On warm sunny days when your pet is playing out in the garden, they’re at risk of disturbing wasps and bees and getting stung. Bees, bumble bees, wasps, and hornets are usually only active if the temperature is over 13°C, so most insect stings in dogs and cats happen in the summer. They don’t usually sting unless they’re touched or harmed, which can be difficult to prevent with a pet!

The symptoms of being stung by bees and wasps are generally mild unless your pet has an allergic reaction. Some swelling is common with localised pain and irritation. Luckily, these symptoms are short-lived, but your pet will need immediate veterinary treatment if they have an extreme reaction.

How Do I Know if My Pet has Been Stung?

Unfortunately, bee and wasp stings are unavoidable. To a cat or dog, a small flying buzzing object will seem like a great thing to play with, and they just can’t help but swat at it. Maybe it tastes good too! Sometimes they’ll get away without any problems, but more often than not, it’ll end up with them getting stung, but how will you know?

Signs of a Bee or Wasp Sting on Your Pet

There are some tell-tale signs and symptoms if your dog or cat has been stung. 

• Whining
• Swelling of an area – like a fat lip or closed eyes
• Holding up their paw
• Pawing at their face, mouth or throat
• Biting or giving a lot of attention to a particular area

Signs of an allergic reaction is worrying, so if your pet is allergic to bee stings, they’re more likely to have some of the following symptoms:

• Vomiting
• Diarrhoea
• Difficulty breathing
• Appear weak or even collapse
• Pale gums
• Excessive swelling around the site of the sting and spreading out from it

If you notice any of these signs in your dog or cat, call your vet immediately.

What Should I Do if My Pet has Been Stung?

As soon as you suspect anything, bring your cat or dog indoors so they’re not at risk from more stings, especially if they’ve disturbed a nest. Check how many times they’ve been stung and where. If your pet has been stung in the mouth, or has multiple stings to the face and throat, this can be life threatening.

A swollen throat or airways will cause difficulty breathing, so take your pet to the vet immediately. Allergic reactions to stings may affect the whole body and will need urgent attention. So, keep an eye out for excessive swelling and other signs of an extreme reaction. If in doubt, call your vet for advice.

You can apply an ice pack to the affected area to reduce swelling. Alternatively, wrap some frozen peas or ice cubes in a tea towel. Redness and inflammation are common following a sting. If this remains or gets worse after a few hours, contact your vet for advice.

There are dog antihistamines available to help reduce swelling, but it's always best to check with your vet before giving any medication to your pet.

Can I Remove the Bee Stinger?

Bee stings on dogs and cats often mean that a stinger is left in their skin, which will continue to inject venom if it’s not taken out. The best way to remove a stinger is to use a credit card or something similar to scrape across the site. This will brush the stinger out.

If that doesn't work, you could use a pair of tweezers to pull it out. The downside to this method is that the stinger contains a venom sac. So, by squeezing it you’ll release more venom into your pet’s skin, causing further discomfort. Fortunately, wasps and hornets don’t leave behind a stinger.

How Do I Treat My Pet's Wasp or Bee Sting

The best bee sting treatment to help relieve pain and discomfort, is to apply a mild alkali to the area. You could use some calamine lotion or bicarbonate of soda diluted in water. If you don’t have either of these to hand, toothpaste contains bicarb so can be applied to the area in small amounts.

Dog and cat wasp stings or hornet stings need to be treated differently because their venom is pH neutral rather than alkaline. Swelling and discomfort can be relieved by ice packs and antihistamine cream. Your vet can prescribe a hydrocortisone cream if the itching persists.

Don’t treat your pet with over-the-counter human medications without speaking to your vet first, as they may contain ingredients that are toxic to dogs and cats.

Can My Pet Die from a Wasp or Bee Sting?

Most bee and wasp stings on dogs and cats have mild reactions, but being stung on the face, throat or mouth can be life threatening. If a pet is allergic to the venom and has an anaphylactic reaction, they could die if treatment isn’t received quick enough.

Closely monitoring your cat or dog following wasp or bee stings is crucial for noticing early signs of an extreme reaction. If your dog or cat suddenly deteriorates and appears weak you should get them checked by a vet as soon as possible.

Although uncomfortable for your pet, a bee sting is unlikely to cause major problems. If your dog or cat is stung, they’ll experience some redness, swelling and irritation which can be treated at home. However, some pets can have an allergic reaction to wasp and bee stings so will need urgent veterinary treatment.

Symptoms of a sting and recovery times will vary depending on the size and weight of your pet, where they’ve been stung, if they’ve been stung multiple times, and if they’re allergic to bee and wasp stings.

Everypaw Pet Insurance

Everypaw's Pet Insurance comes with 24/7 unlimited access to vets and vet nurses to help your pet's health, care, nutrition and behaviour. So you can rest assured that they'll be well looked after, whoever your new family member is! Get a quote today!

Get a quote

 

Content provided from Vetstream's Vetlexicon Canis – www.vetlexicon.com/treat/canis AND Felis - www.vetlexicon.com/treat/felis

Vetlexicon is the world’s largest peer-reviewed online clinical reference source. All our content is written and peer-reviewed by over 1,000 of the world’s leading veterinarians, ensuring relevance, accuracy and quality.