Editing Anthrax (section)

== Other animals ==
Anthrax, a bacterial disease caused by ''Bacillus anthracis'', can have devastating effects on animals. It primarily affects herbivores such as cattle, sheep, and goats, but a wide range of mammals, birds, and even humans can also be susceptible. Infection typically occurs through the ingestion of spores in contaminated soil or plants. Once inside the host, the spores transform into active bacteria, producing lethal toxins that lead to severe symptoms. Infected animals often exhibit high fever, rapid breathing, and convulsions, and they may succumb to the disease within hours to days. The presence of anthrax can pose significant challenges to livestock management and wildlife conservation efforts, making it a critical concern for both animal health and public health, as it can occasionally be transmitted to humans through contact with infected animals or contaminated products. Infected animals may stagger, have difficulty breathing, tremble, and finally collapse and die within a few hours.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Anthrax {{!}} FAQs |url=https://www.dshs.texas.gov/anthrax/anthrax-faqs |access-date=2023-10-19 |publisher=Texas DSHS |archive-date=25 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231025120511/https://www.dshs.texas.gov/anthrax/anthrax-faqs |url-status=live }}</ref>

Anthrax is especially rare in dogs and cats, as is evidenced by a single reported case in the United States in 2001.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://dogsinthenews.com/issues/0110/articles/011030a.htm | title = Can Dogs Get Anthrax? | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120406205603/http://dogsinthenews.com/issues/0110/articles/011030a.htm | archive-date=6 April 2012 | work = Canine Nation | date = 30 October 2001 | access-date = 17 February 2007 }}</ref> Anthrax outbreaks occur in some wild animal populations with some regularity.<ref name="Dragon1999">{{cite journal | vauthors = Dragon DC, Elkin BT, Nishi JS, Ellsworth TR | title = A review of anthrax in Canada and implications for research on the disease in northern bison | journal = Journal of Applied Microbiology | volume = 87 | issue = 2 | pages = 208–13 | date = August 1999 | pmid = 10475950 | doi = 10.1046/j.1365-2672.1999.00872.x | doi-access = free }}</ref>

Russian researchers estimate arctic [[permafrost]] contains around 1.5&nbsp;million anthrax-infected reindeer carcasses, and the spores may survive in the permafrost for 105 years.<ref name="RevichPodolnaya2011">{{cite journal | vauthors = Revich BA, Podolnaya MA | title = Thawing of permafrost may disturb historic cattle burial grounds in East Siberia | journal = Global Health Action | volume = 4 | page= 8482 | year = 2011 | pmid = 22114567 | pmc = 3222928 | doi = 10.3402/gha.v4i0.8482 }}</ref> A risk exists that [[global warming in the Arctic]] can thaw the permafrost, releasing anthrax spores in the carcasses. In 2016, an anthrax outbreak in reindeer was linked to a 75-year-old carcass that defrosted during a heat wave.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://siberiantimes.com/other/others/news/n0691-40-now-hospitalised-after-anthrax-outbreak-in-yamal-more-than-half-are-children/|title=40 now hospitalised after anthrax outbreak in Yamal, more than half are children|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160730185500/http://siberiantimes.com/other/others/news/n0691-40-now-hospitalised-after-anthrax-outbreak-in-yamal-more-than-half-are-children/|archive-date=30 July 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/2016/08/child-dead-climate-change-thawed-anthrax-infected-reindeer/ |title=Siberian Child Dies After Climate Change Thaws an Anthrax-Infected Reindeer | vauthors = Luhn A |date=8 August 2016 |magazine=Wired |access-date=19 August 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817043745/http://www.wired.com/2016/08/child-dead-climate-change-thawed-anthrax-infected-reindeer/ |archive-date=17 August 2016 }}</ref>