On the Sister Wives episode “Divided We Move,” Kody Brown leads his four wives and children to Flagstaff, Arizona to look at properties. The problem is everyone has to be on board in order to make a decision — but they’re not. They’re split over which one to buy. Kody and wife #1 Meri have their eyes on one property which the little kids take to. While they play in the dirt, the local woman showing them the property, Shelby, tells the Browns that the kids probably shouldn’t be playing in the dirt due to the prairie dog poop. Wife #3 Christine, mother of six, reacts by telling the tells the kids including 8-year-old Truley who is eating the dirt to get out of the dirt because “it might have the plague.” Christine says “I don’t know if I believe any of this, Kody says it’s serious but I just don’t want to move there.”
According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), prairie dogs are only one of the many rodent species that are susceptible to plague. People get plague if bitten by infected fleas, touching infected animals, or by inhaling droplets from the cough of an infected animal. Symptoms include a swollen painful lymph node usually in the groin, armpit or neck. Fever, chills, headache and exhaustion may follow. Plague can be treated with antibiotics but must be treated promptly to avoid serious complications. Sister Wives airs Sundays at 8 pm on TLC, right before Seeking Sister Wives. [BONUS: TLC G0 App found here lets you stream any TLC show. Download is FREE.]
