Thanks! It is related, sort of, to roses, because the same sort of thing can happen with a rose scratch. A good reason to pay attention, and make sure that everyone is up on their tetanus shots, etc.

I love my kitties, and they only have scratched me when they are really terrified, but I always am extra careful about cleaning the wound, apply neosporin or some other antibiotic, etc. I do the same thing with rose scratches that don't fade away in a day.

Jackie

Good reminder, sunnysideuphill, thanks! I thought of similar issues when the Chihuahua peeled the back of my left hand last year to prevent me from separating him from his beloved 93 year old so the paramedics could transport him after a fall. Had both of our "shots" not been current, and had he not been an indoor dog all of his life, well known to me with no health issues, I would have been quite mortified. He only acted out of terror (and absolute stubborness!), so it was a forgiveable "accident". He sure made spared no efforts apologizing for it for a long time! Kim

Finally! I'm of use around here (and a smarty pants).

With the incubation period that you describe, you didn't have "Cat Scratch Fever", which is caused by Bartonella sp. bacteria. You can find more on this disease at Wikipedia, but in general, it has an incubation period of 1-2 weeks and the symptoms are of lympadenopathy in nature (swollen lymph glands). It can be treated with antibiotics, but it is especially bad in patients with any sort of auto-immune disorder or therapy.

Instead, what you had is classic infection by Pasteurella sp., usually Pasteurella multocida (named to honor Louis Pasteur).

Symptoms of infection are very rapid to develop; in 1 or 2 hours, redness, swelling and severe pain can appear. Fever, moderate or very high can be seen along with some other symptoms. Rapidity is especially from a bite, which after all is a puncture wound which makes a happy buffet for bacteria.

These bacteria are normal mouth flora in many domestic animals including cats, dogs & rabbits. They are adept at causing infection due to production of enzymes that breakdown tissue. As with any bacteria that causes infection or necrosis, this puts the immune system at a mechanical disadvantage because antibodies, immune cells and also antibiotics are transported to the site via blood supply which is disrupted in an abscess.

They are generally very susceptible to a variety of antibiotics; *however*, if the wound is a bite wound, by far the best coverage will be with ampicillin/clavulanate (Augmentin (tm)) *because* of all of the other oral flora that have also been inoculated into your finger, toe or other appendage. (It is also the antibiotic of choice if you get in a bare-knuckle fist fight in a bar, game or reality show and shwack someone in the face, fyi ;-) Leaving a real infection to more homeopathic methods is NOT recommended as Pasteurella spp. as well as several of the oral flora bacteria organisms are also adept at causing osteomyelitis (bone infection) if they come in contact with bone and are left untreated.

Way to go, Lagomorphmom! I think we must be careful with infections whether caused by our beloved pets or beloved garden.

Sunnysideup, I am glad that you received good medical help.

SAmmy

And osteomyelitis, which my aunt had as a young child back in the 1930's, is a very bad disease. In those days before the invention of penicillin, it was usually fatal. It is dangerous even today.

(She survived; her bone was surgically removed.)

Don't blame Todd R. for Cat Scratch Fever - it was Ted Nugent.

So many rose lovers are animal lovers - thanks for the good information.

Also, Lisanti is correct:

Here is a link that might be useful: cat scratch fever

yes, be really careful about rose thorns! They can carry flesh eating bacteria (do not google this, the images are horrible!) it can work VERY fast and can be deadlly
If your hand/body hurts a lot after getting snagged by a rose, you should probably go to the doctor. It's been talked about on this forum before, too. I suppose you could google it with the pictures off. :) (for more info)

7 weeks after the initial infection, in mid June,I had swollen lymph in right arm pit, and stiffness in hand - went back to doc, who prescribed more antibiotics and said it was more of what happened in April. And it was definitely a deep scratch, from a hind leg, not a bite.

My friend had it one time.