Globalization and climate change are driving the zoonotic disease threats, researchers say; i.e. those that can be transmitted between animals and humans, caused by viruses, bacteria, parasites and fungi. While Covid-19 is still looming halfway around the world—some scientists claim the outbreak was transmitted through human transmission by bats—and with imminent cases such as monkeypox, Ebola or Zika, among others, public administrations are alerting. to lower our guard against the “emerging threats” of zoonoses.
And according to the World Health Organization (WHO), pathogens transmitted from animals to humans are “a global public health problem that has proliferated in recent years due to factors such as population growth, increase. mobility, the destruction of ecosystems and the trade of species».
That’s why autonomous regions like Valencia invest around 4 million euros a year in animal surveillance and control plans to prevent some of the most common diseases in the main livestock sectors: swine (swine fever and Aujesky), poultry (bird flu and salmonellosis). ), cattle (tuberculosis and bluetongue), sheep and goats (brucellosis and smallpox), rabbits (myxomatosis), beekeeping (varriasis) and horses (Nile fever, osteoarthritis and anemia). Aquaculture facilities are also closely monitored.
Regarding pets, the Valencian Council of Veterinary Colleges warned last January about the risks of echinococcosis, a zoonosis caused by the ‘Echinococcus granulosus’ and ‘Echinococcus multilocularis’ parasites. The infection, also called hydatidosis, is caused by infection in humans by ingesting worm eggs through contaminated food. These eggs then form cysts in the body.
E. granulosus is of concern because it is an infection caused by worms found in dogs and livestock such as sheep, pigs, goats and cattle. These worms are about 2 to 7 millimeters in size. For his part, ‘E. multilocularis’ is an infection caused by worms found in dogs, cats, rodents and foxes. This dreaded disease is called alveolar echinococcosis (EA) and can be fatal as tumor-like growths form in the liver. What danger! We should also not overlook the fact that no one had monkeypox until a year ago, because sometimes it is difficult to see a disease in an area that did not exist.
What are the authorities doing? Increase resources in pest prevention and eradication plans. “Health conditions of the cattle herd have always been a concern of public administrations, not only to increase the profitability of farms, but also mainly to control diseases transmitted to humans and to obtain healthy food of animal origin.” Roger Llanes, Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development.
This senior Consell official’s thoughts came just days after Generalitat Valenciana launched a surveillance scheme for smallpox on 32 sheep and goat farms. This protocol focuses specifically on 21,000 animals from farms in Castilla-La Mancha, the epicenter of a highly contagious disease with a high mortality rate despite not being transmitted to humans. The Valencian sheep and goat herd reaches 350,000 heads, compared to 3.5 million in Castilla-La Mancha.
According to Llanes, the issue is not trivial, because within the framework of “farm to table” it is necessary to produce healthy animal food that can give all guarantees in terms of food safety. PURE). He is of the opinion that special attention should be given to livestock, which is the first link of the food chain, and in this sense, agents that cause disease as well as substances harmful to humans should be monitored. ,” he adds.
Among other actions, the Ministry of Agriculture has allocated just over €1,500,000 for tuberculosis sanitation in 2022. avian flu or salmonellosis in the case of birds and Aujesky and plagues in the case of pigs.
This program also details the laboratory that will analyze the diagnostic tests and samples to be used, especially the Animal Health Analysis Unit (UASA), which is the Animal Health Laboratory of the General Directorate of Agriculture. 250,000 analytical determinations in 2022).
key to export
Animal health is also key to ensuring the economic competitiveness of the industry. According to the ministry, it plays a key role in opening and maintaining trade flows with other countries outside the community environment.
In order to export animals, it is necessary to comply with certain criteria determined by protocols, agreements or other legal procedures. Therefore, the emergence of livestock diseases has a negative impact on trade and causes origin restrictions for affected animals and their products in domestic and foreign markets. There is more to remember about the African swine fever case in Germany. He bankrupted that sector in the German country.
According to Roger Llanes, “livestock management must be in control of all links in the food chain. And this is done to guarantee animal welfare and avoid any risk of toxicity. First of all, disease surveillance programs – he points out – require the coordination of all autonomy. If the African swine flu comes, and it doesn’t, a lot of joint work should be started between all regions of Spain,” said Llanes, after noting the prevention measures taken when an outbreak of bird flu was recently detected in several countries. Cattle farms in Catalonia.
draw a lesson
In the same vein, Inmaculada Ibor, president of the Valencian Community College of Veterinarians, points out that the only possible way to approach this surveillance business is through the One Health perspective, a vision introduced at the beginning of this century. To learn from the experiences of the ‘mad cow’ crisis. “People live in close contact with animals in an environment that is increasingly affected by climate change. We share hundreds of diseases, so caring for animal health and caring for the environment is crucial to achieving better public health,” explains Ibor. 60% of diseases are of animal origin.
That’s why she insists on not limiting this surveillance work to edible animals, but expanding it to include pets living with humans in their own homes. The Valencian Community has the Epizootiological Surveillance Network developed by the healthcare system, an add-on to epidemiological surveillance, specifically referring to ten main zoonoses that affect pets but potentially infect humans.
Since 2016, when clinical veterinarians diagnose one of these diseases in cats or dogs, they report it to the Valencian Animal Identification Computer Registry (RIVIA). This makes it possible to monitor its evolution, status levels, incidence areas and of course the potential threat this could pose to human health.