Around Wyoming

Entertainment

Food

Sports

Wyoming Life

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

A parasite that can keep people chained to the bathroom for weeks has reached Wyoming.

State health officials have now confirmed six cases of cyclosporiasis this year — double the number 

 — including one domestically acquired infection that remains under investigation while federal officials search for the source of one of the nation's largest Cyclospora outbreaks in recent years.

The illness is often dismissed as just another stomach bug — until it refuses to go away, said Cheyenne Regional Medical Center emergency physician Dr. Matthew Loptien.

"Ultimately I understand those words can provoke that (laughter)," Loptien told Cowboy State Daily, referring to the phrase "explosive diarrhea." 

[{"type":"text","text":"\"But it is not funny, that's for sure.\""}]

His warning comes as Wyoming health officials continue tracking the parasite's spread within the state.

Five of Wyoming's six confirmed infections were likely acquired while patients traveled to countries where the microscopic parasite 

 is endemic, according to the Wyoming Department of Health.

That leaves just one case believed to have been contracted inside the United States.

"We have not linked our one non-travel-related case to any other cluster at this time," Wyoming Department of Health Surveillance Epidemiologist Matt Peterson said Monday.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Weeks, Not Days"}]

Unlike the stomach viruses that typically disappear after a day or two, the parasite can linger for weeks — sometimes even months — before finally loosening its grip.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says symptoms usually begin two days to two weeks after someone consumes contaminated food or water, often making it difficult for patients to remember exactly what they ate before becoming sick.

"The hallmark of this is a prolonged diarrheal illness," Loptien said. "The biggest risk is for developing dehydration as a result."

Young children, older adults and people with weakened immune systems are especially vulnerable because dehydration can develop much more quickly in those groups.

"Individuals who are experiencing profuse watery diarrhea and cramps for extended periods, especially if the symptoms subside and then return, or are accompanied by loss of appetite and significant weight loss, should see their physician about testing," he added.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Three Weeks"}]

For Grover resident Eve Sutter Buehler, the illness struck so suddenly she initially assumed it was food poisoning.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"Feeling fine one minute and not able to function the next,\" she said."}]

Buehler said several members of her extended family became ill after gathering for wedding festivities over Memorial Day weekend. Most were sick for nearly three weeks, while younger family members recovered after about 10 days.

"The first onset of sickness was on May 31st late in the day … by June 2nd in the evening, we were almost all miserable," Buehler said. "We eat a lot of raw fruit and raw veggies. Those who don’t, didn’t get sick. That’s how we started putting it all together. We did have a bridal shower meal where most of us ate a strawberry/spinich salad. We’ve considered that."

One relative became so ill she was repeatedly evaluated for appendicitis and gallbladder problems before a physician assistant suggested Cyclospora as a possible explanation.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"At first, we all thought we had food poisoning or a flu,\" she said."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Easy To Miss"}]

One reason Cyclospora is so difficult to track is that doctors first have to think of it.

Loptien said patients usually provide a stool sample, but many commonly used laboratory panels don't automatically test for parasites like Cyclospora.

Instead, providers often must order specialized ova-and-parasite testing when they suspect the illness.

That means some infections could easily be mistaken for a routine stomach virus.

Asked whether additional Wyoming cases may have gone undiagnosed, Loptien said, "I think that is always a possibility."

"There certainly is overlap in regard to the symptoms with Cyclospora and more common viral intestinal illnesses," he said. "However, the symptoms tend to be a bit more persistent and tend to last a little bit longer."

Unlike norovirus, Cyclospora generally does not spread directly from person to person. The CDC notes the parasite must first mature in the environment before becoming infectious, meaning most U.S. infections are linked to contaminated food or water rather than casual contact.

Loptien said patients should focus on hydration and electrolyte replacement while seeking medical care. Once diagnosed, Cyclospora is typically treated with the antibiotic Bactrim, and most patients begin improving within a couple of days. Without treatment, however, symptoms can continue coming and going for weeks.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Cause Unknown "}]

Although Wyoming's case count has doubled, Peterson said the state's investigation still points overwhelmingly toward travel-related infections rather than a local outbreak.

"All but one of them likely acquired the infection while traveling to regions endemic for Cyclospora outside the USA," Peterson said.

That leaves investigators with just one domestically acquired case to study.

"With only one domestically acquired Cyclospora infection, determining a food vehicle is nearly impossible," Peterson said.

The CDC, Food and Drug Administration and health departments across the country are interviewing patients, tracing grocery purchases and studying food distribution networks in hopes of identifying the contaminated food responsible for what has become one of the country's largest Cyclospora outbreaks in years. The FDA has opened an active outbreak investigation, but because investigators have not identified the contaminated product, no recall has been issued.

Past U.S. outbreaks have been linked to imported fresh produce including cilantro, basil, lettuce, raspberries, mesclun greens and snow peas.

Peterson said imported produce remains Wyoming's most likely source whenever infections are acquired domestically because the parasite isn't naturally found here.

"Because Cyclospora is not endemic here, imported fresh produce is always the most likely vehicle," he previously told Cowboy State Daily.

Washing produce helps reduce risk but doesn't always remove the parasite, according to the FDA. Cooking food to an internal temperature of 158 degrees Fahrenheit will kill or inactivate it.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Watching Closely"}]

Although Wyoming's lone domestically acquired case hasn't been connected to the national outbreak, Peterson said investigators around the country are beginning to make progress.

"The national picture remains unclear," he said, "investigators in other jurisdictions are making progress on their respective outbreaks, which may inform our own if we see more domestically acquired cases moving forward."

"We typically don't release much information on isolated cases," Peterson said. "But if we find something new that is actionable for the public, we will issue a press release."

Loptien echoed that message, saying there's no reason for Wyoming residents to panic.

"Maintain good hydration, maintain good hand hygiene, wash your foods, and I think that is going to go a long way for a lot of people," he said.

Parasite 7 13 26

Cowboy State Daily is Wyoming’s largest newspaper with Wyoming’s most experienced journalists. 

<title>Wyoming's 'Explosive Diarrhea' Cases Double, Linked To Travel Outside Of U.S. | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Wyoming has confirmed six cases of Cyclospora, a parasite that can cause weeks of explosive diarrhea, dehydration and weight loss. Medical experts link five of the six cases to travel outside the U.S. "It is not funny, that's for sure," an ER doctor said.

Wyoming's 'Explosive Diarrhea' Cases Double, Linked To Travel Outside Of U.S.

Kerry Drake

Business

A galloping horse and rider that’s been an iconic piece of downtown Cheyenne folk art hasn’t galloped for many years, but it will Friday —  just in time to welcome its local fans and Cheyenne Frontier Days’ visitors.

The pony and rider have been featured outside The Wrangler’s western-wear store at Capitol Avenue and 16th Street since the late 1950s or early 1960s. It’s now owned by Boot Barn. No one knows precisely when the sign made its first appearance, and there’s no record of its creator.

But there will be no doubt about the identity of the local family that refurbished the pony and rider, which stands 8 feet tall and about 9 feet long.

Brothers Patrick and Dennis Graham and Dennis’ son Brandon said they have each spent about 90 hours working on the project since the original sign was taken down May 20.

A first move when they brought it to Patrick’s house was to sign their work on the interior, out of sight but available for any future historian who wants to know who was responsible for the galloping horse 2.0.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Other Fixes Failed"}]

Other attempts have been made to fix the sign, but City Councilman Pete Laybourn said they didn’t pan out.

“The horse has been the icon of downtown Cheyenne for a long time, and it deteriorated,” Laybourn said. “It quit running and looked raggedy-ass, so about four years ago in cooperation with Visit Cheyenne we took the horse down and repainted it, worked on the motor and put it back up.”

The horse briefly galloped before the internal gearing gave out. 

“That was a big disappointment,” Laybourn recalled. “We believed it was very important for the downtown people to step up and help. We tried to fix it twice and were very frustrated that it wouldn’t stay fixed.”

When the councilman visited Patrick Graham at his real estate office last year, across the street from the Boot Barn, he asked what he wanted to see improved in the area.

“I just wish the horse would ride again,” Patrick said.

Said Laybourn: “Patrick and I went over and tried to fix it without taking it down, and it ran very briefly again.”  

They contacted the store’s manager, and he agreed they should work together to rehabilitate the sign. The Boot Barn relied on the expertise of the Graham family, which volunteered to do the work, and the store agreed to pay for the parts.

The Grahams and Laybourn took down the sign, took it apart and re-created it. The original was made of plywood, and they replaced it with Marine plywood, which is specifically designed to withstand moisture and resist water damage. It also resists rot and fungal growth.

“It’s going to last for a long time,” Laybourn said.

Patrick told his brother it shouldn’t be a complicated job or take much time; Dennis responded that he was crazy. But Patrick knew that Dennis and Brandon, who own Grahamland Welding, had precisely the mechanical know-how and fabrication skills to pull it off.

“I also knew there was no way that they wouldn’t do it,” Patrick said with a grin. “When replacement parts don’t exist, they just make their own.”

In addition to the horse and rider, Dennis' backyard had three tractors in various states of repair Saturday morning. Describing their father as a master mechanic, Dennis said he was always fixing something.

 “I guess it’s in our genes,” he explained.

The family also shares an infectious sense of humor. A celebratory video posted on social media Sunday had them toasting and clinking their glasses and watching the horse “gallop” while Toby Keith and Willie Nelson sang, “We’ll raise up our glasses against evil forces singing ‘whiskey for my men, beer for my horses'.”

Patrick said his first Facebook post about the project had 41,000 views, “so we immediately knew it was a popular idea that people wanted to see.”

Patrick said his brother was the mastermind behind the mechanics.

“There’s a 1,140-rpm motor driving two pulley reduction shafts, and there’s a bell crank on the last shaft with links to the axles holding the legs; the bell crank system just drags them back and forth,” Dennis explained. 

The hardest part of the job, all three Grahams agreed, was wrapping tin around the profiles of the head of both the animal and rider to protect them on their journey across town.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Artist Jordan Dean Takes Over"}]

Now that the Grahams’ work is completed, it’s up to Cheyenne artist Jordan Dean to take the final step in the creative process and paint it.

 “We asked him to use the original colors, though of course adding Jordan’s unique touch,” Patrick said.

If you’re out and about in north Cheyenne, you can’t miss the monumental 88-foot-tall Water Tank Mural that Dean designed and painted north of Storey Boulevard, which features a

360-degree view of six horses running across the plains. It won the 2025 People’s Choice award in Tnemec’s “Tank of the Year” competition. 

Dean’s involvement in the horse-and-rider project at Wrangler Boot Barn also adds to his string of distinctive work in downtown Cheyenne, where he’s created several murals, including the popular "Bison Strumming Guitar” painting behind the Paramount Cafe. It also depicts a banjo-playing eagle.

“He’s a good friend and a talented artist,” Patrick said. “I knew he would volunteer his time and do a great job.”

Said Dean: “It’s kind of a fun thing. I moved to Cheyenne and that horse was up there. So it’s been a part of my daily visuals for the last 20 years or so. I remember a point where it wasn’t working.

“Mr. Graham is doing this for generations to come. It’s going to be solid. It’s an iconic piece of art downtown that you pass by and you knew somebody painted it at some point, but you really don’t think about it. It’ll be fun to walk by and say, ‘I painted that'.”

Dean said the last paint job was pretty simple. 

“I look forward to giving it a bit of an upgrade,” he said. “I don’t want it to be unrealistic or too stylized. I want it to fit, but some of the details I’m excited to dress up a bit.

“I hope to see it in photographs for many years to come,” he said. “It’s one of those pieces that’s been photographed forever, and it’s an honor to help out with the painting.”

Laybourn said the re-creation will be unveiled this week during the Friday at the Plaza concert across the street. The time is still to be determined, but he expects it to draw quite a crowd

“It was just a brilliant, articulated sign, and bringing it back is part of bringing back the atmosphere of the whole downtown,” Laybourn said. “It’s the heart of Cheyenne.”

Will Dean sign his work, unlike the original painter?

“Of all the public art I’ve done I’ve probably signed less than half of them,” he said. “To me I don’t worry too much about signing where people can see it because I’ll have painted all over it. I might sign it where only I know where it is.”

Kerry Drake can be reached at: Kerry@CowboyStateDaily.com

Wrangler with dean and graham 7 13 26

<title>The Wrangler’s Galloping Horse Will Ride Again in Cheyenne | Cowboy State Daily</title>

The galloping horse and rider at Wrangler’s Western-wear store has been a fixture in downtown Cheyenne since the 1950s, but it broke down four years ago and efforts to fix it failed. Now a Cheyenne family rebuilt the horse in time for Cheyenne Frontier Days.

The Wrangler’s Galloping Horse Will Ride Again in Cheyenne

Crime & Courts

A Lovell woman is being charged with felony child abuse after doctors found a young child suffering from severe burns, brain hemorrhages, a possible skull fracture and numerous other injuries that medical experts concluded were consistent with physical abuse.

Richellena Alana Vinita Lorraine Rule-Monroy, born in 1999, was arrested Friday on a warrant charging her with aggravated child abuse for causing serious bodily injury to a child under her care.

She was scheduled to have an initial appearance when a judge will formally read her single charge at 1:30 p.m. Monday in Park County Circuit Court. 

The child, a boy born in 2022, was living with Rule-Monroy when the injuries came to light. The child's father was reportedly away, working out of town that week.

After the child was placed into protective custody, investigators say he later told a certified foster parent Rule-Monroy poured hot water on his ear because he was "ugly.” The burn eventually required the child to be flown to the University of Utah Burn Center for specialized treatment. 

[{"type":"text","text":"Hospital Visit Raises Alarm"}]

The investigation began July 2 when Rule-Monroy brought the child to the emergency department at Powell Valley Hospital, according to a criminal affidavit filed by Park County Prosecuting Attorney Bryan Skoric.

Rule-Monroy told investigators she accidentally splashed the child with hot water the night before while making oatmeal. She said she had removed a pan of hot water from the stove without realizing the child was standing nearby, causing the water to splash onto his left ear.

What initially appeared to be an accidental burn quickly raised red flags.

Deputies, a Department of Family Services caseworker and hospital staff noticed bruises, scrapes and other injuries covering much of the child's body that they believed could not be explained by the reported accident.

A forensic nurse documented an extensive list of injuries, including partial-thickness burns to the child's left ear, blisters, bruises and abrasions across his face, arms, legs, back and buttocks, bruising around one eye, bruising to the genital area, a skin tear near the gluteal cleft and a corneal abrasion to his left eye, according to the affidavit.

[{"type":"text","text":"Brain Bleeds, Skull Fracture"}]

As physicians looked more closely, the child's condition appeared even more serious.

A CT scan revealed possible subdural and subarachnoid hemorrhages, a scalp hematoma and what doctors described as a possible nondisplaced occipital skull fracture. The child was admitted to the hospital while physicians specializing in child abuse medicine evaluated his injuries.

"Overall I think the multitude of these findings suggest strongly that this child is likely to be a victim of physical abuse," Dr. Kelly Christensen wrote.

The physician also questioned why the child had not been brought to the hospital immediately after the burn allegedly occurred and noted bruises and abrasions in various stages of healing — findings that, noted in the affidavit, suggested the injuries did not all occur at the same time.

Prosecutors allege Rule-Monroy's explanation that the child was accidentally splashed while she was making oatmeal failed to account for the extent and variety of injuries documented by medical staff.

[{"type":"text","text":"Child's Statements"}]

The child later told law enforcement Rule-Monroy threw him down the stairs and poured hot water onto his left ear, causing him to cry.

[{"type":"text","text":"Days later, the his condition worsened."}]

On July 8, he was flown to the University of Utah Burn Center. The next day, specialists with Intermountain Children's Health's Primary Children's Hospital Safe and Healthy Families child abuse and neglect team examined him.

Those specialists concluded that the child's third-degree burns to his ear were non-accidental, documented by the affidavit.

Detectives wrote that the investigation into the child's additional injuries remains ongoing.

Aggravated child abuse is a felony punishable by up to 25 years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both.

Lovell woman 2 7 13 26

<title>Lovell Woman Charged With Felony For Allegedly Burning Child, Fracturing Skull | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A Lovell woman is being charged with felony child abuse after doctors found a young child suffering from severe burns, brain hemorrhages, possible skull fracture and other injuries that medical experts concluded were consistent with physical abuse.

Lovell Woman Charged With Felony For Allegedly Burning Child, Fracturing Skull

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's Feature Reporter, Andrew Rossi.

Andrew Rossi

Outdoors

 at Yellowstone National Park’s Bridge Bay Campground has a long road of recovery ahead of him but is expected to recover. 

He was even making jokes about it in the moments after it happened, 

the photographer who witnessed the event tells Cowboy State Daily

Carl Ison-McDaniel, 65, of Kendall, Washington, 

by a bull bison Friday. He remains hospitalized as he recovers from being thrown at least 8 feet 

[{"type":"text","text":"On Sunday, he posted a brief note on Facebook."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"“Thank you everyone I am OK,” he wrote."}]

, said he’s been in contact with McDaniel’s grandson, who was with him when it occurred.

“(The family) seems to be protecting their privacy, so I don’t want to pry any more than I already have,” he told Cowboy State Daily.

He did, however, say that McDaniel was “in good spirits” immediately after his harrowing ordeal.

“He was in a lot of pain, but was conscious and joking the whole time,” he said.

McDaniel was walking past the Bridge Bay Campground with his 

 grandson around 8:30 p.m. when the incident occurred. The bull bison had been there for some time, running through the campsites and mock-charging people, tents and picnic tables.

When McDaniel and his grandson arrived, the bison was rolling in a dust wallow, and it seemed to have momentarily calmed down. The pair was unaware of how aggressively it had been behaving moments 

“They weren't even in that camping loop,” McLeod said. “They were walking along the road, quite a ways away from the bison. They stopped, got their phones out, and took some pictures, and when the bison started to get up, (McDaniel) was like, “OK, time to leave.’”

MacLeod has emphasized multiple times, during interviews with national and international news publications since the incident, that McDaniel and his grandson did nothing to provoke the bison and weren’t acting irresponsibly.

When the bison started running toward them, McDaniel ran behind a line of trees to put something between himself and the bison. He couldn’t have anticipated the bison would run into the trees, undeterred by the barrier.

“(McDaniel) made a lap around the trees, and the bison chased him through the trees,” MacLeod said. “I thought he'd lost him, but the bison kept going around and came out the other side.”

That’s when the bison hooked its horn around McDaniel’s leg and tossed him into the air. He landed hard on his right side, resulting in several broken bones.

At that point, MacLeod put his camera down and ran at the bison, "making myself as big and loud as I could," to drive it off. When several other observers followed suit, the bison ran off.

In one sense, McDaniel was lucky. He didn’t appear to have been gored by the bison’s horns, which could have made the incident fatal.

“Another gal and I did a blood sweep, but we couldn’t find any blood,” he said. “(McDaniel) was conscious and in good spirits until EMS arrived.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Community Leader"}]

McDaniel didn’t share any additional information on the incident or his condition, although his situation has improved from “critical” to “serious.”

, McDaniel is an active member of his community in northwest Washington.

He’s on multiple boards in Kendall, including Foothills Community Alliance and the Columbia Valley water and parks districts. He’s also one of the co-founders of The Foothills Communication Hub, an online publication with news and event information for Kendall and several other communities in northwest Washington.

[{"type":"text","text":"He’s not likely to forget his visit to northwest Wyoming anytime soon."}]

MacLeod said he shared his videos of the bison with McDaniel’s grandson. He wanted to review his actions to see if there was any way he might have contributed to the bison’s aggression, and MacLeod repeatedly reassured him that he didn’t do anything wrong.

“He was really worried and wanted to see the video to make sure that it wasn't his fault,” he said. “It’s not his fault. You can tell from the very beginning. That was a really, really angry bison.”

Bison man 7 13 26

<title>Washington Grandfather Recovering In Hospital After Yellowstone Bison Attack | Cowboy State Daily</title>

The man who made international headlines after being attacked by a bison in Yellowstone on Friday is in a hospital recovering with several broken bones. Carl Ison-McDaniel of Kendall, Washington, thanked well-wishers and said he was doing "OK."

Washington Grandfather Recovering In Hospital After Yellowstone Bison Attack

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's business and tourism reporter, Renée Jean

Renée Jean

Larry Morgan was born in Superior, Wyoming, in the 1940s, the son of a coal miner. Eventually, he landed in Jackson Hole, well enough off that he could build his dream mountain home.

His friends call him “The Closer.” He’s a corporate dealmaker, high-stakes sales producer and, lately, a self-described best-selling author on Amazon with a book revealing how he made his fortune.  

Despite all that, Morgan doesn’t think of his story as a true rags-to-riches tale — though he’ll acknowledge it’s an arc that’s hard to ignore. 

“I never really saw myself as being poor, although my family was very poor,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “My father owned a tiny little cafe in Iowa, and we barely made a living. He always said, ‘We don’t make any money, but we eat good'.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Dusty Old Chevy"}]

Superior today is a semi-ghost town in Sweetwater County. His family didn’t stay there long.  

“My father was a coal miner during the war,” he said. “It was a strategic occupation.”

Two cave-ins later, though, and he was rethinking that strategy. The family packed up and moved to Charlton, Iowa, where he started a cafe. 

“I always liked to work,” Morgan said. “So, when I was probably 12,  he hired me to be the dishwasher. I had to stand on a pop crate to reach the sink and wash the dishes. But he paid me 35 cents an hour, which was the going wage for an adult.”

It didn’t take Morgan long to realize if he wanted to achieve his dream of owning a car when he turned 16, he needed a better-paying job. So, he kept washing dishes but also took a job at the nearby bowling alley. 

“I made real good money in the bowling alley,” he recalled with a chuckle. “I got paid for every line. This was back before automatic pinsetters, so you had to set each one by hand.”

At the end of the night, he could usually count on some fairly large tips, but it was a grueling schedule.

“I went to work at 5 in the morning in the cafe and worked until 8 a.m.,” he said. “Then I went to school and worked at the bowling alley until midnight.”

Before too long, Morgan had saved the $80 he needed to buy a dusty old Chevy — his first car.

Morgan loved living in Iowa. He was in a small rural town he describes as just a few blocks apart, stitched together with the wonderful smell of freshly mowed hay. 

It was a great place to grow up. It was a great place to “be from.” 

But, if he wanted to make the kind of living that would afford a life, he realized it was not a great place to “be.”

For that, he decided he needed to attend college. Which meant he needed an even better-paying job than dishwashing and tips from the bowling alley.

That led him to become what he says was probably the “world’s youngest” encyclopedia salesman.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"No, not Britannica, the top seller. "}]

It was a smaller, lesser-known company called World Book. 

“Most of the encyclopedia salesmen worked in cities,” Morgan said. “The doors are close together … but the trouble was most of those people didn’t have money or didn’t read books.”

Traditional salesman advice says that to get to a “yes” you have to listen to a lot of “nos.” But Morgan didn’t want to indiscriminately knock on doors. 

Born in a near ghost-town in Wyoming, Larry Morgan’s life is a rags to riches story that begins and ends in Wyoming. Yet he insists the real story isn’t about money so much as freedom — and he's got a best-selling book on Amazon that tells his tale.

Margie C. Dreiling, 86