Oregon man bitten by stray cat diagnosed with plague

Health officials have confirmed that an Oregon man has the plague after he was bitten while trying to take a dead mouse from a stray cat.

The unidentified man, who is in his 50s, remained in critical condition Friday at a Bend hospital. His illness marks the fifth case of plague in Oregon since 1995.

State public health veterinarian Dr. Emilio De Bess says the man was infected when he was bitten by the stray his family had befriended.

The cat's body is being sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for testing.

More than a dozen people who were in contact with the sick man have been notified and are receiving preventive antibiotics.