Yersinia enterocolitica, a rod-shaped bacterium, causes yersiniosis. Pigs are a reservoir for some strains of this bacterium, with other strains being found in rodents, rabbits, sheep, cattle, horses, dogs, and cats. Transmission is through ingestion of contaminated food, especially raw or undercooked pork products, including chitterlings (pig intestines), as well as tofu, meats, oysters, and fish. It may also be transmitted after handling contaminated food, not cleaning the hands properly, and then touching toys, bottles, or pacifiers. Transmission may also occur through drinking contaminated unpasteurized milk or untreated water. Rarely, yersiniosis can be transmitted by the fecal-oral route as a result of poor handwashing after defecation. Blood trans-fusion can cause direct inoculation of the bacteria.