My Idiot Cat got hut by Uricating Hairs

[IdiotCatAkira]

Hey everyone,
First post and my worst nightmare has happened. I woke up to a irritated cat and found my Brachipelma Hamorii enclosure open and empty.
It never happened before, neither of them ever attempted to open the enclosure before.
My Kumo (Tarantula) is fine, thank godness. But Akira (Cat) most likely got a swaft of the Uricating Hairs up her face, she had watery eyes and was smacking her lips and pawing at her face.. now she is calm and does not show any signs of irritation now but i am rushing to the vet as soon as they open.
Kumo does not have a bald patch on her, so it was not that much hair that she kicked up, she kicked more hair sometimes when i renew her waterdish etc.
But i am still worried. Til the Vet is open at 8 am (Germany) i have to wait amd hope that my Idiot Cat Akira does not get a severe reaction..
I cat proofed my enclosure even more now, tomorrow we would've installed a shelf so that she could not reach the enclosure but ofc it has to happen a day before that.

Does someone have similar experience? I already wiped her face with water to get the hairs on the outside since then its better with the pawing and licking but i am still worried for my little idiot.

 

[fcat]

Do they have emergency vets? That are 24 hours?

Only safe place to keep cats and Ts... in separate rooms.

Cat was just doing what cats do. Your car is not an idiot.

 

[IdiotCatAkira]

I live very remote only place to go is 2 hours away

Believe me she is an idiot, what happened today is not why she is an idiot, its just her nature. Always finds ways to get in sticky situations etc. The other cat is calm and collected, Akira is a crackhead

I live in a two room app at the moment and there is no other place i can keep my t without her being in a dark corner somewhere. We are moving next year so i can finally have a seperate room for my T..

But now it is what it is

Sadly the place that is two hours away is not open 24/7 either, i just looked it up..
Thats messed up. Emergency hotline and no one answers the phone.

Akira is eating normally now and is not itching her face anymore. Maybe my wet towel treatment helped.
Still have to go to the vet ofc
Gonna ask them what i can do if no one is reachable for emergencies

 

[gzophia]

I live very remote only place to go is 2 hours away

Believe me she is an idiot, what happened today is not why she is an idiot, its just her nature. Always finds ways to get in sticky situations etc. The other cat is calm and collected, Akira is a crackhead

I live in a two room app at the moment and there is no other place i can keep my t without her being in a dark corner somewhere. We are moving next year so i can finally have a seperate room for my T..

But now it is what it is

Cats will do that; it is their nature. Each animal has a different personality; some can be inquisitive to the point of danger. I'm so sorry to hear about your experience
I would continue searching for a vet; glad to hear your cat is feeling better though.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Lucks the spider wasn’t killed I lost an expensive fireleg many years ago because a cat knocked the container over because it didn’t see it . Hope your cat gets medical help ! I was so mad I punched a hole in a hollow door ..

Do they have emergency vets? That are 24 hours?

Only safe place to keep cats and Ts... in separate rooms.

Cat was just doing what cats do. Your car is not an idiot.

ouch there was a recent thread on cat proofing cages but I can’t find it .

 

[HOITrance]

ouch there was a recent thread on cat proofing cages but I can’t find it .

I gotcha

Any tips for keeping cats away from my tarantula shelf?

I'm attaching photos but basically one of my cats loves climbing on anything and everything & I recently upgraded my tarantula shelf to a much nicer one, but the extra space (which is nice because I don't have to move the enclosures to open them) allows room for my silly boy to climb in there...

arachnoboards.com

 

[IdiotCatAkira]

Update:
The Cat and the Tarantula are fine!
The Vet gave Akira a cortison shot but her symptoms were already not that bad anymore so she is not gonna suffer for long.
Kumo is sitting in her hole and is cleaning herself.

Im so glad that nothing bad happened to them
Thank you for linking the threat! I will immedeatly take mesures to prevent something like that to happen again.

 

[fcat]

Be aware that the effects of the steroid may wear off before the urticating hairs. And repeat doses can lead to diabetes. Did the vet tell you what to look for, like respiratory distress or blindness?

I used to be a vet tech. I never met an idiot cat or pet for that matter. I did meet a lot of people that couldn't afford to do the right thing so they euthanized instead. Those 24 hour vets usually charge several hundred dollars for the exam, compared to less than $100 during normal hours. No matter what, the exam has to be paid. Then all the treatments cost an inflated rate. To give you an example, in my area, it would $500 for the exam, $600 to euthanize, and then $300 to have the cat cremated without getting the ashes back. During the day you be looking at half that. During the day you can spend $1300 on treatments.

Then we have our other pets, our tarantulas, who usually don't survive encounters with cats.

This situation was entirely preventable. You are the only animal here expected to be intelligent. The others are acting on instinct.

 

[drurymercy]

Update:
The Cat and the Tarantula are fine!
The Vet gave Akira a cortison shot but her symptoms were already not that bad anymore so she is not gonna suffer for long.
Kumo is sitting in her hole and is cleaning herself.

Im so glad that nothing bad happened to them
Thank you for linking the threat! I will immedeatly take mesures to prevent something like that to happen again.

Happy they both look good. That is my nightmare but with my dog!!!

 

[Mustafa67]

Update:
The Cat and the Tarantula are fine!
The Vet gave Akira a cortison shot but her symptoms were already not that bad anymore so she is not gonna suffer for long.
Kumo is sitting in her hole and is cleaning herself.

Im so glad that nothing bad happened to them
Thank you for linking the threat! I will immedeatly take mesures to prevent something like that to happen again.

Poor T

 

[viper69]

How did YOU let your cat access to your T?

 

[radiomace]

I saw another user say they used a mesh, hot glued some strong magnets to it, and magneted it over the T shelves. That way the cats couldn't jump up next to/on them but the owner could still access them when they needed to. Supposedly it works great against nightmare cats.

My Ts are in my bedroom with the door closed constantly, which I absolutely hate having to do. I'll be switching to that kind of setup ASAP.

 

[fcat]

It wasnt here but another site, someone's A geniculata (all hail) escaped the dedicated spider room, waltzed out into the living room, and right up to the dog.

I have cats and old worlds so I added weather stripping to the door to their room. I will probably put mesh on the screen to the air register, now that I'm thinking about it!

 

[The Snark]

Urticaria is a long term friend for a reason. A reminder to not do something in the future. Eventually some animals get the message. And no, there is no treatment other than the prophylaxis steroid or similar the vet administered. Urticaria is harmless, what it triggers the immune system to do is the problem.
If the symptoms persist it is widely suggested to find an NSAIDS alternative.

 

[radiomace]

Urticaria is a long term friend for a reason. A reminder to not do something in the future. Eventually some animals get the message. And no, there is no treatment other than the prophylaxis steroid or similar the vet administered. Urticaria is harmless, what it triggers the immune system to do is the problem.
If the symptoms persist it is widely suggested to find an NSAIDS alternative.

Well, if it gets in the eyes, that can be a problem. Sounds like kitty might have gotten some in there, so I can understand the concern.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Urticaria is a long term friend for a reason. A reminder to not do something in the future. Eventually some animals get the message. And no, there is no treatment other than the prophylaxis steroid or similar the vet administered. Urticaria is harmless, what it triggers the immune system to do is the problem.
If the symptoms persist it is widely suggested to find an NSAIDS alternative.

I got it on me moving cages around so I gotta start cleaning the outside of my cages to remove it . I was itching for days lol what to clean with ?

 

[Brewser]

I wonder how many of the original Nine Lives Akira has remaining?
You know what "They" say about Curiosity and Cats.

 

[HOITrance]

I have cats and old worlds so I added weather stripping to the door to their room. I will probably put mesh on the screen to the air register, now that I'm thinking about it!

I have 4 huskies, so your idea is pretty darned ingenious, especially since huskies are basically 60lb cats lol

 

[fcat]

I got it on me moving cages around so I gotta start cleaning the outside of my cages to remove it . I was itching for days lol what to clean with ?

I would use the disposable Swiffer type microfiber wipes. You can get the generic brand at the dollar store. Quality is much worse but you're looking for single use

 

[The Snark]

I got it on me moving cages around so I gotta start cleaning the outside of my cages to remove it . I was itching for days lol what to clean with ?

What I have found most effective is a strong surfactant like laundry detergent and a Scotch Brite type dish scrubber. Scrub until you start to glow in the dark. You need to pull those hairs out - just about every single one if a anaphylactic episode is ongoing. Unfortunately, body hair impedes things and shaving is often in order. This is why it's next to impossible to treat animals. Between the shaving and scrubbing a catatonic laid back old hound dog would take offense. And razor blades can cut the hairs off making them much harder to get out. The hard scrubbing works in part by removing the outer skin layers they are embedded in, the surfactant penetrates the skin layers and lubricates the hairs.