An East Idaho cat in Clark County that tested positive for the plague has recovered. This was the first case of the bacterial disease in eastern Idaho after two cats died in Elmore County last week and multiple ground squirrels were found dead in both Ada and Elmore Counties in May.

Clark County is located about 60 miles north of Idaho Falls.

With the weather warming up, Eastern Idaho Public Health is encouraging people to take precautions while spending time outside to keep themselves and their pets safe. According to Eastern Idaho Public Health, the best way to reduce your risk of infection is to avoid any contact with wild rodents — dead or alive — because they could carry the disease.

The plague is a bacterial disease spread by fleas that commonly infect rodents such as ground squirrels, rats, voles and mice. Once infected, the rodents can spread the disease to humans and pets. If not treated, the disease can cause serious illness for rodents, pets and humans alike.

In humans, symptoms of the plague include fever, chills, headache, weakness and often-painful swelling of lymph nodes in the groin, armpit or neck. Cats and dogs commonly suffer fever, lethargy, loss of appetite and possible swelling under the jaw.

If treated quickly with the appropriate antibiotics, the fatality rate in both humans and pets is greatly reduced, according to Eastern Idaho Public Health.

In Idaho, there have only been five instances of the plague in humans — the most recent being in 1991 and 1992 in which both patients fully recovered.

Regardless, people across Idaho, but especially in Clark County, are encouraged to take simple steps to reduce their risk. Eastern Idaho Public Health officials are encouraging people not to feed or handle wild rodents, to keep your pets from chasing or hunting local rodents, to talk to your veterinarian about flea-control products to use, and to clean up areas around your home where rodents may live — such as wood, hay or compost piles.

If you live in a plague-affected area, be sure to monitor your health and the health of your pet. People who experience an unexplained illness and a sudden fever should see a doctor, and pets who show any symptoms should be examined by a veterinarian as soon as possible.

Idaho Fish and Game also asks that citizens report finding multiple (five or more) dead ground squirrels, yellow-bellied marmots, voles or rabbits. A single dead animal does not need to be reported, but mortalities of five or more are often a indicator of plague activity. Findings can be reported at idfg.idaho.gov/plague.