Animal Bites and Scratches in Children: When to Seek Care
An independent educational resource prepared by Mark M. Simonian, MD, FAAP
Sources checked: August 6, 2026 | Medical review completed: August 6, 2026
This page is for general education only and does not replace individualized medical advice. This resource does not establish a doctor-patient relationship. For questions about your own child, contact your child's current healthcare professional.
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Animal bites and scratches can cause wounds, infection, and sometimes rabies or tetanus concerns. Wash any broken skin promptly, control bleeding, and contact a healthcare professional for bites that break the skin or any possible rabies exposure.
Urgent Warning Signs - Check This First
Do not try to capture or handle a wild, stray, sick, or unusual-acting animal. Your first priorities are safety, wound cleaning, bleeding control, and prompt medical guidance.
CALL 911 NOW
Bleeding cannot be controlled with firm, direct pressure; the child is faint, weak, confused, unresponsive, or you believe there is a life-threatening injury
The bite causes severe trouble breathing, signs of a serious allergic reaction, a crushed limb, or an obvious severe injury
The child was attacked by an animal and cannot be safely separated from it or needs emergency rescue
GET EMERGENCY MEDICAL CARE NOW
A large, deep, gaping, or heavily bleeding bite; a bite to the face, eye, neck, hand, foot, genitals, or near a joint; or a bite with exposed bone, tendon, or muscle
A bite or scratch from a bat, raccoon, skunk, fox, or other wild animal that could pose a rabies risk; bat exposure in a room where a child was sleeping or unable to reliably report contact
An animal bite with rapidly spreading redness, red streaks, fever, severe pain, pus, inability to move the area normally, or a child who looks ill
A bite from an animal that is acting unusually, was unprovoked, is stray or unknown, cannot be found for observation, or occurred during international travel
CONTACT YOUR CHILD'S HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL TODAY
Any dog, cat, human, or other animal bite that breaks the skin, including a puncture wound. Cat bites and punctures are more likely to become infected
Any scratch that breaks the skin from a pet, stray, wild, or unknown animal, especially if it is deep or contaminated with saliva
A bite or scratch on the hand, face, foot, genitals, or over a joint; a child younger than 5 years; or a child with a weakened immune system
Questions about tetanus protection, antibiotic prevention, rabies exposure, reporting the bite, or whether the animal can be safely observed or tested
First Aid at Home
Move to a safe place. Wash your hands, then wash the wound gently but thoroughly with soap and running water. Rinse well
Apply firm, direct pressure with clean gauze or cloth for 5 to 10 minutes if there is active bleeding. Do not repeatedly lift the cloth to check
Cover the wound loosely with a clean dressing. Do not tightly close, glue, or bandage a bite wound yourself
Do not apply harsh chemicals, alcohol, or home remedies inside the wound. Do not delay care while searching for the animal or deciding whether the bite looks serious
Rabies and Animal Information
Rabies decisions depend on the animal, location, vaccination history, behavior, and whether the animal can be observed or tested. A healthcare professional and local public health authorities can guide the decision
If safe, record the animal description, location, owner information, vaccination status if known, and circumstances of the event. Do not try to capture a potentially rabid animal yourself
Bat exposures require special attention because a bite may be hard to see. Contact a healthcare professional or public health authority promptly after possible bat contact
A prompt, thorough wash with soap and water is important after any possible rabies exposure
Watch for Infection
Mild redness immediately around a wound may occur, but worsening redness, warmth, swelling, tenderness, pus, bad odor, red streaks, fever, or swollen lymph nodes can indicate infection
Cat bites, punctures, and bites to hands or near joints have a higher risk of infection. Follow up as instructed even if the wound looks small
Take the full prescribed antibiotic course if one is prescribed. Contact the clinician if symptoms worsen or the child develops a medicine reaction
Prevention
Teach children to ask before touching a pet and to avoid unfamiliar, loose, injured, sleeping, eating, or caring-for-young animals
Do not leave infants or young children alone with a dog or other pet, even a familiar family pet. Supervise calm, gentle interactions
Keep family pets vaccinated and under veterinary care. Keep wildlife wild and contact animal control for stray or unusual animals
Teach children to avoid putting their face near an animal’s face and to leave an animal alone if it is growling, stiff, hiding, eating, or protecting a toy
Call Preparation
The animal type, whether it is known or owned, its health and vaccine history if known, where the event occurred, and whether it can be safely observed
When the bite happened, location and depth of the wound, bleeding, first aid used, and whether the skin was broken
Your child's tetanus vaccine history, medicines, allergies, health conditions, and photographs of the wound if helpful
Related Guides
Sources and Medical Review
HealthyChildren.org (American Academy of Pediatrics), Treatment for Animal Bites: Read source
HealthyChildren.org (American Academy of Pediatrics), Rabies Infection: How to Protect Your Child: Read source
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Wildlife: What to Do if You Are Bitten or Scratched: Read source
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Rabies Post-exposure Prophylaxis Guidance: Read source
HealthyChildren.org (American Academy of Pediatrics), Human or Animal Bite Symptom Checker: Read source