CHEYENNE, Wyoming- Health officials here have warned the local population that they should take strict measures to protect themselves and their pets after a fourth cat was diagnosed with plague on Friday.
This is the third cat that has been infected in the western area; the other report had come in from Albany County. Ken Gage of the CDC in Fort Collins, Colo, said that getting four cases in a short period of time was unusual, but that there was no cause for panic. Researchers think that the cats got the disease from the rodents in the area. Plague is endemic (constantly present) in the fleas that infest the rodent population in these areas and can be transferred to other animals including humans.
The disease is caused by a bacterium named Yersinia pestis and is commonly called Black Death after it wiped out whole populations in Europe in the Middle Ages. Modern medicine has dealt effectively with this scourge, but certain areas around the world are prone to episodic occurrences of the disease. The bacterium is usually transmitted to humans via bites from rodents or infected animals including cats. The first symptoms of the disease include headache, nausea, vomiting, aching joints, and a general feeling of ill health. In the United States, the last documented Plague epidemic occured in Los Angeles in 1924-25.
Since then human infections have been rare. In Wyoming only five cases have been reported since 1978. Last year, a southwest Colorado woman was the only one to contact the disease. However, state health officials say that this is the first time in 20 years that they are seeing the appearance of the disease in cats and this has caused some concern, "What really concerns me is these cases with cats right now really increase the risk of human exposure," Gus Lopez, the director of the Cheyenne-Laramie County Health Department, said.
As precautionary measures, officials have asked people to eliminate "sources of food and nesting places for rodents around homes, work places, and recreation areas." They say that if the plague were found in more instances, they would spray the entrances of rodent holes with insecticide.
As a general measure, avoid getting scratched by your pet and if you are scratched or bitten by a cat, make sure that you wash the area with soap and running water and meet your doctor.
