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From:
Subject: Interesting News
Date: Sun, 3 Oct 2004 10:57:50 EDT



Canadian authorities issue hamster warning
Sun, 03 Oct 2004

OTTAWA - Hamster owners in British Columbia, the Prairies and northwestern
Ontario are being asked to contact their doctors.
The Public Health Agency of Canada has issued the warning, but only if the
owners or their pets have been sick. It applies to those who have bought a
dwarf/pigmy or regular hamster in the past three months.
The animals came from a pet distributor in Manitoba. They have been tested
positive for Type B tularemia.
The disease can be transferred to humans but it's usually mild. In rare
cases, it can be fatal.
"We believe the risk to human health is low, but if people have sick hamsters
and are feeling ill themselves, we want them to advise their health care
provider," said Dr. David Butler-Jones, the Chief Public Health Officer of
Canada, in a release.
The sick hamsters, along with chinchillas, guinea pigs, and gerbils, were
sent to pet stores in those regions. There's no indication of illness in the
other animals.


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