Fleas Be With You: Plague Edition

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First of all, let me just say that I'm late to this party, but surely I'm not the only one. Did you know that there are an estimated 2,000 species of fleas world-wide? Wait, it gets better. There is a dog flea AND a cat flea. And the cat fleas are most common in the US while the dog flea is more common in Europe. It explains a lot really, don't you think?

Other than the fact that they're gross AF and annoying, fleas naturally also carry disease. Because if nature has taught us anything, it's that she gives zero fucks about what you personally consider to be acceptable.  The CDC lists four fleaborne diseases that affect humans, including:

  • Plague (yes, that plague)

  • Murine typhus

  • Cat scratch disease (but isn't cat scratch fever so much better?!)

  • Transmission of fleaborne parasites (like tapeworms- it's very meta for your parasite to transmit another parasite)

Should you be worried? Maybe.

Should you declaw your cat to avoid cat scratch disease (CSD)? Absolutely not.

Should you perform a ritual sacrifice for protection? We've already established nature does not care, save your ritual sacrifice energy for another effort.

Here's the quick and dirty on symptoms, prevention, and treatment for the four horsemen of the catpocalypse (I know, I'm really extra today). This week we start with the sexiest of fleaborne diseases, plague.

Plague

I can't imagine what circumstances might lead one to be blissfully unaware of the fact that the bubonic plague wiped out millions of people in Europe during the Middle Ages, but if this is your first time hearing about it, welcome! While the Black Death was truly fearsome in medieval times, it affects fewer than 5,000 people a year worldwide currently. Maybe COVID-19 should give that a try? I'll put it in nature's suggestion box...along with no more wrinkles and chocolate flavored semen.

Plague can be divided into three most common types, depending on the source of infection and how the body is affected. Symptoms depend on the type of plague contracted (bubonic, septicemic, pneumonic) and may include:

  • Fever

  • Chills

  • Headache

  • Weakness

  • Swollen lymph node(s)

  • Abdominal pain

  • Shock

  • Bleeding into the skin or other organs

  • Skin and tissue turning black and dying (fingers, toes, and nose most affected)

  • Shortness of breath

  • Rapidly developing pneumonia

  • Chest pain

  • Cough

  • Bloody or watery mucous

So why is this horror of horrors not a huge concern these days? Science! While the illness is serious, (and pneumonic plague can be transmitted through infection droplets from person to person) the disease isn't present everywhere in the world (sucks to suck if you live in the Western US though). It's also easily treated by common antibiotics. For now.

While rats carrying the disease were largely blamed for the medieval shit-show, cats carrying infected fleas pose a danger to humans in plague endemic areas.

CDC Map of United States in blue color. Red dots across the western portion indicating endemic plague areas. One dot in northwestern Indiana and Illinois border.

Western US endemic plague locations, oh and northern Indiana, because why not?

Prevention

If you've always dreamed of a homestead in New Mexico where you can surround yourself by an unmitigated infestation of rodents, which you routinely trap and taxidermy with your bare hands (and I mean bare...) then the threat of plague out to be one of your top ten reasons why this is actually a terrible idea. Reducing your exposure to rodents is always a great idea, but if you have to handle or skin a potentially infected animal (of any sort), wear gloves, for the love of all that is holy. Eew.

If you just adore spending time outside, are a lumberjack, park ranger, or an eccentric billionaire who likes to get away from it all on your Arizona ranch where you can really do hard, honest work on the land and be yourself, use insect repellent. If you are a cat who adores spending time outside, are a lumbercat, park cat, or an eccentric billionaire cat who likes to get away from it all on your Arizona ranch where you can really do hard, honest work on the land and be yourself, ask your human to apply a flea control product.

The CDC also recommends that if you live in a plague endemic area, that you not allow outdoor roaming pets to sleep on your bed.