Pet owners warned after plague confirmed in Colorado

Health officials in Colorado have issued a warning to residents in Boulder County that the bubonic plague has been found in fleas taken from a prairie dog.

news.yahoo.com...

Welp........I guess if Ebola does not get the fear up, maybe the plague will. On the bright side, the plague is much more treatable these days than it was in the middle ages. Anyone in Colorado out there hear anything else about this?

a reply to: lcbjr1979
The Plague and Hanta Virus are more likely to occur (and have repeatedly) in the American Southwest due to the drier climate and large rodent population. That it has been discovered a little north now in Colorado could be an early indicator of it moving north, albeit quite slowly. Not at panic level yet, however, something to keep an eye on for sure though, thanks for the OP.

S&F !

a reply to: Krakatoa

better get more snakes

Dagnabbit!!

Can't we go one day without something trying to kill us?

S&F thanks for the heads up.

a reply to: terriblyvexed

Lol. It would appear that the answer is no.

a reply to: terriblyvexed

Where's the fun in that? Where would the value in life be if not for the fact that at any moment it could be over?

Adversity makes us strong! Just think of all the deadly things that thousands of years of ancestors had to avoid to make you right now... Just think of all the times you've avoided death to make it here...

Death makes life beautiful!

I thought bubonic plague was already confirmed this year in Colorado? Or was that a different kind of plague? Pneumonic maybe?

a reply to: lcbjr1979

But how many doctors will be looking for the plague when they examine you. A rare disease can easily be overlooked and a misdiagnosis of a more common bug going around can be given to the symptoms.

I think we are at as great a risk today of an old disease reemerging. After many people die, then testing will show the cause. Testing that should have been done after the first person died.

a reply to: rickymouse

The real cause of "THE plague" around 535-542 AD Wasn't just a disease or rats spreading it around.

The great catastrophe of 535 blotted out the sun for 2 whole years. The death and rot was rampant and disease was able to flow freely. This obviously compounded the issue. The great catastrophe was a very very dark time, no pun intended. Caused most of the population of the world to die. Conservative estimates put it at over half, some high as 70%. Chinese records that in the north more then 2/3rds of the population died and the rest survived off canabalism.

Basically if there's dead bodies just laying around everywhere there's gonna be some pretty bad diseases floating around.

I'm so confused by why the great catastrophe never gets talked about more or taught in schools. It's the founding situation in modern times that the current paradigm was built on. It was so recent as well.... Just 1500 years ago the sun went black for 2 whole years... Wow. Modern Christianity was birthed from these times. Islam appears shortly after. It's a pretty big puzzle piece IMO.

a reply to: mindseye1609

We would be better off today than back then. Potatoes can grow in conditions like that. Nightinshade is the family name. Be sick of potatoes in two years though.

I bet it was damp and cold back then.

originally posted by: rickymouse
a reply to: mindseye1609

We would be better off today than back then. Potatoes can grow in conditions like that. Nightinshade is the family name. Be sick of potatoes in two years though.

I bet it was damp and cold back then

at least we could make alot of vodka to ease the pain

a reply to: mindseye1609
I'd like to hear more about this.

And woo hoo vodka!

a reply to: Iamthatbish

theres a GREAT thread around here somewhere il see if i can dig it out.

theres also a great PBS show thats on youtube called "secrets of the dead: the great catastrophe" I'm pretty sure. like 2 hours long and its where i found the majority of my info on this subject. this is based on a book that I've looked up on amazon to order probably 10 times but haven't pulled the trigger yet.. think il go do that now lol.

the author does a great job at talking to many different types of experts around the world that all independently confirm this event then armed with this knowledge he combs through factual and mythical histories looking for similarities and finds many.

pretty interesting stuff IMO!

Brother Man, you have a good point. People will kill rattle snakes for fun, profit, food and because they are poisonous.

Let the snakes live and do their job keeping the mouse population in control.

Our native Michigan rattle snake, the Massauga, is endangered but was once fairly common. Killed off mostly due to ignorance.

I once killed a black widow out of ignorance and kind of regret that I would react that way just because it was poisonous. Not sure if I actually killed it and hope I didn't, but the fear reaction was ignorance on my part.

ETA: There is a hognosed snake that has been hanging around the yard since spring. They look and act like a rattle snake if disturbed and if I was ignorant, I'd have killed him the first time I found him by the porch. He puts on a good show and plays dead for a finale, quite entertaining for a snake. Apparently they have an irritating bite that may be an evolving poison, according to some experts, still harmless though.

originally posted by: Brotherman
a reply to: Krakatoa

better get more snakes

Snakes on a plague!!? Beubonic biters? Can we get Sam Jackson?

I have odd hours and I'm forgetful if you find it, would you please U2U me the details?

a reply to: Brotherman

Shut your filthy mouthy! The plague is bad enough, we don't need any more slithering serpents from hell roaming around too.

More snakes? Hell no!!!

a reply to: KawRider9

Kaw Rider, I hope you were making a joke, because that is the type of ignorance that is throwing our ecology out of whack. Kill the snakes and the rodents population explodes, then the diseases they spread to humans and other animals also explode.

Seriously, most snakes in the U.S. are harmless, Australia is a different story though, every crawly critter over there is deadly it seems. Not that they should be wiped out either.

a reply to: MichiganSwampBuck

I didn't say kill the snakes, I just don't want any more slithering around. I flipping hate snakes.

I understand their role in keeping things balanced and would never kill a non-venomous snake.

True story, bout six years ago I broke my ankle jumping out of my deer stand because a damn slithering serpent from hell was making it's way down a branch towards me. F-that, I'm out!

a reply to: KawRider9

I understand, but I hope you can dispel your irrational fear of snakes.

I've always like reptiles and almost never fear any snakes around here. There was that one blue racer that was 10 ft long, I decided to not handle that one, plus I didn't mind having it around my junk pile to take care of the deer mice and figured I better not mess with it like I usually would.

I hate parasites though, don't mind killing them off, but they must play some role in nature, as disgusting as they are.