Humans, Other Animals and ‘One Health’ in the Early Twenty-First Century

Cassidy, Angela

ch also carry risks of disease transmission); then birds, primarily as vectors of influenza, but (3); brucellosis (2) OH AND bat 17 rabies (7), zoonosis (6), hendra (5) OH AND deer 12 TB (5), zoonosis (2) OH AND gorilla OR chimpanzee OR ape OR monkeys 10 conservation (5), zoonosis (4) domestic poultry specifically feature as a major source of gastrointestinal infections, such as Salmonella. Cows are the third most common animal type, featuring usually in relation to zoonotic infections carried in milk and meat, such as bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis. 85 A second key animal role that emerges is that of the experimental model for human disease, and it is usually assigned to rodents or pigs, reflecting the intersection between OH and translational medicine. 86 Despite the prominence of the category 'wildlife', specific species are rarely named. When they are it is in relation to certain infections, such as rats and leptospirosis, or bats and viral infections such as rabies or Hendra. 87 From these figures it appears that much of the research literature using the term OH tends to discuss animals in terms of generic categories (e.g. animal-livestock-wildlife). When specific types of animal are named, they tend to be domestic species which pose certain risks (as disease vectors, e.g. dogs-rabies, birds-influenza, cows-tuberculosis) or offer benefits (as experimental models, e.g. rodents) to humans. This strong focus on the animal roles of disease vector and experimental model represents the continuation of existing interests in their relationships to human health that date back to the nineteenth century. 88 It supports the idea that OH can be understood in part as a rebranding of existing fields of enquiry. While OH advocates may claim to pursue an expansive vision of health at the interface of humans, animals and environment, in practice OH is primarily shaped by pre-existing, longstanding human-animal health relationships. This analysis suggests that the majority of researchers adhere to an anthropocentric perspective in which animals matter only insofar as their bodies threaten human health or offer opportunities for its advancement. 89 Animals are thereby sidelined 85 Bovine tuberculosis, caused by the bacterium M. bovis, is a zoonotic form of tuberculosis which can infect all mammal species, caused by the bacterium M. bovis. Brucellosis is a bacterial infection which causes abortion in cattle and fever and wasting in humans. Both infections are passed from animals to humans via contaminated meat and milk. 86 Davies (2012) , Cassidy (2016) . 87 Leptospirosis is a zoonotic bacterial infection carried primarily by rodents which can be fatal in severe cases. Rift Valley Fever and Hendra are both zoonotic viruses carried by livestock animals with a wildlife reservoir in bat populations. 88 Clarke and Fujimura (1992) , Waddington (2006) , Pemberton and Worboys (2007) . See also Appendix: Annotated Bibliography of Animals in the History of Medicine. 89 Woods (2017). as prospective beneficiaries of OH. Despite this, it is worth noting that searches of Web of Science for these animal types alongside terms such as 'zoonosis' reveals an abundance of scientific research primarily concerned with animal health and its relationships with humans and/or environments. However, for reasons which merit further investigation, the individuals who conduct this research do not appear to find OH a useful term for advancing their ideas.