Leprosy has been around since ancient times. Still, it is not easy to study because the bacillus that causes it (Mycobacterium leprae) can not be grown in the lab. Because of this, scientists remain unsure as to how people catch the disease.
At one time it was thought that only humans could get leprosy. However, in the late 1960s researchers speculated that armadillos might be a good test animal for leprosy research because the bacillus thrives in cooler parts of the body (feet, nose, ears, etc.) and armadillos have a relatively low body temperature for mammals, they live 12 to 15 years and have litters of almost identical quadruplets. So, several nine-banded armadillos were inoculated with leprosy and came down with full-blown cases of the disease. It was during this research that scientists discovered something odd: some armadillos already had leprosy.
Nine-banded armadillos (there 30 to 50 million in the U.S.) are believed to be the only significant natural reservoir of leprosy apart from humans.
While suspected instances of armadillo-to-human transmission have been reported, leprosy remains uncommon in North America and is in decline worldwide. Fewer than 5 percent of wild armadillos have it.
Information Courtesy of The Straight Dope
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