Lots of hysteria on line about a case of Bubonic plague in Oregon.
Uh, hate to tell you, but doctors in the IHS (Indian Health Service) in the Navajo or Pueblo areas see a couple cases a year. If diagnosed early, it is treatable because it comes from a bite (not the pulmonic type, which is quickly fatal) and is usually diagnosed early. Why so many cases? Because of the local squirrels or prairie dogs: Indeed, local dogs show antibodies to plague, suggesting that this might be the link, which is why the IHS does a lot of animal monitoring.
But this case is worrisome because it wasn't in a hunter but caught from a cat.
Authorities in Deschutes said the recent case is the first in the state since 2015. Deschutes officials said squirrels and chipmunks are the most likely carriers of the disease in central Oregon, but mice and rodents can also be infected, according to the announcement.
Bubonic plague is caused by a bacteria named Yersinia Pestis, which infects fleas. These fleas do live on rats, which are carriers of the plague, meaning they’re not affected by it but can spread it. But the cats that would act as pest control aren’t immune either. According to the Centers for Disease Control, cats are actually highly susceptible to plague.
The professor who taught us infectious disease in medical school gave us a lecture about all those diseases we could catch from our pets, including cats and dogs. Here in the Philippines, rabies continues to be a major problem because of strays who bite kids. Indeed one young girl in our area just died of rabies because she didn't tell her mom about the puppy who bit her. But cats? Yes, they also can catch rabies but it is rare...
But there is a disease that you can catch from cats: toxoplasmosis, which if caught by a pregnant woman during pregnancy, could lead to the baby being brain damaged.
So enjoy your kittie. They are good for your mental health.
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