Animal Contact & Human Health

Animals can be a very important part of people’s lives and pets can have many health benefits.  Zoonoses are diseases that can infect both people and animals.  While disease transmission between animals and people can occur, in most cases, basic infection control methods can be used to prevent disease spread.  There are numerous zoonoses, many of which can also be transmitted from person-to-person or through food or water.  The zoonoses listed here represent only some of the zoonotic diseases of public health importance.