“The plague sometimes shows up in the American west.. the fleas on prairie dogs, I think.?”
Rodents in general. Chipmunks are prolific carriers for some reason. Nebraska, four corners area.
Scientists studying bubonic plague routinely use Madagascar as a place for laboratory studies due to the high rate of transmission.
Bubonic plague attacks the lymphatic system. There is a cure, but apparently eradication isn’t possible.
I have family in western Nebraska.
As a kid I was paid .25 cents per ground squirrel