Zoonoses.

Animal-transmitted diseases are remarkable not because they occur frequently but because they are almost always unsuspected and unrecognized. The physician who attends an ill veterinarian or zookeeper will immediately suspect an exotic disease. The pediatrician who attends the child who recently received a puppy for his birthday will not. Our public attitude toward animals as carriers of disease is utterly thoughtless. If a human were to urinate and defecate in the street or park he would be incarcerated without delay. Yet we tolerate and even encourage the same activity in dogs, which are known to carry scores of diseases to humans. Animals as pets are here to stay. Children are their frequent companions. It would serve all those who deal with the medical problems of children to know as much as possible about the diseases carried by animals, for their consequences are quite significant.