Companion animal veterinarians and public health initiatives: Tools for integrated animal-human zoonotic surveillance

Background: The majority of emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic. Companion animals live in close proximity to humans, may infect people with environmentally-acquired biological agents, can introduce emerging pathogens to the human population, are clinically more sensitive to certain biological agents, and may serve as effective sentinels for the early detection of zoonotic infectious diseases.

Objective: This paper describes the need for integrated animal-human zoonotic surveillance and includes materials developed for companion animal veterinarians and others to assist in the early detection of common, emerging, and bioterrorist zoonoses.

Methods: Research of the scientific, medical and veterinary literature, as well as surveillance guidelines and plans was performed.

Results/Discussion: There is a strong need for public health surveillance of companion animal illnesses. With the exception of Rabies, most animal illness reporting in the United States is targeted at food animals. This paper discusses zoonotic diseases of pets that can be a public health threat. The developed materials are designed to provide guidance to the veterinary and human public health sectors in order to facilitate detection of infectious agents.

Conclusion: The lack of zoonotic surveillance for companion animals serves as a barrier to broader public health objectives. Co-analysis of companion animal and human diseases will facilitate an early response to infectious disease events. Integrated zoonotic surveillance will enhance public health surveillance activities and may help monitor the scope of an epidemic. Mechanisms for reporting companion animal zoonotic infections at the local level are needed.