WOAH: Why should not the health of wildlife take a back seat?

From One Health’s point of view, monitoring the well-being of wildlife is crucial as it keeps fundamental ecosystems in balance.

From the WOAH a framework document to protect animals and preserve the future.

Wildlife can also be fragile and exposed to dangerous pathogens. It is therefore essential to keep it under observation to prevent infection. Wildlife, in fact, is essential to keep ecosystems in balance.

Let’s take bats for example: mostly seen as carriers of viruses, they instead play a very complex role as they disperse seeds, they are also pollinators and they feed on harmful insects. In other words, the more than 1,400 species of bats that live on the planet play a vital role and benefit humans greatly. The disappearance of some of these species is likely to have a strong negative impact globally.

Moreover, any ecosystem imbalance is a flaw in which the zoonotic risk easily creeps in easily. It includes deforestation, climate change, illegal trade in protected species, intensive livestock farming and antimicrobial resistance.

With the aim of directing all countries towards a careful and systematic monitoring of wildlife, the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) has prepared an ad hoc document setting out two main objectives:

1. to manage the risk of occurrence and transmission of pathogens

2. to optimise surveillance systems for the detection, notification and management of wildlife diseases.

In this perspective, the document specifies, it becomes essential to strengthen the role and skills of veterinary services, comply with specific guidelines in wildlife management and promote the importance of a One Health approach that takes into account the needs of all animals.   

Interesting links   WILDLIFE, OIE, WOAH, ZOONOSES

Source Vet33