"Today in science news, there seems to be a spot of bubonic plague running around the Denver Zoo. The disease has claimed its first primate, a Capuchin monkey. Bubonic plague is the disease that was known as the "Black Death" when it wiped out as much as two-thirds of Europe's population in the 14th Century. Visitors are urged to avoid rodents, such as squirrels and rabbits. Over to you, Steve."
"Thanks, Bob. This morning, Paris Hilton complained through her publicist about the low-grade toilet paper in jail..."
"This just in...It seems that popcorn, the preferred treat of flying rodents (pigeons), squirrels and bunnies, has been banned from the zoo since the outbreak of Bubonic Plague was first discovered there. Witnesses say that bands of squirrels have been seen attacking tourists, "gang-style" for the now-illicit corn treat. Some say that the Apocalypse is near. Back to you, Jill.
ReplyDeleteOut here in the great nowhere, bubonic is still very alive and well, as is Hanta virus. The trapper/well driller's advice was "Pwah ... skin 'em, if they look kinda 'sored' on the muscle casing, just throw them aside, no big deal." I really wish my personality type would accomdoate that kind of casual laissez faire.
ReplyDeleteP.S. The Word Verification is a pain for a dyslectic. I just dropped it from my bog for the same reasons.
P.S. Oh my, what a nice lot of typos I just sent you. Funny how you don't see them until they are published - sigh. In particular, the word 'bog' instead of 'blog' - perhaps a Freudian Slip in nature.
ReplyDeleteBubonic Plage and Hantavirus are, of course, two justifications for varmint shooting, whether with an AR or something more traditional. I was somewhat upset when I reported to Ft Carson in '92, as they had just canceled, forever, the annual prarie dog shoot they used to hold to keep the little rats from swiss-cheesing the maneuver training areas. It went from bad to worse--just before I left in '94 the new commanding general tried to impose a requirement that all personnel had to turn in an inventory of all firearms they owned, on-post or off.
ReplyDeleteYep. Plague, hantavirus, and tularemia are all going concerns down here in my corner of the Land of Enchantment as well.
ReplyDeleteWild rodents taking up residence in or near your house is a serious call to arms, not an angstfest over whether you can bring yourself to kill the "cute" little plaguebearers.
And just think about the demographics and way of life now as opposed to the dark ages.
ReplyDeleteThink we'd see the plague spreading faster and killing more people? Modern medicine may be able to deal with it, but how many doctors know how to treat it, what to look for? We haven't seen this disease for eons in the western world.
Looks bad to me, but then again, what do I know, I'm not an epidemiologist.
Oh heck, we have bubonic plague in Colorado and New Mexico every year. Frankly, I worry about hantavirus more, since our garage and basement always host field mice, despite my little trap line.
ReplyDeleteQuarantining Denver would be amusing, however.
Rabies & Plague to deal with here in S. CA. Of course, there's always Sacramento, but there ain't a cure for POWER mongering that I could put in your blog.
ReplyDeleteS’pose there’s any correlation between the “new” appearance of bubonic plague & 20 million illegal aliens loose in the country?
ReplyDeleteJus’ sayin’…
Actually, my angst lies in whether or not to eat the darn things at all, not in killing them. With my luck, I'd get one that was in an early infection stage but looking just fine.
ReplyDeleteI'm saving the prairie dogs for my buddy Sarge for when they finally make it out here. He just LOVES dogging. But the elk and mule deer remain a serious business part of our income so hopefully CWD won't show up here any time soon. Geez, what plague is next?