[GrumpyOldMan]

Originally Posted by Bill14564

Not ignore it but understand it and put it in perspective. Some areas of South Lake Tahoe have been closed because some chipmunks tested positive; the areas are expected to be open by Friday. I did not see where anyone had contracted the plague due to this though I did see mention of someone contracting it last year. As it turns out, there are typically between one and four cases of the plague every year.

Not all of Lake Tahoe is closed, it isn't expected to be closed for long, and it isn't due to infected humans.

So temporary closures due to plague in chipmunks in Lake Tahoe is something to be aware of if you are planning to be in the area but it isn't a life changing event and isn't even a concern for the vast majority of us.

Thank you, all good points, and why I posted, to get someone else's perspective.

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by GrumpyOldMan

OMG!

You won, that is by far the BEST post I have ever read on TOTV!

Agree... Good one GE!

[Aces4]

It’s time to mount a campaign, anything that moves should be vaccinated! (That includes equipment, you never know...)

Maybe we could give all the animals a $5,000. incentive.

[GrumpyOldMan]

Originally Posted by Aces4

It’s time to mount a campaign, anything that moves should be vaccinated! (That includes equipment, you never know...)

Maybe we could give all the animals a $5,000. incentive.

I hear contrails work for spreading things around, we could add the vaccine to jet fuel LOL!

[PugMom]

let me remind you this is an animal's disease. the covid shot has been available for dogs (not sure cats) for as long as i can remember. it hits certain breeds more than others, esp. rottweilers, but this pug gets the shot each year along with the distemper shot. vets say it's picked up from the ground, 1 vet i knew even told us it was 'in the air', like some sort of mystical being, lol. do not be alarmed.

[blueash]

Originally Posted by Escape Artist

I read about a camper getting the plague in the past year or so. It was a woman and I can't remember the location but I'm pretty sure it was in California so maybe it was in Lake Tahoe. They had cautioned people not feed the squirrels or chipmunks because they were carriers. Luckily, there's an antidote for the Plague and the woman recovered. By the way, I think they call it hantavirus and it's carried by rodents of all kinds mostly in wilderness areas.

Hantavirus and plague are not the same. One is a virus, and like almost all viruses there is no "antidote". Plague is a bacterial disease and is effectively treated with antibiotics if recognized.

Both illnesses have rodents as their hosts and are mostly found in western states.

And on topic, the spread to deer of Covid could make it more difficult to control. Covid has shown itself to spread easily and to mutate frequently. All our vaccines available to date target specific characteristics of the unique spike protein, and they do a great job of that. However, with billions of copies of Covid being reproduced there will be more mutations. Most mutations are of no evolutionary advantage. Some however produce a change which alters the virus in a way that may make it more contagious or reproduce more efficiently, or of greatest concern, alter the structure of the spike protein in a way that the antibodies induced by the vaccine, or previous natural infection, make the new virus unrecognized.

We will see the vaccine industry working hard to manufacture updated products to keep up with alterations in the circulating variants. If you want to worry, read about the lambda variant. It is too soon for a definitive scientific statement, but early reports suggest it produces a spike protein that is significantly resistant to the vaccine. Hopefully those early reports will be wrong.

The other take home message is that Covid is entirely able to mutate to have new pathological types on its own in animals whether humans, or deer, or bats or pangolins.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by PugMom

let me remind you this is an animal's disease. the covid shot has been available for dogs (not sure cats) for as long as i can remember. it hits certain breeds more than others, esp. rottweilers, but this pug gets the shot each year along with the distemper shot. vets say it's picked up from the ground, 1 vet i knew even told us it was 'in the air', like some sort of mystical being, lol. do not be alarmed.

The canine coronavirus is not the same as COVID-19.

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by holger danske

No worries the CDC reports they have "herd immunity".

Best post of the day!

[Escape Artist]

Originally Posted by blueash

Hantavirus and plague are not the same. One is a virus, and like almost all viruses there is no "antidote". Plague is a bacterial disease and is effectively treated with antibiotics if recognized.

Both illnesses have rodents as their hosts and are mostly found in western states.

And on topic, the spread to deer of Covid could make it more difficult to control. Covid has shown itself to spread easily and to mutate frequently. All our vaccines available to date target specific characteristics of the unique spike protein, and they do a great job of that. However, with billions of copies of Covid being reproduced there will be more mutations. Most mutations are of no evolutionary advantage. Some however produce a change which alters the virus in a way that may make it more contagious or reproduce more efficiently, or of greatest concern, alter the structure of the spike protein in a way that the antibodies induced by the vaccine, or previous natural infection, make the new virus unrecognized.

We will see the vaccine industry working hard to manufacture updated products to keep up with alterations in the circulating variants. If you want to worry, read about the lambda variant. It is too soon for a definitive scientific statement, but early reports suggest it produces a spike protein that is significantly resistant to the vaccine. Hopefully those early reports will be wrong.

The other take home message is that Covid is entirely able to mutate to have new pathological types on its own in animals whether humans, or deer, or bats or pangolins.

How about a civet cat? I'm just being snarky!

Thanks for the clarification about the Hantavirus. I recall several cases of that in Colorado and New Mexico, as you said, transmitted by mice. I think the Hantavirus can be serious or even deadly if not diagnosed properly.

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by GrumpyOldMan

I agree with what you say, the problem is who decides how much is too much, and who decides what is important? I threw this out as a data point, nothing more. I wanted to see what people thought were.

I actually respect several people that post here regularly. They bring up very valid alternative interpretations of things. That expands my awareness.

BTW, on the same idea, Lake Tahoe has been closed due to Plague being found in rodents. Should we ignore that also?

Whitetail deer can live pretty close to human homes - so, deer ticks fall off them onto plants on a woods trail - then bite a dog and then back home to people's house. That is just throwing out possible ideas. Also, I believe that a Puma in a zoo caught CV.

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by jimjamuser

Whitetail deer can live pretty close to human homes - so, deer ticks fall off them onto plants on a woods trail - then bite a dog and then back home to people's house. That is just throwing out possible ideas. Also, I believe that a Puma in a zoo caught CV.

And that's how a dog can introduce Lyme disease into your home, but not COVID---completely different route of transmission. (Oh, and if your the guy who likes my big words, the spirochete of Lyme disease is Borrelia burgdorferi and the tick is Ixodes dermacentor)

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by blueash

Hantavirus and plague are not the same. One is a virus, and like almost all viruses there is no "antidote". Plague is a bacterial disease and is effectively treated with antibiotics if recognized.

Both illnesses have rodents as their hosts and are mostly found in western states.

And on topic, the spread to deer of Covid could make it more difficult to control. Covid has shown itself to spread easily and to mutate frequently. All our vaccines available to date target specific characteristics of the unique spike protein, and they do a great job of that. However, with billions of copies of Covid being reproduced there will be more mutations. Most mutations are of no evolutionary advantage. Some however produce a change which alters the virus in a way that may make it more contagious or reproduce more efficiently, or of greatest concern, alter the structure of the spike protein in a way that the antibodies induced by the vaccine, or previous natural infection, make the new virus unrecognized.

We will see the vaccine industry working hard to manufacture updated products to keep up with alterations in the circulating variants. If you want to worry, read about the lambda variant. It is too soon for a definitive scientific statement, but early reports suggest it produces a spike protein that is significantly resistant to the vaccine. Hopefully those early reports will be wrong.

The other take home message is that Covid is entirely able to mutate to have new pathological types on its own in animals whether humans, or deer, or bats or pangolins.

You are correct. Plague and Hantavirus are vastly different. We still get a few cases of plague in the US each year, mostly in the southwest. The bacteria is Yersinia pestis, and is easily killed by plain old penicillin (if you recognize it early enough). Whether this is the same bacteria that caused the black death in the 14th century is still being debated.

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

And that's how a dog can introduce Lyme disease into your home, but not COVID---completely different route of transmission. (Oh, and if your the guy who likes my big words, the spirochete of Lyme disease is Borrelia burgdorferi and the tick is Ixodes dermacentor)

Nice!

[brick010207]

Originally Posted by GrumpyOldMan

This can't be good:

Nature: Wild U.S. deer found with coronavirus antibodies

Thanks for the post. Found it interesting and educational as are most of your posts. Too bad the Village Idiots who regularly post don't see the value of these posts and provide useful response.

[GeriS]

Originally Posted by GrumpyOldMan

This can't be good:

Nature: Wild U.S. deer found with coronavirus antibodies

I guess deer have a 99.xx% recovery just like humans.