The first laboratory-confirmed rabid pig in Maryland, 2003

This article is the first to describe the clinical picture and potential human health impact of laboratory-confirmed rabies infection in a pet Vietnamese pot-bellied pig in Maryland. Although cases of confirmed rabies infection have been infrequently reported in pet or agricultural during the past 10 years in the United States, exposure to rabies-positive animals remains a public health concern particularly for veterinarians, pet owners and other animal caretakers. It is important that individuals who are in a high-risk rabies exposure group remain vigilant to this potential public health threat in all mammal species.     

Human Exposure to Rabid Free‐Ranging Cats: A Continuing Public Health Concern in Pennsylvania

Rabid free‐ranging cats have been a public health concern in Pennsylvania since raccoon variant rabies first was recognized in the state in the early 1980s. Over the last decade, between 1.5 and 2.5% of cats submitted to Pennsylvania's state laboratories for rabies testing have been positive. In this report, we describe the extent of rabies in free‐ranging cats in Pennsylvania. We also present two examples of human exposure to rabid free‐ranging cats that occurred in Pennsylvania during 2010–2011 and the public health actions taken to address rabies exposure in the humans and animals. We then describe the concerns surrounding the unvaccinated and free‐ranging cat population in Pennsylvania and possible options in managing this public and animal health problem.     

The influence of veterinary epidemiology on public health: past, present and future

This paper summarizes a presentation given at the Association for Veterinary Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine sponsored Calvin W. Schwabe symposium honouring the lifetime achievements of Dr. S. Wayne Martin. While the concepts were amalgamated from many sources, the examples were primarily selected to represent areas where Wayne Martin has been an active researcher and educator. The purpose was to describe the impact of veterinary epidemiology on public health in the past and present and to consider the future of veterinary epidemiology in public health. Veterinary medicine contributes to public health not only in the area of zoonotic disease prevention and control, but also through contributions to animal health, comparative and basic medical research, and population and environmental health. Veterinary epidemiologists contribute to both research in public health and the practice of public health through a wide range of methodological approaches and via the networks of trained epidemiologists working in the area. The contributions of veterinary epidemiologists have resulted in significant improvements in human health. There are considerable challenges and opportunities facing veterinary epidemiologists working in the public health area in the future. Meeting these needs will require continued integration between veterinary and human public health research and practice, and enhanced communication of both content and context expertise.     

Human allergy to environmental pet danders: a public health perspective

The prevalence of human allergy to pet danders has increased rapidly over the past six decades, as a consequence of lifestyle changes that have enhanced ambient exposure to pet allergens. This is a problem of global public health importance, as the morbidity associated with allergic diseases disproportionately affects socio‐economically disadvantaged populations, particularly children. Although the public often seeks advice from veterinary health‐care professionals regarding healthy pet ownership practices, including strategies for reducing residential pet dander exposure, many misconceptions persist in the public domain regarding pet dander allergy, such as the belief that certain dog and cat breeds are ‘hypoallergenic’ due to their hair/coat type. This review considers the epidemiology of human exposure to the major cat and dog dander allergens, Fel d 1 and Can f 1 respectively, and the sensitization mechanisms to them, including the hygiene hypothesis and the putative role of bacterial endotoxin. The literature regarding primary and secondary exposures in different ambient environments is explored including threshold effects that influence allergen sensitization and elicitation of symptoms, and environmental intervention strategies that seek to reduce allergen exposure. Pet‐specific factors, including the aetiopathogenesis of the several cat and dog allergens that have been characterized to the molecular level, individual animal characteristics that influence Fel d 1 and Can f 1 shedding, and pet‐directed interventions intended to reduce allergen dispersal, are discussed.     

Emerging zoonoses: the challenge for public health and biodefense

The concept of new and emerging diseases has captured the public interest and has revitalized the public health infectious disease research community. This interest has also resulted in competition for funding and turf wars between animal health and public health scientists and public officials and, in some cases, has delayed and hindered progress toward effective prevention, control and biodefense. There is a dynamic list of outbreaks causing substantial morbidity and mortality in humans and often in the reservoir animal species. Some agents have the potential to grow into major epidemics. There are many determinants that influence the emergence of diseases of concern that require the use of current understanding of the nature of agent persistence and spread. Additional factors that are global must be added to plans for prevention and control. To this complex mix has been added the potential for accidental or malicious release of agents. The nature of emerging infectious agents and their impact is largely unpredictable. Models that strive to predict the dynamics of agents may be useful but can also blind us to increasing disease risks if it does not match a specific model. Field investigations of early events will be critical and should drive prevention and control actions. Many disease agents have developed strategies to overcome extremes of reservoir qualities like population size and density. Every infectious agent spreads easier when its hosts are closer together. Zoonoses must be dealt with at the interface of human and animal health by all available information. Lessons learned from the emergence of and response to agents like West Nile virus, H5N1 avian influenza, SARS and bovine spongiform encephalopathy, the cause of new-variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans, must be used to create better plans for response and meet the challenge for public health and biodefense.     

Pet poultry training for veterinary practitioners

Keeping backyard poultry in urban areas is a burgeoning trend in the United States. As such, we believe urban pet poultry owners are increasingly likely to seek veterinary services from urban companion-animal practitioners. Traditionally, poultry species have been classified as production animals. Most small-animal practitioners have limited experience or knowledge of these species and hesitate to accept these animals at their practices. We developed a one-day course to train veterinarians in pet poultry (as opposed to commercial poultry) medicine. The course covers poultry examination, diseases, and treatments and provides an introduction to poultry breeds and behavior and the basics of nutrition and husbandry. We believe this type of continuing education program is important for veterinarians because they are often on the front line of human public health issues. In addition, courses of this type increase the number of veterinarians trained to spot serious avian diseases, including foreign diseases and diseases with zoonotic potential. Most important, veterinarians with this training develop the knowledge to contribute to the health and well-being of pet poultry along with their clients' other companion animals.     

Pet‐associated Campylobacteriosis: A persisting public health concern

Campylobacter is regarded as a leading cause of human bacterial gastroenteritis in the United States. We report on a case of laboratory‐confirmed Campylobacter jejuni infection in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania among members of a household living with a laboratory‐confirmed but non‐speciated Campylobacter‐infected puppy. We describe an outbreak of likely dog‐associated campylobacteriosis, the risk factors, potential routes of exposure and the clinical features in the exposed family members, which began shortly after exposure to the recently purchased dog. We also provide public health recommendations to prevent Campylobacter infections in veterinary care providers, pet owners and those planning to adopt pets in the future. Finally, this report underscores the importance of the One Health approach when public health responders, human and animal healthcare providers and clinical diagnostic laboratories are tasked with developing effective strategies when investigating, detecting and responding to zoonoses (diseases shared between animals and humans).     

All creatures great and minute: a public policy primer for companion animal zoonoses

Approximately 63% of US households have at least one pet, a large percentage of which are considered family members. Pet owners can derive substantial physical and psychological benefits from interaction with companion animals. However, pet ownership is not without risks; zoonotic diseases are increasingly drawing the attention of healthcare professionals, policy makers and the general public. While zoonoses of 'traditional' pets are widely recognized and their prevention and treatment factors are generally known, the growing popularity of 'non-traditional' pets has the potential to facilitate human exposure to novel zoonoses. However, the greatest risk of zoonoses probably arises from animals taken directly from the wild to serve as pets. Non-governmental organizations, state veterinary associations and others have been calling for increased regulation of animal imports, some proposing that all 'exotics' be banned from the pet trade. Because zoonotic diseases of companion animals are influenced by interacting factors of ecological, technical, socio-economic, and political origin, efforts to minimize their impact need be multi-dimensional, simultaneously addressing both the ecological and socio-political drivers of disease emergence and transmission. This study is intended to serve as a primer for animal care professionals seeking to engage with policy makers and the pet industry on the prevention of companion animal zoonoses. We provide background on the human-animal bond, risks of zoonoses associated with groups of companion animals, and the public policy context, as well as identify the factors needed to build a comprehensive approach to companion animal zoonoses risk management. Also included are examples of innovative, non-regulatory initiatives designed to limit the spread and impact of companion animal zoonoses, including a reptile salmonella poster, the National Reptile Improvement Plan, Habitattitude campaign, Pet Zoonoses Committee, and a wildlife disease surveillance initiative known as Project TripWire.     

CRITTER: A database for managing research animals

We describe CRITTER, a computer database program for managing research animals. We designed it especially for institutions which operate health surveillance plans, such as specific pathogen-free schemes. Because CRITTER can be used to record any type of test result in any species of animal, it can be customized to suit each institution and its management protocol. In addition to maintaining a current inventory of each individual animal and its location, the program retains historical information on those that have been removed from the colony. Output summaries are generated by selecting from a menu of standard reports or by designing a custom query. Although CRITTER has been designed for individual research establishments, it could be modified for use in area health surveillance programs. CRITTER operates on IBM compatible computers using a menu-driven, runtime version of Paradox.     

犬猫无形体病研究进展

近年来,粒细胞无形体病对人及犬猫的健康都造成了巨大的威胁,国外关于无形体病的研究开展得较早,在国内目前对犬猫无形体病还没有引起足够的重视。随着国内宠物数量的增加,宠物无形体病的病例也越来越多,宠物医生也需要更加了解无形体病的研究进展。文章从粒细胞无形体的病原特点发病机理、临床症状、诊疗及预防的现状等方面进行了综述。     

Are all meticillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) equal in all hosts? Epidemiological and genetic comparison between animal and human MRSA

Meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) continues to pose a major threat to human health. In animals, MRSA has become established as a veterinary pathogen in pets and horses; in livestock, it presents a concern for public health as a reservoir that can infect humans and as a source of transferrable resistance genes. Genetic analyses have revealed that the epidemiology of MRSA is different in different animal hosts. While human hospital-associated MRSA lineages are most commonly involved in pet infection and carriage, horse-specific MRSA most often represent 'traditional' equine S. aureus lineages. A recent development in the epidemiology of animal MRSA is the emergence of pig-adapted strains, such as CC398 and CC9, which appear to have arisen independently in the pig population. Recent insight into the genome structure and the evolution of S. aureus has helped to explain key aspects of these three distinct epidemiological scenarios. This nonsystematic literature review summarizes the structure and variations of the S. aureus genome and gives an overview of the current distribution of MRSA lineages in various animal species. It also discusses present knowledge about the emergence and evolution of MRSA in animals, adaptation to different host species and response to selective pressure from animal-specific environments. An improved understanding of the genetics and selective pressure that underpin the adaptive behaviour of S. aureus may be used in the future to predict new developments in staphylococcal diseases and to investigate novel control strategies required at a time of increasing resistance to antimicrobial agents.     

A Review of Simulation Modelling Approaches Used for the Spread of Zoonotic Influenza Viruses in Animal and Human Populations

Increasing incidences of emerging and re‐emerging diseases that are mostly zoonotic (e.g. severe acute respiratory syndrome, avian influenza H5N1, pandemic influenza) has led to the need for a multidisciplinary approach to tackling these threats to public and animal health. Accordingly, a global movement of ‘One‐Health/One‐Medicine’ has been launched to foster collaborative efforts amongst animal and human health officials and researchers to address these problems. Historical evidence points to the fact that pandemics caused by influenza A viruses remain a major zoonotic threat to mankind. Recently, a range of mathematical and computer simulation modelling methods and tools have increasingly been applied to improve our understanding of disease transmission dynamics, contingency planning and to support policy decisions on disease outbreak management. This review provides an overview of methods, approaches and software used for modelling the spread of zoonotic influenza viruses in animals and humans, particularly those related to the animal‐human interface. Modelling parameters used in these studies are summarized to provide references for future work. This review highlights the limited application of modelling research to influenza in animals and at the animal‐human interface, in marked contrast to the large volume of its research in human populations. Although swine are widely recognized as a potential host for generating novel influenza viruses, and that some of these viruses, including pandemic influenza A/H1N1 2009, have been shown to be readily transmissible between humans and swine, only one study was found related to the modelling of influenza spread at the swine‐human interface. Significant gaps in the knowledge of frequency of novel viral strains evolution in pigs, farm‐level natural history of influenza infection, incidences of influenza transmission between farms and between swine and humans are clearly evident. Therefore, there is a need to direct additional research to the study of influenza transmission dynamics in animals and at the animal‐human interface.     

The application of knowledge synthesis methods in agri-food public health: Recent advancements,challenges and opportunities

Knowledge synthesis refers to the integration of findings from individual research studies on a given topic or question into the global knowledge base. The application of knowledge synthesis methods, particularly systematic reviews and meta-analysis, has increased considerably in the agri-food public health sector over the past decade and this trend is expected to continue. The objectives of our review were: (1) to describe the most promising knowledge synthesis methods and their applicability in agri-food public health, and (2) to summarize the recent advancements, challenges, and opportunities in the use of systematic review and meta-analysis methods in this sector. We performed a structured review of knowledge synthesis literature from various disciplines to address the first objective, and used comprehensive insights and experiences in applying these methods in the agri-food public health sector to inform the second objective. We describe five knowledge synthesis methods that can be used to address various agri-food public health questions or topics under different conditions and contexts. Scoping reviews describe the main characteristics and knowledge gaps in a broad research field and can be used to evaluate opportunities for prioritizing focused questions for related systematic reviews. Structured rapid reviews are streamlined systematic reviews conducted within a short timeframe to inform urgent decision-making. Mixed-method and qualitative reviews synthesize diverse sources of contextual knowledge (e.g. socio-cognitive, economic, and feasibility considerations). Systematic reviews are a structured and transparent method used to summarize and synthesize literature on a clearly-defined question, and meta-analysis is the statistical combination of data from multiple individual studies. We briefly describe and discuss key advancements in the use of systematic reviews and meta-analysis, including: risk-of-bias assessments; an overall quality-of-evidence approach; engagement of stakeholders; Bayesian, multivariate, and network meta-analysis; and synthesis of diagnostic test accuracy studies. We also highlight several challenges and opportunities in the conduct of systematic reviews (e.g. inclusion of grey literature, minimizing language bias, and optimizing search strategies) and meta-analysis (e.g. inclusion of observational studies and approaches to address the insufficient reporting of data and significant heterogeneity). Many of these developments have yet to be comprehensively applied and evaluated in an agri-food public health context, and more research is needed in this area. There is a need to strengthen knowledge synthesis capacity and infrastructure at the regional, national, and international levels in this sector to ensure that the best available knowledge is used to inform future decision-making about agri-food public health issues.     

Companion animals and human health: Benefits,challenges, and the road ahead

Fossil evidence indicates an association between human beings and animals dating back at least half a million years. Today, this relationship remains strong, as evidenced by millions of visits to zoos annually, high rates of pet ownership, and the economic prosperity of the pet industry. A review of the literature indicates that human-animal interactions can remarkably enhance human physical health and psychological well-being. Yet despite reported benefits and public enthusiasm for animal-related activities, human affiliation with animals and nature is rapidly on the decline largely owing to a shift toward industrialized city living. Future research should not only continue to examine the mental and physical health implications of companion animal ownership, but also the ways to most successfully incorporate them into modern lifestyles and communities.     

Intestinal parasites of dogs and cats in Australia: The veterinarian’s perspective and pet owner awareness

During a recent national study of intestinal parasites in dogs and cats in Australia, questionnaires were submitted to veterinarians and pet owners to evaluate from a veterinary and public health standpoint the veterinarians’ perception, awareness and knowledge of gastrointestinal parasites in their locality. The study included sourcing information with regard to commonly recommended deworming protocols. The awareness of pet owners regarding parasitic zoonoses and the degree of education provided to them by veterinarians was also determined.Very few veterinarians routinely discussed the zoonotic potential of pet parasites with clients but most recommended regular prophylactic administration of anthelmintics throughout a pet’s life. Some pet owners were unaware of the existence of zoonoses. It is possible that an overreliance on anthelmintics may have led to a certain complacency about the need to educate pet owners about the risks of zoonoses. Veterinarians are important educators in the community and it is important to evaluate their performance if improvements are to be made.     

SARS-CoV-2 in animals: potential for unknown reservoir hosts and public health implications

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, previously 2019-nCoV) is suspected of having originated in 2019 in China from a coronavirus infected bat of the genus Rhinolophus. Following the initial emergence, possibly facilitated by a mammalian bridge host, SARS-CoV-2 is currently transmitted across the globe via efficient human-to-human transmission. Results obtained from experimental studies indicate that animal species such as cats, ferrets, raccoon dogs, cynomolgus macaques, rhesus macaques, white-tailed deer, rabbits, Egyptian fruit bats, and Syrian hamsters are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection, and that cat-to-cat and ferret-to-ferret transmission can take place via contact and air. However, natural infections of SARS-CoV-2 have been reported only in pet dogs and cats, tigers, lions, snow leopards, pumas, and gorillas at zoos, and farmed mink and ferrets. Even though human-to-animal spillover has been reported at several instances, SARS-CoV-2 transmission from animals-to-humans has only been reported from mink-to-humans in mink farms. Following the rapid transmission of SARS-CoV-2 within the mink population, a new mink-associated SARS-CoV-2 variant emerged that was identified in both humans and mink. The increasing reports of SARS-CoV-2 in carnivores indicate the higher susceptibility of animal species belonging to this order. The sporadic reports of SARS-CoV-2 infection in domestic and wild animal species require further investigation to determine if SARS-CoV-2 or related Betacoronaviruses can get established in kept, feral or wild animal populations, which may eventually act as viral reservoirs. This review analyzes the current evidence of SARS-CoV-2 natural infection in domestic and wild animal species and their possible implications on public health.     

Companion Animals Symposium: Environmental enrichment for companion, exotic, and laboratory animals

Animal scientists have an extraordinary burden to promote the health and well-being of all animals in their care. Promoting species- or breed-appropriate behaviors through proper training and enrichment, regardless of animal housing, should be a paramount concern for all animal scientists working with exotic animals, laboratory animals, shelter animals, or privately owned pet animals. Developing ideal training and enrichment programs for any species begins with understanding basic behavior patterns and emotional systems of animals. The basic emotional systems in mammals have been extensively mapped; however, most of these studies are in the neuroscience literature and seldom read by animal science professionals. The emotional circuits for fear have been well documented through studies demonstrating that lesions to the amygdala will block both conditioned and unconditioned fear behaviors. Additionally, other core emotional systems including seeking (i.e., approaching a novel stimulus), rage, panic (e.g., separation stress), play, lust (i.e., sex drive), and care (e.g., mother-young nurturing behavior) have been identified. More recent neuroscience research has discovered the subcortical brain regions that drive different types of seeking behaviors. Research to increase the understanding of the emotional systems that drive both abnormal and normal animal behaviors could greatly improve animal welfare by making it possible to provide more effective environmental enrichment programs. Enrichment devices and methods could be specifically designed to enable the expression of highly motivated behaviors that are driven by emotional circuits in the brain. The objective of this paper is to increase awareness of animal scientists to the field of neuroscience studying animal emotions and the application of that science to improve the welfare of captive exotic animals, laboratory animals, and pets with environmental enrichment.     

Raw food diets in companion animals: a critical review

Feeding of raw meat-based diets to pets has become an increasingly popular trend amongst pet owners. Owners, who desire to provide the best for their pets, seek veterinary opinions about food options. This paper reviews and applies standards of evidence-based medicine to grade the available scientific literature that addresses the nutritional benefits or risks, infectious disease risks, and public health implications of raw, meat-based pet diets. Although there is a lack of large cohort studies to evaluate risk or benefit of raw meat diets fed to pets, there is enough evidence to compel veterinarians to discuss human health implications of these diets with owners.