Diseases that can be transmitted from animals to people are known as zoonoses. Domestic animals can transmit zoonoses, as well as wild creatures.
Coronaviruses are zoonoses that caused the SARS, MERS and Covid-19 epidemics, originating in bats who infected civet cats or pangolins or other creatures that, in turn, infected humans. It is highly unlikely that bats infected humans directly.
There are nineteen other common zoonoses still circulating:
Dog Zoonoses
Dog Diseases and Their Symptoms in Humans
CCoV-HuPn-2018
Respiratory illness
Leptospirosis
Weil's disease
Toxocariasis
Visceral larval migrans
Echinococcosis
Hydatid disease
Sarcoptic mange
Skin rash and bites
Cheyletiella mites
Skin rash and bites
Ringworm
Skin lesions and hair loss
Salmonellosis
Diarrhea/vomiting
Rabies
Hydrophobia (rabies)
Cat Zoonoses
Cat Diseases and Their Symptoms in Humans
Pasteurellosis
Bites or scratches become infected.
Cat Scratch Fever
High temperature,flu-like signs, rash
Ringworm
Raised, circular, inflamed skin lesion
Toxoplasmosis
Abortion of fetus
Rabies
Fever, itching at original bite area, behavior changes, paralysis and death.
Zoonoses from Other Species
Species and the Disease it Can Transmit
Cattle
Brucellosis
Hamsters
Campylobacter
Birds
Psittacosis
Mice and rats
Salmonellosis
Horses
Tetanus
Rabbits
Tularemia
Sources:
Animal Biology and Care by Sue Dallas. Blackwell Science, 2000.
Coronaviruses: a paradigm of new emerging zoonotic diseases. (Pathogens and Disease, Volume 77, Issue 9, December 2019)
