A Bayfield-area woman is home after a week at Mercy Regional Medical Center with septicemic plague.

A family member said the woman didn't want to be identified and that a prairie dog colony recently died on her property.

Bubonic plague is the most common form of plague; septicemic plague is less common. Symptoms typically include fever, chills, extreme weakness, abdominal pain, shock and bleeding into the skin and other organs.

Septicemic plague can be contracted by handling an infected animal or from bites of infected fleas. This is the second case of plague in La Plata County this year.

Since 1957, Colorado has identified 65 cases of human plague, nine (14 percent) of which were fatal.

One hundred and fifty-seven samples have been tested for plague this year at public health laboratories. Two rodents, a rabbit, a dog and a cat have tested positive for plague in Colorado. Fourteen flea samples also have tested positive.

Because domestic cats and dogs can carry infected fleas into the home, it is important to consult a veterinarian about how to effectively control fleas on pets.

For more information, visit www.cdc.gov/plague.