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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Deer mice, such as this one, can carry the hantavirus, which is now responsible for the deaths of two visitors to Yosemite National Park.
The hantavirus that has killed two California park visitors and infected two others has been known to science for only 20 years. It’s so rare that health officials say it’s unusual and worrying for there to be more than one case at a time in the same place.
National Park Service officials have taken the unusual step of cautioning 1,700 people who stayed in tented cabins at California’s Yosemite park this summer. The hantavirus can take weeks to start making people sick, so victims may not realize when and where they were infected. It kills about a third of its victims, and there’s no good treatment, making it highly dangerous.
The virus was so mystifying when it was first reported in 1993 that it was called the Sin Nombre virus – Spanish for “the virus without a name.” The first known victim was a strapping young New Mexico man who died despite efforts to save him. Others followed, the victims suffocating as their lungs failed or dying of kidney failure. The cases were clustered in the “Four Corners” region, where Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah come together.
Disease investigators trapped thousands of rodents in their search for the carrier and finally found the deer mouse was the host. The virus, it turned out, was related to a mystery virus that killed U.S. troops during the Korean War and that wasn’t identified until 1976.
It was named hantavirus after the Han river in South Korea. The virus doesn’t harm the mice, and they shed it in their urine and feces. It survives being dried out, and most of the victims appear to have been infected when cleaning or working in dusty buildings that had been closed up – perhaps allowing the mice to nest in it. Hikers and people who sleep outdoors on the ground are also susceptible.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gets about 20 reports a year of hantavirus, says Barbara Knust, of the CDC’s viral special pathogens branch. This year doesn’t look unusual in terms of numbers, she says, but a cluster of four cases in one place is.
“It’s a concern because it is a park where lots of people visit and also it is unusual for more than one hantavirus case to occur in any one location,” Knust said in a telephone interview. “We think the likely reason is that it is an area with a lot of deer mice … and which also has a lot of visitors.”
People are infected when they breathe in dust contaminated with rodent droppings or urine. The Park Service is cautioning people who stayed in "Signature Tent Cabins" at Curry Village in the park. The cabins, with flexible fabric sides, are attractive places for rodents to nest.
“Just having a situation where there is some kind of a mouse infestation and some kind of activity that might stir up the air, or opening a building that might have been closed for a while” can expose people to the virus, Knust said.
“Since hantavirus pulmonary syndrome was first identified in 1993, there have been approximately 60 cases in California and 587 cases nationally,” the National Park Service said in a statement.
There’s no specific treatment for hantavirus infection. Knust said people with serious illness may need help breathing and people showing symptoms need to get to a hospital right away. Infected people are not contagious to other people.
The National Institutes of Health says symptoms at first look like flu, and include chills, headache or muscle aches and fever. Symptoms progress to dry cough and shortness of breath, which can in turn lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome, kidney failure and dangerously low blood pressure. Patients may need oxygen or a breathing tube, and a generic antiviral drug called ribavirin may help prevent the worst symptoms although it’s not a cure.
The CDC has advice for people working in areas where deer mice might have nested.
- When opening an unused cabin, shed or other building, open all the doors and windows, leave the building and allow the space to air out for 30 minutes.
- Spray the surfaces, carpet and other areas with a disinfectant. Leave the building for another 30 minutes.
- Spray mouse nests and droppings with a 10 percent solution of chlorine bleach or similar disinfectant. Allow it to sit for 30 minutes. Using rubber gloves, place the materials in plastic bags. Seal the bags and throw them in the trash or an incinerator. Dispose of gloves and cleaning materials in the same way.
- Wash all potentially contaminated hard surfaces with a bleach or disinfectant solution. Avoid vacuuming until the area has been thoroughly decontaminated. Then, vacuum the first few times with enough ventilation.
Related links:
Second Yosemite visitor dies of rodent-borne illness
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Sounds like a good plot for a movie.
Love your username! Ender's Game is one of the best books ever written.
I agree - does sound like a good plot for a movie, ala The Hot Zone.
There goes all the meat for the chinese resturants.
I guess they still have plenty of cat and dog though.
I have often wondered about the "chicken" on a stick in my favorite chinese restaurants. It just doesn't really resemble chicken at all. It's a completely different consistency too. I was hoping this was due to the marinade or method of cooking. I still absolutely love chinese food though...go figure.
And then there are hotdogs.......
RE "Steve" below...
What do you call someone who graduated last in their medical class......Doctor.
Ask for a copy of your doctors transcripts...
"Mystery meat".
True story: A co-worker of my ex-wife ate Chinese take-out 3 or 4 times a week at the same place. It was close to both his home and work and being a single techie living in his own little world it was perfect. One evening he was eating his "special house chow mein' and he came upon a piece of "chicken" about the size of a Star-burst Candy,only it had brownish gray hair on one side. He brought it to work the next day and showed his co-workers. They were all disgusted and deduced that it was most likely part of a mouse that found its way into the prep area by accident. The hair seemed too fine for a cat and they ruled out gerbils and Guinea pigs because they are more expensive than chicken in terms of labor and yield of meat.
They convinced him to complain to the Health Department and anyone who would listen. He instead mustered up enough courage to complain but went to the restaurant first. They apologized and offered him a coupon for 7 free lunches and 7 free dinners. The idiot took it.
HOT DOGS=PINK SLIME IN A CASING....contains beef,pork,and chicken....mmmm They literally grind up EVERYTHING but the Entrails (Mouth to Ass) of cows, chicken and pigs making a slurry that they call a hot dog. In fact most hot dogs sold today don't even have a casing. They are formed in a long plastic tube capable of taking high heat and they process them in that. Fill the tube, shape the tube, cook the tube, cool the tube, disinfect the tube, remove the tube and package them. PINK SLIME THAT LOOKS LIKE IT'S IN A CASING.
Glad I'm a vegetarian.
the house special is the MOUSE MEAT SPECIAL!!!
Racist?
Steve-1101648
When I was in pre med, we studied prions (slow viruses), viral hemorrhagic fevers and the hanta virus. That was back in the 1970s. Then, with New Speak and a 15 second memory of the American psyche, we have Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and Mad Cow, Ebola and the hantavirus. Different names, same diseases. And , oddly enough , when hanta was first described to me, it had ti's origin in the Middle East. Now, it is a "new disease" found in the Americas. Looks to me like a medical or military research facility lost it's handle on some research , a long time ago, and to cover this circumstance, they spread a new history and dis information.
Considering that the Hanta virus wasn't even discovered until the 93' “Since hantavirus pulmonary syndrome was first identified in 1993, there have been approximately 60 cases in California and 587 cases nationally,” the National Park Service said in a statement.
In fact the Hanta virus didn't even have a name in 1976 when a variant was first discovered in Korea. And those certainly are different diseases. I'd have to call your entire statement 100% FUD.
Krusty: "We knew Krusty brand cereal had spider eggs in it.....but the Hantavirus?!.....that came out of left field".
When I was in pre med, we studied prions (slow viruses), viral hemorrhagic fevers and the hanta virus. That was back in the 1970s. Then, with New Speak and a 15 second memory of the American psyche, we have Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and Mad Cow, Ebola and the hantavirus. Different names, same diseases. And , oddly enough , when hanta was first described to me, it had ti's origin in the Middle East. Now, it is a "new disease" found in the Americas. Looks to me like a medical or military research facility lost it's handle on some research , a long time ago, and to cover this circumstance, they spread a new history and dis information.
CJ, Ebola, and Hantavirus are not the same disease vectors, and have vastly different origins.
FYI
Prions are misfolded protein, not a virus.
I'm guessing from your lack of understanding of the disease vectors you cite (prions, ebola, hanta) that you never finished your pre-med days or went on to actual med school.
as the other posters have pointed out, your post is full of errors and misinformation. i sure hope you learned more than your post leads us to believe.
At least we hope you learned more than your post would indicate, especially if you went on to obtain a medical license.
Ebola is a virus that destroys the internal organ and, but not always, bleeding from the bodily opening including the pores. Survivors, if you can call them that, are left horribly disabled and/or disfigured.
Hanta is an unrelated virus, of which little is known of it's origins. Nor is it's pathology completely understood at this point. It is certainly not a hemorrhagic virus. While it attacks the internal organs, it's methodology varies from case to case and it is not associated with the profound hemorrhaging from the bodily openings that Ebola is famous for. Primarily it attacks the pulmonary system, but also can attack the kidneys, liver and sometimes pancreas. It's gestation period is dis-similar to Ebola.
Very different pathogens, causing vary different diseases, the only similarity is they are all viral in nature. There are groups of viral diseases that are related, various flu strains, for example. Hanta seems a genus unto itself at this point. I do hope your pre-med days are all you accomplished, for everyone's sake.
Thank you....I don't know where Steve went to medical school but you are absolutely correct. CJ, Ebola, Hanta, and Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy are not the same, their virology structure is completely different as well as their transmission to humans.
So what do you folks figure has the officials so"worried", as stated above?
Is it that these mice may migrate to other areas?
Because other than that, it would seem that all they have to do is contact everyone who camped at the park, and stop anyone else from camping until further notice.
TFNJ
It's the abundance of mice and the fact that all 4 cases were from people who stayed at the Curry Village which is a Tent Cabin type resort at Yosemite. Yesterday, the CDPH (California Department of Public Health) mandated that Yosemite park (Curry Village) contact every visitor who stayed at their site from June 1st to present and recommend they seek medical attention immediately and be tested. There have also been 2 reported cases in So. Dakota on an Indian Reservation this summer, with one death. As of yesterday, Curry Village is being monitored by the CDPH and the CDC. The mice will migrate to other areas. My concern is what took the CA. Dept. of Public Health so long to get involved and the CDC other than just reporting and monitoring reports. After the second suspected case from the same location, what stopped them from issuing an alert and being on-site immediately. Hundreds of unsuspecting families stayed at Curry Village this summer, they always do....how many cases where they waiting for to become fatal and how many people had minor symptoms that thought was the flu and simply had no other complications (fortunately) that we will find out about in the future? It's gong to be quite interesting to see in the final outcome of contacting all visitors to the camp site, how many got sick weeks after visiting?
Ok, so it's a matter of controlling the spread, via mice control. Yes I can see how easily a mice population boom can make this spread well beyond Yosemite.
Thanks
TFNJ
The biggest problem here is what Curry Village did or did not do to protect the 1,700 visitors it had this year. They issued a statement that faxes, calls, and e-mails were sent out to all who has visited their complex since June 1st, and also states IT'S A WILDERNESS AREA AND WITH IT COMES SOME DANGERS. When they were notified of the initial possible report of a traveler with suspected Hantavirus, all they did was mop the floors with disinfectant of all 91 cabins, their small motel on site, and 319 tent cabins. They never notified any other visitors of the reported case and subsequent cases, they never handed out advisory notices to their customers upon check in and only agreed to contact all their visitors this summer after the Cal. Dept. of Health mandated they do so yesterday. Sweeping or Mopping floors daily or even weekly is not covered under their "Room Services" at Curry Village. They empty trash, replace towels, and provide bear proof storage lockers only.
I just think this is all too ironic, considering the non-reported cases of Hanta virus-related deaths and illnesses that occured earlier in the year that took place on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Apparently if it 'only' killed young Lakota children, it's no big deal.
I lived in the Sierras where deer mice tested positive for Hantavirus every year. We were told when cleaning inside where mice had been, or might have been, to keep the area damp or wet while cleaning so nothing became airborne. Outside we were to spray outbuildings, wood piles, dog houses before spending time in or around, again, to keep dried urine and feces from becoming airborne. The emphasis was on not letting anything be dry enough to be stirred up. What I'm wondering is this: With the current drought being so widespread, could the virus be more prevalent because the ground is so much drier, and to a much deeper level than usual, therefore allowing more and more virus to become airborne? Or is it that because there is so little water available that the mice are coming closer and closer to man in order to find water and food?
Wow you guys (Ted, Mmmm, Claud, Nic, Laur), did you read Steve's comment? He wasnt saying the three diseases/pathogens were the same, duh! He was saying back in the 70's they all had different names "prions (slow viruses), viral hemorrhagic fevers and the hanta virus" and now we call them "Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and Mad Cow, Ebola and the hantavirus. His comment seemed pretty clear to me... His point, I believe, is that these are NOT NEW diseases.
Every few years we get the Hantavirus scare. Just use the normal precautions you use for any other camping excursion, or working in the attic, crawlspace, garage,or anywhere else you come across mouse droppings or mice.
Avoid breathing the dust created from dried feces. Wash your clothes if you inadvertently crawled through some droppings, clean the area as the article suggested and wash your hands thoroughly. I encounter rodent dropping frequently when looking at real estate or helping someone move. Don't panic,just wash a little harder and you'll be fine.
It's amazing how differently one can interpret the same words! Thanks Chris-bio. I went back and reread the post and I see now what Steve was getting at.
To all of my critics, I did not state that those diseases were one and the same, had the same effects on individuals or were carried by the same vectors. If I had made a statement that including a set of individuals who are capable of using symbolic language , to make themselves understood and included dear Koko, who is a gorilla and you then attack point I was attempting to make by trying to invalidating my statement by saying gorillas cannot speak ,therefore you are stupid ,.dumb and uneducated...the fault is with your reasoning, not mine. The diseases I mentioned were to drawn attention to diseases that are have been investigated to be used for biological weapons as well as our troops being exposed to n some of the areas in the world they have been called to fight. Further, the disregard for safety that I know of , personally, in how some of these facilities have dealt with safety and quality assurance issues. If this is stupid , inane or make no sense to you, take yourself to a library and get a book on debating and enjoy yourself, but keep the discussion to yourself. Better yet, get a book on logic and set theory. And to really nit pick, the term "slow virus", (from a history of biology perspective) included viruses and prions. The operational definition , at the time, made note of the disease being transferable but not found on bacterial or viral mediums. I did not claim to be a doctor nor am I.
Good for you Steve. I feel certain that there are many, many illnesses, diseases, and deaths that can all be attributed to corruption here at home. It's a risky subject to even discuss really, plus so many discount the ideas to untrue conspiracy theories and plain paranoia. It seems highly unlikely that the general public will accept such knowledge.
Steve-1101648
When I was in pre med, we studied prions (slow viruses), viral hemorrhagic fevers and the hanta virus. That was back in the 1970s. Then, with New Speak and a 15 second memory of the American psyche, we have Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and Mad Cow, Ebola and the hantavirus. Different names, same diseases. And , oddly enough , when hanta was first described to me, it had ti's origin in the Middle East. Now, it is a "new disease" found in the Americas. Looks to me like a medical or military research facility lost it's handle on some research , a long time ago, and to cover this circumstance, they spread a new history and dis information.
Considering that the Hanta virus wasn't even discovered and also did not have a name until 93' "Since hantavirus pulmonary syndrome was first identified in 1993, there have been approximately 60 cases in California and 587 cases nationally," the National Park Service said in a statement."
In fact the Hanta virus didn't even have a name in 1976 when a variant was first discovered in Korea. And those certainly are different diseases. I'd have to call your entire statement 100% FUD.
It would be nice if those commenting had something to say that contributed to the story.
Your comment is equally not helpful.
Okay, how about this: in their advice, the CDC forgot to recommend also using face masks, which would be a good thing to do on top of the other things.
I doubt that an over the counter face mask would stop a virus. You'd need a respirator wouldn't you?
It should! Why hasnt' the CDC made park officials in Yosemite post warnings regarding the outbreak. Anyone paying to enter the park should have been handed an "advisory" along with their entrance ticket for their vehicle and map. I realize that Hantavirus takes 2-3 weeks after exposure to manifest symptoms, but officials at Yosemite first got reports in June regarding the advisory from the CDC. 4 verifiable cases from one location should be alarming.
Hantavirus is mostly found west of the Mississippi and is really rare, but anyone who opens an area which has been closed, sheds, cabins, even public storage places should always be alert for seeing droppings. It means rats have been there, or are there. Hantavirus can only be transmitted by the host and a human breathing in the virus or being bitten by a rat who is infected. Hanta does not kill rats, they remain infected, it doesn't make them sick. And just to clear something up from a previous poster here....Hantavirus, Eboli, and Bovine spongiform Encephalopathy (mad cow disease) are completely different diseases and spread differently as well.
Here you go. It may be best to set a contaminated structure ablaze than to risk infection from all the effort required to disinfect it. It sounds like this stuff can kill you pretty easily.
I lived in the Sierras where deer mice tested positive for Hantavirus every year. We were told when cleaning inside where mice had been, or might have been, to keep the area damp or wet while cleaning so nothing became airborne. Outside we were to spray outbuildings, wood piles, dog houses before spending time in or around, again, to keep dried urine and feces from becoming airborne. The emphasis was on not letting anything be dry enough to be stirred up. What I'm wondering is this: With the current drought being so widespread, could the virus be more prevalent because the ground is so much drier, and to a much deeper level than usual, therefore allowing more and more virus to become airborne? Or is it that because there is so little water available that the mice are coming closer and closer to man in order to find water and food?
The pnly problem with that is the infected mice/rats will only go to other structures and leave droppings which carry the virus and so on... and so on......once the droppings are in a closed structure, the only thing to be done is to methodically air out, disinfect and remove the droppings.
You should not spray anything. It will cause the hantavirus to become airborne. A mask, goggles, gloves, shoe covers and clothing you can remove immediately should be worn. A bleach solution should be poured on the areas and left for 30 minutes.
Yes, Debbie that makes a lot of sense. I wonder why they would advise people to spray it in the first place?
I do not believe spraying disinfectant would cause the virus to go airborne. Aseptic technique taught in every micro lab in the country teaches you disinfect by first spraying with 70% EtOH or 10% bleach solution then wiping down the area.
Your told to spray and not vacuum because the liquid will trap any dust particles from becoming airborne. This is the same technique that they tell you to use when disposing of lead based paint that has become dust from renovation. Of course you should always wear protective clothing when dealing with contaminated or other harmful items or materials.
Well there goes my camping trip!
Sheryl - Don't give up your camping trip. The chances are so slim you'd catch something verses definitely missing the beauty of the outdoors. Be careful, use common sense and enjoy!
Deer mice should not be made the villains here. They are not responsible for the disease. They simply carried a disease that was already present in that area. Not all deer mice carry the disease.
yes, it was the virus that killed the people. but that would not have been possible without the vector (the deer mice) they carry some responsibility in this as well.
Nobody is making deer mice the villains. But deer mice carry Hantavirus. They are the most prevalent mice in wooded areas west of the Mississippi and they are the major carriers. Because they are small, they get in structures through very, very small openings and leave droppings that are very small. Certainly they are not responsible for the disease.....they carry the disease that has the very high likelyhood to kill humans.
Deer mice don't kill people. Hantavirus does. It's not fair to hold the deer mice responsible... Deer mice are cute, they're not villians.
Mosquitos don't kill people. Malaria and West Nile Fever kill people. The mosquitos are not respons..... hang on a minute.
Mosquitoes are not cute, so it's all right to blame them.
I was told by a local BLM biologist that the deermouse population is up. Why? Typically, the rodents used to die off heavily over the winter, from lack of food. THEN, as we were beginning to use biological controls, a small bug was introduced to help control the "leafy spurge" (invasive species) plant. The bug lays clusters of eggs in egg sacks in the fall, which hatch in the spring. The deermouse has found these eggs to be a great help in its survival through the winter. Its great to be cutting edge, huh? So, now, by not spraying the weeds, we're helping the environment. Great idea, rotten result. The bugs DO, however, do a great job on the plants...
"Worrries"??? Can you not spellcheck even the HEADING of this article?
----and that would be important-----When I taught the computer chip factory and the tools making your chips to the worlds engineers, I had far more important things to "worry" about, like getting a "simple group" (3 people) later to simply type in all the US English words into a file once, and now everyone thinks they are better than others because of spelling?---
I was disappointed, however when having 30-40 US engineers in the class, and I would ask how to spell "necessary", and only 2-3 would know how. I thought I was the stupid one being from a non English speaking upbringing.
Never mind my 5 languages at technical level---who cares, let us "see" the Atoms and Molecules in the semiconductor wafers--!----those chip/layers are getting smaller and smaller every day--possibly next we have to "make" the Atoms smaller---LOL!----------Don't always believe what you have heard is important--but you can always consult Face Book---LOL, LOL, LOL, LOL,!
Maybe the writer was feeling a bit Scotish and wanted to show it?
Bundgaard: What??
I saw that too! lol....stupid.
Deer mice should not be made the villains here. They did not cause the disease. they simply carried a disease that was present in the area. Not all deer mice have the disease.
This is a serious issue. The people who get this do so by sweeping up old storage sheds and store rooms and pantries and so on. Where I live cases of this virus pop up every year. It is preventable by being careful where you know mice have been leaving their droppings. If you wet them before sweeping them up and wear a particle mask it can be prevented most all of the time, just be careful. You can get it by breathing the dust from the droppings. Nasty!
I was told by a BLM biologist that the deermouse population is up. One theory is that one of the biological controls used in the battle against one of the invasive species, (leafy spurge) provides food for the over-wintering of a higher population of the mice. The bugs introduced to control the plant leave egg sacks, which hatch come spring. The mouse has found that these are edible, and allows more mice to survive the winter. Isn't it GREAT to be saving the environment? We're SO green, that our "natural" fixes are killing us!
Milder winters are also allowing more deermice to over-winter. When they were doing assays back in the 90's they were finding that about 22-37% of all deermice were infected with the hantavirus. Because the deermice have a natural immunity it would be relatively easy to create a vaccine. But because there are so few cases and real medical research money has dried up, it is going to be a very slow progress.
This is just one of those things that results from all research and development money in all fields having dropped to a per capita level that we haven't seen since just before WWI. Too many diseases, and too few dollars going into basic medical research.
Yep it's Global Warming that is doing it.
Ah Rick, you make me sad :( There will be hundreds if not thousands of problems like this created by global warming. I work with crop diseases and we are seeing similar problems with insect and disease pressure moving into new areas and/or becoming more severe. Is it a catastrophy? Not really, but it will require funding to address. Burying your head in the sand will not make them go away.
Lost a good friend to this in 99'. It's nothing to fool around with!
well, this is freaking me out...remember bird flu as well..or avian flu...right now we have allergies in west texas that mimic the virus or flu...lots of lovely pecan trees...but man when the trees polinate...look out..everyone here gets sick...sort of like cedar fever...I lived in san antonio and all of lackland afb and half of san antonio bk in the 80's came down with this wierd flu type thing...everyone had to carry a klenex box and many had diahrrea to go along with all of that...it was crazy..headaches...then they discovered it was the cedar putting out its fumes...it took awhile for it to abate....I realized not too long ago...that anything you smell is some kind of liquid in the air that penetrates your nostrils and obviously your skin and gets into your blood stream...we use to laugh and say that when someone passed gas or farted...that if we smelled it then it gave out some sort of liquid and came into the air and those smelling it would get that same liquid into their system via their nostrils ....yukkkkk.....its amazing how science does clarify a lot of things...what I want to know is how did those mice get here...if they are from korea ..they must have been brought over by koreans when they moved here...isnt there a way to kill them....get rid of those mice...they arent part of the american landscape or ecology....so lets get rid of them before they kill anyone else...
Killing all the mice is NOT the answer in this case. I would be the mice are a good source of food for many animals in the area as well.
Vickie-239905-I got this info for you: there are 4 areas of the world, Asia, Europe and Scandanavia that have these outbreaks. The deer mice are an original species from the US, and other species from here that carry the pathogen are the cotton rat, rice rat, and white-footed mouse. Depending on where in the world you contract it, there are different organs attacked.
If we try to kill off everything that threatens us, there won't be very much left living. We aren't immortal; we just have to be aware.
As an avid camper and backpacker, I have found that it is more common than some think to contract a virus while in the outdoors. There are hundreds, even thousands, of things in the wilderness that can kill or harm. As this disease does not only exist in Yosemite, it is imperative that those out and about in the great outdoors be mindful and careful of these risks an take the proper precautions.
We're safer out in the wilds than in most cities - even from zoonotic diseases which we can catch from rodents and even the family cat.
yea neighbor your right...this natural and green stuff...is killing us...that is what the environmentalists want..less humans and more animals etc....this planet was made for man..not visa versa...we all need to care about the areas we live in..but not to the extent that we die...we need to destroy these mice...quickly....I dont want plague hitting this country like it did yrs ago....if we know about this we can stop it....
Plague occurs naturally in the U.S. and always will. It's treatable. so don't get your knickers in a twist.
It's nature out of balance - we've screwed around with pesticides and we've polluted our air and water and soil with chemicals and waste - that have exacerbated allergies and disease.
If you believe that the planet was created for people then you must also know that that scenario calls for people to be stewards and not treat the place as if it were disposable. If you're relying on the Bible for your info, keep Rev. 11:18 in mind: that people ruining the earth will be brought to ruin.
you know what finally 31....I think we might be getting to the point of needing to wear masks on our faces..like the ones we wear in hospitals....I have a very bad immune system..have had since I was born in the 1950's...sick all the time and now I have a seizure disorder and barrett's metaplasia...or esophagus...reflux disease which is precancerous...Im on acid reducers...but my system isnt great..and i have been always very clean about my environment...well, remember the stories we read about the kids in africa and other third world countries having a better immune system then ours...its because they were exposed to more dirt then we are...we use to much clorax etc....we need to get more dirty so our bodies become immune to some of the bad illnesses out there...got to figure these things out.....americans have a lot more allergies and immune problems...
Vickie,
Since "this planet was made for man", why don't we let the almighty creator take care of the mouse problem.....
So now we have Muslim terrorists trapping and culturing sick Deer Mice in a lab. They dry the urine and mice @!$%#. They grind the @!$%# into a fine power and seal it in zip-lock bags. They take the bags to public buildings where public officials work and inject the virus laden @!$%# into the air conditioning and heating ducts. They start the viral assaults in Washington D.C. In a few weeks the mice have fatally infected the RATS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It was not specified that the mice came from Korea. It only stated that the disease was linked to a disease found in Korea during the Korean war. And destruction is not the answer. Containment and research are, right now, the only way to help those infected. If we edged toward elimination every time something came along with the ability to harm or kill, then our country would be a lot less populated, by both animal and humans alike. Education and cohabitation have worked for humans for thousands of years...it should still.
The virus is not as the one identified in Korea...it is similar to the virus found in Korea but not the same. The Elders and Healers from the southwest Four Corners Region already knew about the disease. They are the ones who told Public Health about it. It's a disease that had been recurring in that area forever. Thier oral history passed that informaiton from one generation of Healers to the next. They new this disease would recur when the rodent population increased with abundent food supplies after wet winters. It wasn't until 1993 that Public Health and the CDC paid any attention to it.
Hanta virus is present in many areas of the world. For example, it is also found in parts of South America.
Aha! One more good reason to stay in a Ritz Carlton!
Maybe a nice ferral cat population could clean up the problem for good... I have never been a fan of rodents, you could kill them everyday and there would still be plenty left to keep the eco-pest people happy.
Feral cats are more likely to kill wildlife right across the board as to kill only certain types of mice.
Besides feral cats spread some interesting diseases all on their own. Morons who dump cats out to live short unhealthy lives and slaughter animals that really belong in the environment are scum.
We're more likely to catch a diseases from other people anyway.
Virus particles cant be killed by antiseptic because they are only made from amino acids, they possess no organelles which is what antiseptics are designed to interact with. That is also why antibiotics cant kill off viral infections as well.
The military gets wind of the Muslim Sick Deer Mice Operation and are joined by some local militia groups in the culturing the deadly virus. Soon every one of the combatants has a Deer Mouse Lab creating thousands of pound of deadly Deer Mouse Virus. Wall Street cons jump in and unload their Face Book stock for Deer Mouse stock,s. Deer Mouse Stock triples in value when the military begins spraying the the deadly virus into homeless shelters, local food banks, old folks homes, well-fare offices ans social security offices. Obama gives a speech as to how his new Deer Mouse Czar has got rid of the dead wood and jump started the ECONOMY!!!!!!!!!!!!
Everyone should realize many different types rodents carry harmful bacteria, as well as they are carriers of diseases. Any area a rodent has resided should be cleansed with straight bleach or ammonia. Forget about all the "foo foo" cleaners, as none of these contain the strength or combination of chemicals to cleanse the rodent infested areas.
The information we received from Public Health when I worked for the Park Service and Fish & Wildlife Service was to use a 10% solution for bleach, never straight. And never mix it with amonia. The fumes and gases, you will do more harm to yourself than the rodents. Mixing chemicals can create poisonous fumes that can permanently harm or kill you.