Oregon man recovering from rare case of the plague
Paul Gaylord no longer in critical condition but fears for fingers and toes after contracting plague from cat
Ben Quinn and agencies
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 17 July 2012 20.32 EDT
... "We didn't even know the plague was around anymore," said his sister, Diana Gaylord. "We thought that was an ancient, ancient disease." ...
... Gaylord's illness began after he saw a stray cat with a dead mouse jammed in the back of his throat. The cat appeared to be choking, so Gaylord and a friend attempted to dislodge the mouse. The distressed cat bit his hand. Unable to remove the mouse, Gaylord shot Charlie to end his suffering and buried him in the yard. Two days later, he awoke with a fever and chills ...
The cat's body was dug up, and tests confirmed it had the plague. Other cats and dogs in the area were tested and none had the disease.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jul/18/oregon-man-case-plague