a paper bag handle stuck around his tummy. I cut all bag handles and put all plastic bags away now.

 

[JewelFreak]

Danny, glad your cat had you to rescue her! Mine does the same thing; we have to be careful around here -- like the plastic stuff you peel off bottles or cigarette packs. But he also LOVES bread. Weirdo! I put 2 rolls on the counter to thaw, came back & half of one had vaporized, with gnaw marks on the edge. Tonight I caught the striped rat chowing down on my pita chips. I gotta get that boy a cat book.

--- Laurie

 

[lulu]

Close calls are scary. I remember how I felt when my dog threw up a pair of pantyhose I didn't realize he had swallowed.Thank God for the gag reflex!

 

[Imdanny]

I'm just glad it didn't get to the point where it was in her stomach. Then we would have been at whole new level of - now we have a problem.

And yes those are the things she/ they like to eat and I won't make the same mistake of leaving things like that in the house again.

 

[asscherisme]

Oh, thats scary. Glad your cat is OK. Make sure you take care of your hand too so it does not get infected.

My kittens like to chew things and I'm hoping this phase goes away soon! I worry about my kids toys and small lets etc and am on constand alert and reminding my kids to pick stuff up.

In my old house there was a brick type arrangement half burried like a head stone in the corner of the backyard. After about a year, I asked a neighbor if they knew what it was and heard a really sad story. The previous owners had a puppy and came home from work one day to find the puppy dead. The puppy had eaten a plastic bag. I never disturbed that site in the backyard. Such a sad thing.

I'm glad you posted and reminded me and others with curious pets to be alert.

 

[Imdanny]

Thanks.

The first thing I did after I put the piece of plastic outside is I put alcohol on my wound and covered it with a band aid.

 

[asscherisme]

Good, cleaning with alcohol is smart.

 

[Imdanny]

I recommend everyone treat and cover all wounds. Living in the tropics, it's something you learn the value of, believe me.

Thanks for your concern.

 

[davi_el_mejor]

I recommend everyone treat and cover all wounds. Living in the tropics, it's something you learn the value of, believe me.

Thanks for your concern.

Hope your hand feels better soon Danny and that kitty learned plastic is not for kitties.

Funny story- When my dog's mouth closed with my finger in it a couple months back, I waited 6 hours in the ER to be told they don't stitch dog bites. They soaked my finger in iodine for 20 minutes bandaged it up gave me an antibiotic just in case and sent me home. Moral of the story... if you want to be seen much quicker in the ER present with a fever.

 

[Imdanny]

I recommend everyone treat and cover all wounds. Living in the tropics, it's something you learn the value of, believe me.

Thanks for your concern.

Hope your hand feels better soon Danny and that kitty learned plastic is not for kitties.

Funny story- When my dog's mouth closed with my finger in it a couple months back, I waited 6 hours in the ER to be told they don't stitch dog bites. They soaked my finger in iodine for 20 minutes bandaged it up gave me an antibiotic just in case and sent me home. Moral of the story... if you want to be seen much quicker in the ER present with a fever.

LOL! I could tell you some horror stories about the ER and the (can't say it) who work there but I think I'll skip that. Glad you were OK!

 

[Lady_Disdain]

I know there are great people working in ER and I have a lot of respect for them. But sometimes...

My bathroom sink wasn't draining, so I put in some drain cleaner, following all the instrunctions to the letter, as usual. I then allowed a lot of water to go through that sink and used it as normal (brushed teeth, washed hands and face, etc) with no problem.

The next day, however, my BF washed his face in that sink and complained of a bad burning sensation in his left eye. I washed his eye under running water for 15 minutes and then rushed him to the hospital, with the drain cleaner bottle. There, we waited for 45 minutes for a triage nurse (after I started going after them) and told her what happened. She wrote down that it was an allergic reaction (eye + strong caustic doesn't result in allergy but in burns) and sent him to the general practioner at the hospital. Another 25 minutes waiting before the practioner called him. Even before we got to the examining room, I told her what had happened and she immediately said there was no way that was an allergic reaction and that a specialist should see him. The nurse took half an hour to call the specialist, who then took another half an hour to get there (understandable, but added quite a while anyway). Fortunately, we had done everything right and no there was no further damage after the initial contact, so she prescribed some eyedrops to speed healing but nothing more. However, I can't help thinking what would have happened if we hadn't washed his eye out immediately. He was in a lot of pain through out the wait as well.

Grrr.

 

[Imdanny]

Sorry to hear about that and I wonder what they charged (I'm not asking you to tell me, I'm just wondering out loud) what they charged for that run around. I live in a rural place (let's just put it that way) and I couldn't begin to tell you how rude, what (can't print it) some of the nurses and doctors (both) were I've met in the ER. I'll never forget the time this woman was screaming in my face, talking very slowly, you... need... a ... doctor... you.... need .... a .... doctor..." Ok, so I'm there with a flesh eating bacterial infection eating my foot alive (no joke) and she's speaking to me like I don't speak English (and I have never been spoken to this way in my life). The trauma was such that I had to go home, and take a couple weeks to process what was going on. She was talking to me like I was an idiot, instead of a human being, because in her mind, I was hardly a human being. And she was telling me that I needed a primary care physician (so that I wouldn't have to be at the ER bothering her and 'stealing' their resources). And, BTW, they got paid, the (can't print it). If she had simply explained what she was trying to say, instead of being a condescending (can't print it), it wouldn't have taken me weeks to figure out what she intended by treating me like that. And it's scary where something bad is happening to you, and people are treating you like that. It's very disconcerting. And I have many (MANY) more stories where that one came from from this particular hospital emergency room (I won't mention their name, but I have never been able to forgive them for their unprofessional ism and cruelty).

Anyway, I wanted to follow up with thread and let you all know that I removed all (and I mean all) the plastic where the cat could get it, toilet paper (she'd been chewing on the plastic wrapping), plastic grocery store bags (she had got in a cabinet and chewed one of the handles in half), plastic bags with pasta (those have a tendency to rip apart into pieces). Every last piece of plastic she could get to- gone.

 

[yssie]

I'm so glad she's okay Danny! You caught it just in time. I also wish you quick healing


We are careful to keep plastic and packing foams out of reach of ours, one especially is a voracious nibbler and is always only too happy to sample some new substance that she ought not

 

[Imdanny]

Thanks, Yssie!