TIFU By trying to save a kitten

Submitted by Ahpla t3_z1mpjt in tifu

So today my husband and I went to the store to look for Christmas garland. As soon as we parked I saw a kitten hiding under a truck in front of us crying and looking very scared. Before my husband knew what happened I was already out of the truck beelining it to said kitten. I get near it and it gets scared and starts to back away. I stop and am calmly talking to it when my husband walks up and sees what is going on. When he did the kitten darted across the parking lot and was now hiding between the back tires of a fifth wheel camper. I was so worried about it getting squished. Little kitty bro was obviously scared but acted like it wanted to come to me. A woman going to her car saw what was going on and said she didn't have any food or anything but he seemed like he wanted to come but was frightened.

We had just gone to the grocery store and I had some frozen chicken strips so I went back and got some to see if kitty bro would come to me for food. After several minutes he creeps out from the tires and starts to eat. Little dude was starving. I kneel down on the pavement while throwing chunks trying to get him closer. I don't realize it but I kneel in chocolate milk someone poured out. I've been lactose intolerant my entire life and have had a major milk phobia since I was 3. I realize what is going on and try not to puke. Don't want to scary kitty bro after all.

After a few minutes he gets within arms reach and I reach out to snag him. As soon as I do he flips around and is clawing and biting like crazy. I have a death grip on him. I wasn't going to leave him there to get squished. My husband comes over and peels him off my arm. He is now trying to eat my husband. Kitty bro is like 3lbs of demon terror. My husband is holding him at arms length by his scruff so neither one of them gets injured. Meanwhile I run in the store to see if they have a box we can put him in. I run back out with the box and as soon as it gets near kitty bro he starts freaking out and biting my husband. We decide to just open the back door and throw him in and then figure it out from there.

We get in the truck and pull over to the dog park where it is quieter wondering wtf do we do now. Then reality sets in. I was just bit over half a dozen times, blood is pouring, I have deep puncture wounds, and now we have a psycho at in the locked vehicle with us. Oh shit. Do I need a rabies vaccine? I'm almost definitely going to end up with an infection. All the while I'm thinking about the milk that has soaked my jeans and socks, still trying to not gag. I call my mom. She said to call the hospital and see what they say. They tell me it's a personal choice, if I want to get one I can go to the ER but that they typically don't give them for animal bites and that was all they could really say. I call the other hospital to see if they agree. They tell me I can go in and see what the doctor says and they will likely give antibiotics at the very least. They also tell me to call animal control to see what they want to do about the cat. I call animal control and they are closed.

We realize we can't see the cat anywhere. We get out and are looking for the kitten. Not under the seats, not in the bags of groceries, not anywhere. The only place it could possibly be is behind the back seats, which don't go forward and only have 3-4" of space. I slowly lift up the bottom to see if we can see back that way and nothing. My husband slowly lifts his side to see and nothing. Then I feel something on my leg, look down, and see nothing. My husband sees a black flash past me. Kitty bro was running for his life like a bat out of hell. He runs past the dog park, no dogs are there, but there were some teenagers playing on the swings. Two teenage girls jump up to run after the cat but he is long gone.

So now I'm sitting here with my finger coated in antibiotic ointment waiting until tomorrow when I can go to urgent care. Hopefully I get some antibiotics and don't end up with a nasty infection.

I just wanted to save him.

Kitty bro - 1, Me - 0.

TL;DR I tried to save a kitten from being squished in a parking lot, got over half a dozen deep puncture wounds, have to now go to urgent care tomorrow, hopefully no rabies vaccines, and still didn't save the kitten.

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Comments

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PracticeAsleep t1_ixbu37n wrote

Every time I've been bitten or clawed by a cat it's been infected. Keep it clean, use antibiotic ointment, and when where are you being clawed gets to the size of baseball glove then go in for IV antibiotics. Bless you for trying. Lesson well learned. Next time wear gloves.

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Ahpla OP t1_ixbvd6t wrote

Aye, lesson learned. I already added leather gloves to my list to leave in the truck.

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MeldyWeldy t1_ixc7wub wrote

I'd recommend thick welder gloves(work great for cooking and campfires too!) or some steel mesh gloves for your new animal wrangling hobby.😜

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Ahpla OP t1_ixdkzq6 wrote

Haha, not a bad idea!

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Napotad t1_ixedphx wrote

And every time I have been bit and clawed, it hasn't gotten infected. Moral is, both are anecdotes.

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TheBrontosaurus t1_ixbu3qh wrote

Thank you for doing so much to help the cat. Cat bites have a tendency to get badly infected. If you notice any redness or warmth around the bites and scratches please go to an urgent care as soon as possible.

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Ahpla OP t1_ixbvfac wrote

Yep. I have multiple family members in the medical field and when they saw my hand they said I should probably get it checked out. Would much rather have an urgent care bill over and ER bill though, so going tomorrow.

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SpiritTalker t1_ixbshbu wrote

It was a valiant effort! Hope you heal quickly.

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thelittlefae5 t1_ixbwb76 wrote

Yeah, I'd definitely try to get some antibiotics. Cat bites are little needles of bacteria.
At the very least little kitty is no longer under a tire. That's so sucky, but it was a good effort.

Tip if you ever have to do it again: use thick leather gloves, grab by the scruff right off the bat, and wrap them into a kitty burrito with whatever towel or jacket you have on hand.

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Ahpla OP t1_ixc4nn8 wrote

Yep, I added leather gloves to my list so I can get some to leave in the truck. We normally have a blanket over the back seat because of the dogs but I had taken them out to wash them. Lots of lessons learned!

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harleyspoison267 t1_ixczwno wrote

When I was a little kid, my dad was driving through a construction zone and there was a cat stuck between the cars and the barrier (so no hope of getting off the road) and weaving around desperately trying not to get hit by traffic. After being overcome by a fit of what my partner calls, "daughter's make you soft", my dad pulls over to try to save this cat because he's relatively certain this cat is going to die and is upset at seeing it panic. He opens the car, and after some coaxing, manages to get the cat inside, but that was when all hell breaks loose... It flies around yowling and scratching and absolutely losing its mind. My dad gets torn to shreds in the process--bruises, deep gashes in his arms and face, bite marks, etc. By this point, my dad is pretty pissed and is starting to care quite a bit less about whether or not the cat dies... I'm not sure the exact timeline from this point, but basically he tries to take the cat to a shelter and get himself to urgent care and the shelter won't take the cat (both because it's aggressive and because it's bit him) and the urgent care says he has to keep the cat until his rabies test comes back.

I was maybe 7 at the time, so my dad was naturally the toughest person I knew, so when he came home looking like he just went 5 rounds with Floyd Mayweather, I was naturally terrified of the demon cat. My aunt, consummate animal lover, was called, and even though she could not get the cat to come around, she did bring over a giant cage (she had malamutes) so the cat could live in our garage for awhile. My mom would take out paper plates of spam and cat food and tuna a couple times a day to put through the slats of the cage, but I'd lock the door behind her because I'd be so scared.

Long story short, dad did not get rabies, recovered from his injuries, rescues refused to take the VERY feral cat, and dad found a very large bit of woods far from any roads to release the cat in for the remainder of it's days. Hopefully it's good now. I do not think it would have ever been happy in a home. It didn't even like cat food.

OP, you did what you could, but cats are naturally pretty wild and if they've never been handled by a human before, being on the streets may feel more like home even if it's hard for us to see them cold or hungry. All we can do is do what we can to support them. I hope you can get those wounds treated soon!

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TexasRedJames1974 t1_ixbuz4v wrote

Not a bright idea.

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Go get your wounds checked by medical personnel.

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Ahpla OP t1_ixbvgar wrote

Not very bright at all, but I didn't want him getting killed.

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TexasRedJames1974 t1_ixbvl2y wrote

As someone who's had cats for many many years, I am still leary about approaching what may be feral kittens. If the kitten doesn't tear you to shreds then kitten's mom very well might.

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Ahpla OP t1_ixc4qvc wrote

I was dumb and assumed since it was a kitten it would be okay. Lesson learned, those ~4-5 month old kittens can be just as dangerous as the big ones.

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TexasRedJames1974 t1_ixc4yg5 wrote

I've got at least 6 mousers that hang around my house constantly, trust me they move out from under the vehicle when it starts up - especially when the car has a big V8 like mine does LOL

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Kcnflman t1_ixcpcue wrote

Thanks , now “Cat scratch fever” is stuck in my head!

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echotexas t1_ixdlnsx wrote

permanent nerve damage is how i found out cat scratch fever is real. i still love cats

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Tanagrabelle t1_ixcqxv2 wrote

You are awesome for trying so hard!

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echotexas t1_ixdlstg wrote

next time swaddle the baby in a blanket! a park is a better place for a kitten than a parking lot at least. you tried your best, feel better op

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r33f3rz0mb1e t1_ixd0j54 wrote

Cats are very stupid and fearful creatures and they have a surprising bite force. Tried to help a cat one time also and he clamped down on me. Even though it hurt I was more impressed its little jaws could clamp down very tight at all. I will never help a cat again as most of them are assholes. I like sweet cats though.

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