Plague monkey dies in US zoo (from eating a Squirrel!)

Colorado health and zoo officials say a Denver Zoo monkey has died of bubonic plague, apparently after eating a squirrel stricken with the disease.

Denver Zoo spokeswoman Ana Bowie said five squirrels and a rabbit found dead on zoo grounds tested positive for the flea-borne disease in recent weeks.

On May 15, zookeepers noticed the eight-year-old hooded capuchin monkey was lethargic, and the next day it was found dead in its enclosure.

Zoo veterinarians sent tissue samples to a state laboratory which determined that the animal died of the plague.

Zoo veterinarian Dave Kenny said the risk of plague spreading to humans was extremely low, but visitors were being urged to avoid squirrels and rabbits.

"There are species in the zoo collection, especially monkeys, that could be susceptible to the plague," said John Pape, an epidemiologist with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Ms Bowie says none of the 17 other capuchin monkeys in the exhibit - or any other animals at the zoo - have shown plague symptoms.

But she says, as a precaution, all the capuchin monkeys have been moved to an inside enclosure and are being treated with a regimen of antibiotics.

Vicious Squirrel Attacks Kids!

Squirrel enters S. San Jose classroom, attacks two adults and a student
By Leslie GriffyMercury News

A squirrel bit an 11-year-old girl and two adults after scurrying into an open classroom at a South San Jose elementary school this morning, drawing police and animal control to the campus.

Although an animal control official said it's unlikely the squirrel has rabies, the three bite victims may undergo anti-rabies shots as a precaution.

The unusual attack was over in seconds, with the animal - possibly a confused and frightened adolescent - quickly disappearing.

"I think any animal that is cornered is going to do that fight-and-flight thing," operations director of the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley Janet Alexander Thompson said. "He probably didn't mean to come into the classroom."

The door to a portable classroom at Evergreen Elementary School was open to warm weather as the school day started, Principal Kathy Shepard said. Inside the room, 20 first-graders excitedly awaited a field trip to see the musical mystery "Cam Jansen" at the Flint Center in Cupertino.

And then a squirrel came through the open door shortly after 8:30 a.m. Perhaps confused by the cacophony that is the start of the day in a first grade class, the critter ran up the nearest thing it could find, a parent-chaperon's leg.

The parent shook and shimmied to get the squirrel out of her pants. But it just sunk its claws into her leg, Evergreen Elementary School District spokesman Will Ector said. Another parent-chaperon jumped in to help the woman dislodge the squirrel.

The animal also bit the first woman on her leg. It bit the second mom on the finger and arm, Ector said. Then, it darted out of the classroom.

Unfortunately an 11-year-old girl just happened to be walking near the room at that moment.
"He jumped up on her," Ector said. "She had to fight him off. She was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time."

The girl suffered bite wounds on her arm and finger, Muyo said.

The three were taken to the nurse's office and later sent to the hospital. It is very unlikely that the squirrel that attacked them carries rabies, Santa Clara County Vector Control spokeswoman Kriss Costa said. But people bitten by squirrels often undergo a series of shots to ward off the disease.

By the time police, then animal control workers arrived at the school, the squirrel was gone, San Jose Animal Care Center spokeswoman Julie St. Gregory said.

"The whereabouts of the squirrel are unknown," Muyo said.

Ector said the district plans to begin trapping on campus immediately. The first-grade classroom where the initial attack occurred will also be moved away from the squirrel's likely home, the only clump of trees on campus.

And the school district planned to send home a letter with children explaining what happened.
The school, Shepard said, doesn't have a history of problem squirrels, unlike Cuesta Park in Mountain View where three people - including a 4-year-old boy - have been bitten by the furry creatures since last fall.

"For us," Shepard said, "it's so unusual."

Mountain View Community Services director David Muela said officials in that city have trapped and euthanized more than half a dozen so-called aggressive squirrels, spoiled on human food until they lost their natural fear of people.

Since Mountain View ended its trapping program in February, Muela said he's received no complaints of squirrel attacks, but signs discouraging feeding the animals remain at the park.
Ector said that students at Evergreen Elementary haven't been spied sharing treats with the very few squirrels on campus.

The wildlife center's Alexander Thompson suggested that the squirrel in the attack was likely young. It's the season for baby squirrels, she said. And, like human teenagers, adolescent squirrels who go exploring might not always understand the rules and sometimes run into trouble.

Not feeding the animals is one good way to prevent attacks, Alexander Thompson said. For the children, getting over the fear of animals could take time.

"You want to teach them that this is not normal behavior," she said. "That will hopefully start reducing their fear."

There was good news for the first-graders in the classroom where the attack occurred - their field trip scheduled for today went on as planned.