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Pup bite

  • 28-07-2018 9:53pm
    #1
    Johnnyhpipe
    Closed Accounts Posts: 748 ✭✭✭


    Hi, stupid question I guess...my 4 month old pup scratched me with his tooth, barely drawing a tiny drop of blood. Does this warrant a tetanus??


Comments

  • #2
    tedpan
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,627 ✭✭✭tedpan


    Johnnyhpipe wrote:
    Hi, stupid question I guess...my 4 month old pup scratched me with his tooth, barely drawing a tiny drop of blood. Does this warrant a tetanus??


    I've never had a tetanus and have 2 dogs and 3 cats. Plenty of bites and scratches :D


  • #3
    fritzelly
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 17,865 ✭✭✭✭fritzelly


    Is he vaccinated (maybe a bit too young) - nothing wrong with playing it safe


  • #4
    volchitsa
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,117 ✭✭✭volchitsa


    Johnnyhpipe wrote: »
    Hi, stupid question I guess...my 4 month old pup scratched me with his tooth, barely drawing a tiny drop of blood. Does this warrant a tetanus??

    Simple answer : you should always keep your tetanus vaccinations up to date regardless.

    People die every year from scratches while gardening*, doesn't have to be a dog bite. IIRC, small scratches that don't really bleed are just as much of a risk for tetanus as massive bloody wounds because it's anaerobic and the washing out that a big cut requires will possibly kill it, while a small scratch tends to get ignored.

    Basically, if your injection is not up to date, this is your chance to get it done. If it's up to date, you're probably grand.

    * Ok maybe not every single year in Ireland, with its small population, but in the UK for sure.

    Uncivil to the President (24 hour forum ban)



  • #5
    CelticRambler
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,964 ✭✭✭CelticRambler


    fritzelly wrote: »
    Is he vaccinated (maybe a bit too young) - nothing wrong with playing it safe


    There is no vaccine against tetanus for dogs.


    There is also almost no risk of getting tetanus from a dog bite, despite the widely held belief to the contrary. In the largest study to date (8697 patients with tetanus), not a single one could be attributed to a dog bite. There is one confirmed report worldwide of a dog bite causing tetanus in recent years; there is also one confirmed report of a human bite causing tetanus. All of the other cases are due to "environmental" injuries (rose thorns, rusty nails, drawing pins, swiss army knives, etc, etc.


    There are however, several other severe infections that can be caused by dog (or cat) bites, aswell as potentially disabling damage to the joint, ligaments and tendons if you get bitten on the finger/hand, so don't ignore any bite.


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