"I'm sure the OP is trying to do his due diligence as a good citizen (it sounds like he's got reasonable beef with RodentPro too), but I think the "outbreak" announcement is premature. LCMV is very common in rodent populations, and seroprevalence studies have demonstrated low levels of exposure in human populations as well in cohorts of people who never even showed symptoms. That RodentPro and every other mouse breeder in the country has seen LCMV come through their facilities - and that many of us are regularly exposed - should not be surprising at all. A symptomatic case in humans WOULD be very unusual and is probably the only reason the CDC was investigating (an investigation of this nature would be very standard protocol). I would be reluctant to get too excited about this pending a more official announcement. Especially since it only gives the media more senseless anti-herpetoculture fodder."
Brad
Bradley J. Waffa, MSPH
DVM Candidate
Merial, Ltd. Student Representative
NAVC OnCampus Representative
NCSU College of Veterinary Medicine
Raleigh, NC 27606
I went back and looked at the RodentPro thread. This is the reason I wasn't personally as up in arms as everybody about the whole thing. The virus is pretty much the equivalent of Salmonella. And from what Waffa says here, it sounds like Salmonella is more prevalent in chicken than this virus is in rodents. You got chicken in your freezer? Do you handle it then put your fingers in your mouth?
As long as I've ordered from RodentPro I've never got rodents "soaked in urine." Some urine and feces in the bag, yes. Only a few times. And smell. Was it a urine smell? A decomp smell? If urine again I say, eh? If decomp, how was the rodent dethawed? In boiling hot water? Under a 100w bulb? No one ever asked these people this stuff. They just excepted it.
As far as business ethics. Really put yourself in a business owners position. Would you really sound all alarms to everyone before you even really knew the scope of the problem? It's nice to be all high and mighty when you're not in that position and say you would. I would bet anything if really were in their position you wouldn't though.