Hoping to halt the spread of the monkeypox virus, state health officials spent Monday searching for more than 100 people who bought animals from a Villa Park business that sold dozens of prairie dogs believed to be infected.
Although the sellers had documentation on the transactions, investigators said many of the names or addresses could be found. Some prairie dogs passed through several pet shops, making them difficult to trace, and some were sold at swap meets where paperwork is not always complete.
“We’re trying to stay ahead of it and remain aggressive, but at the same time we don’t want people to see that and overreact,” said Jeff Squibb, spokesman for the Illinois Department of Agriculture. “We are concerned, and we’re doing everything we can to stop the spread of the virus and eradicate it.”
State and federal health agencies said they were tracking 37 suspected cases as of Monday. Four people–three in Wisconsin and one in Illinois–had been confirmed by lab tests for the monkeypox virus. All have recovered.
Of the suspected cases, five are in Illinois, 19 in Wisconsin and 16 in Indiana, health officials said.
The cases are the first reported instances of monkeypox in the Western Hemisphere.
Investigators believe the virus, normally found in Central and West Africa, may have come to the United States in an imported Gambian rat, an African rodent sold as a pet. Several of the rats were sold by a Texas animal dealer to Phil’s Pocket Pets in Villa Park. Officials suspect an infected rat passed the virus to the prairie dogs.
There is no known treatment for monkeypox, but a committee on immunization practices at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is studying whether people who have been vaccinated against smallpox may be protected from monkeypox, CDC officials said.
The first known case in Illinois was Eric Stargardt, 24, who sometimes tends the animals at Phil’s Pocket Pets.
Shari Moberley, who owns Phil’s Pocket Pets with her husband, Phil, said the couple first heard there might be problems with their prairie dogs when a dealer in Wisconsin called in mid-May and said some of the animals were ill.
Three days later, Phil Moberley said, he stopped selling his prairie dogs after hearing a little girl who had been bitten by one of the animals had been hospitalized in Wisconsin with an unknown illness.
After testing some, Moberley said he decided to euthanize more than 70 prairie dogs. By then, however, the Moberleys had already sold about 130 of the animals.
In Illinois, investigators are focusing on six counties from which people bought prairie dogs. The counties are Cook, DuPage, Kane, McHenry, Grundy and Winnebago.
The name
Pox viruses are named for the animal species in which they were first isolated, said Gail Scherba, associate professor of veterinary virology at the University of Illinois.
But a number of different animals may be the host for it. In the rainforest countries of Central and West Africa, where monkeypox is primarily found, squirrels and rats have transmitted it to humans.
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Q&A
Until the outbreak in the U.S. Midwest, monkeypox has been a rare human illness confined to the rain forests of Central and West Africa.
Here are answers to what is known about the virus:
What is the incubation period?
About 12 days.
What are the symptoms?
It starts with fever, headache, body ache, chills, drenching sweat and sometimes a cough. This is followed one to 10 days later by a rash with pustules that eventually crust over. They can occur almost anywhere on the body, including the palms of hands and soles of feet.
How dangerous is it?
In Africa, fatality rates range from 1 percent to 10 percent. In the current outbreak here, no one has died.
Can it be prevented?
The smallpox vaccine is effective at stopping infection. Those who got vaccinated before smallpox shots were discontinued in the 1970s may still have at least partial protection.
How do people catch it?
In the U.S. outbreak, victims have caught the virus through close contact with sick animals. Most handled the animals and were bitten or had breaks in their skin.
Can I catch it from another person?
Yes, especially if they have sores.
How do I keep from catching it?
Avoid contact with prairie dogs or Gambian giant rats that appear sick, especially if they are missing patches of fur, have rashes or have a discharge from their eyes or nose.
What should I do with a sick prairie dog or Gambian giant rat?
Contact your local or state health department.
ASSOCIATED PRESS.
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Know your rodent
Although prairie dogs are in the news, they normally don’t live in the Midwest. To help clear up confusion with other rodents, here’s a guide:
Prairie dog
A prairie dog, which is part of the squirrel family, looks almost like a tree squirrel but has short legs and a smaller tail. These rodents are called prairie dogs because of the barklike sounds they make to communicate, said Richard Reading, director of conservation biology for the Denver Zoological Foundation. Prairie dogs are smaller than groundhogs. Prairie dogs are primarily found out West and are not native to Illinois, state officials said. The problems with monkeypox have been found in pet prairie dogs, not those in the wild.
Groundhog
According to Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., groundhogs and woodchucks are basically the same animal. Like the prairie dog, the groundhog is related to squirrels. According to the Cornell Chronicle, the groundhog–or woodchuck–would chuck about 700 pounds of wood if the woodchuck could chuck wood. Apparently, compared with beavers, groundhogs aren’t great at moving wood around, even though some of them chew on wood.
Gopher
Gophers are sometimes referred to as ground squirrels–a common mistake. Most experts refer to them as pocket gophers. According to the University of California, they are built for digging, using their powerful front legs to tunnel, and they have very sensitive whiskers that help their movements in the dark. You can usually tell when you have a gopher by mounds of fresh soil in your yard. Unlike groundhogs, gophers do not hibernate. The most famous gopher? The one from “Caddyshack.”
