Consider plague risk when dealing with fleas, rodents — and cats

Building upon Pest Management Professional’s plague risk coverage in its April issue (p. 64), there has been a report noting that in February, a resident of Bend, Ore., contracted bubonic plague from their pet cat. While plague is rare, it’s not eradicated; national figures estimate about seven people a year contract it in the United States. It’s worth reminding technicians that particularly, on calls for fleas, rodents and feral cats, personal protective equipment (PPE) is important.

The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) puts forth the three main transmission routes that the bacterium that causes plague, Yersinia pestis, takes:

 

1. Flea bites. “Plague bacteria are most often transmitted by the bite of an infected flea,” the CDC states. If there are not enough rodents on which to feed, “hungry fleas seek other sources of blood. People and animals that visit places where rodents have recently died from plague are at risk of being infected from flea bites. Dogs and cats may also bring plague-infected fleas into the home.”

 

2. Contact with contaminated fluid or tissue. “Humans can become infected when handling tissue or body fluids of a plague-infected animal,” the CDC reports, noting that gloves and other personal protective equipment (PPE) can lower the risk.

 

3. Infectious droplets. “Humans and animals with plague pneumonia can sometimes cough droplets containing plague bacteria into the air. These bacteria-containing droplets can cause pneumonic plague in another person if inhaled,” the CDC notes, adding that while person-to-person spread has not been documented in the United States since 1924, “there continue to be rare cases of pneumonic plague among people exposed to sick cats. Cats are particularly susceptible to plague and can be infected by eating infected rodents. Cats with plague (also) pose a risk of transmitting infectious plague droplets to their owners or to veterinarians.”

 

In the U.S., the CDC says. most cases occur in the rural areas of northern New Mexico, northern Arizona, southern Colorado, California, southern Oregon and far western Nevada. While several flea species are capable of transmitting the bacterium, the most common carrier is the rat flea (Xenopsylla cheopis).

MORE INFORMATION: CDC.gov/plague/causes/index.html; Deschutes.org/health/page/deschutes-county-confirms-case-human-plague-local-resident

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from Pest Management Professional https://www.mypmp.net/2024/08/11/consider-plague-risk-when-dealing-with-fleas-rodents-and-cats/
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