Plague Information
provided by San Juan Basin Health Department

Q. What is the Plague?

A.     The Plague is a disease of rodents transmitted to humans and other animals by infected fleas.  Plague is widespread in the western United States. Prairie Dog colonies are common in rural Southwest Colorado, and die offs are an indicator of plague. Plague is also frequently detected in rock squirrels, wood rats, and other species of ground squirrels, chipmunks, and wild rabbits.

Illness from plague can be treated successfully and cured if it is diagnosed early in its course. History of possible exposure is very important because symptoms resemble those of many other infectious diseases. If precautions are taken, the probability of an individual contracting plague is quite low.

Q. What is the Cause & Treatment?

A.     The causative bacterium (Yersinia pestis) is transmitted to people through flea bites and direct contact with infected animals. Each rodent species is host to one or more species of fleas which, when infected, are carriers. These fleas generally do not infest other animals unless their natural hosts are unavailable. Rock squirrels are closely related to California ground squirrels and are the most significant plague host in Colorado. Their principle flea is an aggressive parasite and will readily bite other animals and people. Domestic cats and dogs can also contract plague by catching and eating infected rodents and rabbits or by being bitten by infective fleas. They may carry infected fleas home to their owners or especially with cats, serve as a direct source of infection.

In humans the incubation period is usually 2-6 days. Typical symptoms include sudden onset of fever or chills, severe headaches, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting and a general feeling of systematic illness. Extreme pain and swelling in a lymph node draining the infection site is a suggestive symptom of bubonic plague. Other forms of the disease include septicemic illness with no bubo developing, and pneumonic plague in which the lungs are involved. The septicemic and pneumonic forms are the most serious. In addition, pneumonic plague can be spread by inhalation of infective droplets expelled by another human or animal with plague pneumonia.

Treatment with antibiotics is effective during the early states of the disease. If diagnosis and appropriate treatment are delayed, life-threatening complications may follow. A doctor or hospital emergency room should be consulted as soon as symptoms appear, and a history of exposure to potentially infected animals is very important in evaluating the risk from plague.

Anti-plague vaccine is not readily available. It may be advantageous for researchers or people working with plague-infected animals to be vaccinated but it is not indicated for the general public.

Q. What are the precautions to consider?

A.

• DO NOT feed or entice any rodent or rabbit species into your yard, back porch, or patio.
• Eliminate rodent harborage, such as piles of lumber, broken cement, trash and weeds around your home or recreational cabin.
• Make sure that houses and outbuildings are as rodent-proof as possible. Keep foundations in good repair and eliminate overhanging trees from roof and windows.
• When outdoors, do not linger in rodent-infested areas. Do not catch, play with, or attempt to hand feed wild rodents.
• Avoid contact with all sick and dead rodents and rabbits. Look for the presence of blow flies or dead animal smell as evidence of animal die offs. Report such die offs. to San Juan Basin Health Department.
• While hiking, treat pants, socks, shoe tops, arms and legs with insect repellents.
• Retrain cats and dogs from roaming at all times in and around prairie dog colonies.
• Insecticide treatment should be used on cats and dogs during summer plague season. The effectiveness of flea-repellent collars has not been proven.
• If you hunt or trap rabbits or carnivorous wild animals, such as coyotes and bobcats, protect your hands and face while skinning or handling these animals. Fresh pelts may be treated with flea powder.
• Bites from wild carnivores and from cats and dogs have caused human plague. Such animals may be infected, carry the bacteria in their mouths or may transport infective fleas.
• Cats sometimes exhibit swellings and sores around the mouth, head and neck when infected. Seek professional veterinary care for such animals and do not handle suspiciously sick pets without gloves and face protection.
• Remember the incubation period of 2-6 days and consult a physician if sudden unexplained illness occurs within that period after activities in the outdoors.

Precautions for Preventing
Hantavirus Infection
provided by San Juan Basin Health Department

Q. What is Hantavirus

A. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome was first recognized in the Southwest in 1993. Cases occur mostly in the western United States. The virus is passed to humans through contact with urine, feces or saliva from an infected rodent. Breathing contaminated dust is the most common form of transmission. Surveys have detected Hantavirus in deer mice and other rodents in Colorado. The virus is not contagious (passed from person to person) and is not transmitted by dogs or cats that catch and eat rodents.

Q. What are the Risk Factors?

A.

• Living in dwellings with indoor rodent populations
• Disturbing rodent-infested areas
• Cleaning cabins, barns, and other outbuildings
• Cleaning other areas contaminated with rodent droppings
• Planting or harvesting field crops

Note: The greater number of mice, the greater chance of acquiring this disease

Q. What are the symptoms?

A. Early symptoms begin 1 to 6 weeks after exposure, and include a fever and body aches, particularly leg and back aches. Nausea, vomiting and headache may also be present. A cough and shortness of breathe develop 2 to 5 days later. A sore throat, sneezing, runny nose and sinus congestion are not typical hantavirus symptoms.

A blood test for a platelet level should be done by your doctor during the first few days of symptoms. Early diagnosis and treatment are important. If you have any doubts, go to the local emergency room!

Q. What should you do when outdoors?

A.

• Avoid direct contact with rodents, rodent burrows and nests
• Do not enter rodent-infested cabins or shelters, don't pitch tents in areas where there are numerous rodent burrows, or mouse feces, and do not sleep on the bare ground.

Q. What should I do for rodent control (indoors)?

A.

• Keep food and water, including pet food, out of rodent access. Do not leave food and water out for pets. Clean up spilled food. Dirty dishes should not be left out as they may attract mice.
• Seal, cover, or screen all openings in your home that are large enough for a mouse to enter (generally, anything larger than 1/4 inch). Steel wool and wire mesh work well for this purpose.
• Use spring-loaded traps to kill rodents or hire a professional exterminator. Do not use live traps. Follow the clean-up method below to dispose of dead animals.

Q. What should I do for rodent control (outdoors)?

A.

• Eliminate food and water sources near buildings. Store food and animal feed in a rodent-proof containers, elevated 12-18 inches off the ground.
• Do not attempt to kill outdoor rodents unless the infestation is severe and near occupied buildings.
• If you must kill outdoor rodents, use spring-loaded traps or hire a professional exterminator. Rodent poisons may be used outdoors and in outbuildings not accessible by children or pets. Follow the clean-up method below to dispose of dead animals.
• Keep garbage in rodent-proof containers. Elevate containers 12-18 inches off the ground.
• Keep wood piles, gardens, corrals, compost piles and other rodent "attractions" at least 100 feet away from buildings, or as far away from buildings mowed and removed.
• Keep weeds and grasses around buildings mowed and removed.
• Cats may be helpful but should be treated periodically for fleas, since fleas can carry plague.

Q. What method of cleaning should I use?

A. Before cleaning, make sure the area is clear of recent rodent habitation. The virus is most commonly transmitted by breathing contaminated dust particles, so care should be taken to avoid disturbing dust. Do not dry vacuum habited areas. The following method disinfects and also decreases the possibility of dust inhalation. Use this procedure when cleaning up dead rodents, rodent nests, droppings, or urine.

• Current studies indicate that the virus is most infectious during the first 48 to 72 hours after the mouse is killed or droppings are left. Delaying clean-up may reduce exposure if the area is not currently in use by humans. To reduce the possibility of inhaling contaminants, ventilate the area, if it will not stir up dust. Open windows in a summer cabin, vents in a crawl space, etc.
• Add 1/2 cup bleach to 5 cups of water (1:10 dilution) in an empty spray bottle. (Lysol or other disinfectant may be used on bleach-sensitive areas.) The bleach solution can be stored for up to one week if sealed in an airtight container; otherwise, mix a fresh solution for each use.
• Spray the area to be cleaned and leave it soaked for at least 15 minutes.
• Wear rubber gloves and a respirator or well-fitted mask.
• Pick-up the material (s) with a paper towel, paper plate or gloved hand and place in a plastic bag. Seal bag, then place into a second plastic bag and seal.
• You may vacuum the soaked material with a wet vacuum, but do not vacuum dry material.
• Dispose of the sealed bag, disposable gloves and masks in an outdoor garbage can.
• Disinfect rubber gloves (if not disposable) or other non-disposable utensils you used with bleach and water solution and leave outside to dry. Wash hands with soap and hot water.

Note: Items stored in boxes that contain rodent droppings can be unpacked outside. Take care not to breathe contaminated dust. Disinfect the outside of the box before handling. Exposure to sun and air will kill the virus.

Contacting the San Juan Basin
Health Department

Click to visit their web site: www.sjbhd.org

Durango, 281 Sawyer Drive, Bodo Park             (970)-247-5702           

Pagosa Springs, 502 South 8th Street                (970)-264-2409

Additional Resources:

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, 24 hour HOTLINE.................(303)-692-2667

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, to request brochure.............1-800-866-2759

La Plata County and City of Durango Infoline....(970)385-4636, ext. 2224