Where did the 2003 outbreak of monkeypox take place?

In 2003, 47 confirmed and probable cases of monkeypox were reported from six states, they were Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin.

All people infected with the virus in this outbreak became ill after having contact with pet prairie dogs. The pets were infected after being housed near imported small mammals from Ghana.

This was the first time that human monkeypox was reported outside Africa.

Investigators determined that a shipment of animals from Ghana, imported to Texas in April 2003, introduced the monkeypox virus to the United States. The shipment contained approximately nine different species, including six types of rodents.

These rodents included rope squirrels, African giant pouched rats, brush-tailed porcupines, dormice and striped mice.