US monkeypox victims quarantined

Prairie dogs have become popular as pets

A Wisconsin family has been ordered to stay at home after becoming infected with suspected monkeypox from prairie dogs bought as pets.

A total of 37 suspected and confirmed cases of monkeypox have been reported in three of the mid-western United States in what is believed to be the first outbreak outside Africa.

Health officials are searching for prairie dogs they believe could be spreading the disease probably after being infected by a Gambian rat.

Monkeypox is related to smallpox and causes rashes, fevers and sores though it is not usually fatal.

Shipment link

Tammy Kautzer's three-year-old daughter spent a week in hospital after being bitten by one of two prairie dogs the family bought as pets.

A Gambian rat may have spread the disease to prairie dogs

Suspected infection trail

The little girl developed a fever, swollen eyes and red bumps.

She has now recovered, but her mother also got the bumps and the whole family has now been told to stay at their home in Dorchester, Wisconsin to avoid spreading the disease.

Investigators say a shipment of prairie dogs was probably infected with the virus by a giant Gambian rat, which is indigenous to Africa, at a pet distributor near the city of Chicago in Illinois.

Health officials are trying to trace 115 customers - both individuals and pet stores - who have bought animals from the business since 15 April.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it believes most of the people suspected of having contracted monkeypox got it through contact with infected animals.

But it could not rule out human-to-human transmission.

Scientists say there is no specific treatment.

The death rate from monkeypox in Africa has ranged from 1% to 10% of cases.

Click here to return