the widespread keeping of wild pets in the Neotropics: an overlooked risk for human, livestock, and wildlife health

Zoonoses constitute a major risk to human health. Comprehensive assessments on the potential emergence of novel disease outbreaks are essential to ensure the effectiveness of sanitary controls and to establish mitigating actions.

Through a continental-scale survey of rural human settlements conducted over 13 years in 15 Neotropical countries, we document the vast extent of poaching to meet the local demand for pets, resulting in thousands of families living with ca. 275 species of wild animals without any sanitary controls. Parrots account for ca. 80% of wild pets, dying mostly from diseases at a average age of one year.

This culturally rooted tradition, which dates back to pre-Columbian times, may lead to health risks by bringing wild animals prone to carrying parasites and pathogens into close contact with humans and their exotic pets and livestock.

Although animal pathogens and parasites have been transmitted to humans for centuries, the current trend of human population growth and connectivity can increase the risk of zoonotic outbreaks spreading at an unprecedented pace. Similarly, disease transmission from humans and poultry to wild animals is also expected to be facilitated via wild pets, leading to conservation problems.

Several studies have highlighted the risk posed by wildlife city markets for cross-species disease transmission, ignoring the risk associated with widespread pet ownership of wild animals poached locally in rural areas. Given its geographic and social dimensions, a holistic approach is required to reduce this illegal activity as well as to strengthen health surveillance of seized individuals and people in close contact with poached pets, which would benefit both people and wildlife.

Methods
Please refer to the Methods section and Supplementary Information of the published article.

人畜共患病（Zoonoses）对人类健康构成重大威胁。全面评估新型疾病暴发的潜在发生风险，是保障卫生防控措施有效性、制定疫情缓解应对举措的核心前提。

本研究对15个新热带界（Neotropical）国家的乡村人居环境开展了为期13年的大陆尺度调查，结果显示，为满足本地宠物饲养需求而进行的非法狩猎活动规模庞大，致使数千个家庭饲养约275种野生动物，且未采取任何卫生防控措施。其中鹦鹉约占野生宠物总量的80%，其平均寿命仅为1岁，且大多死于各类疾病。

这一可追溯至前哥伦布时期的文化传统，将易携带寄生虫与病原体的野生动物带入人类、家养外来宠物及家畜的密切接触环境中，可能引发健康风险。

尽管动物病原体与寄生虫向人类的传播已有数百年历史，但当前人类人口增长与社会互联互通的趋势，可能以空前速度提升人畜共患病暴发传播的风险。同理，经由野生宠物的媒介作用，人类与家禽向野生动物的疾病传播也可能加剧，进而引发野生动物保护问题。

已有多项研究强调了城市野生动物市场在跨物种疾病传播中的风险，却忽视了乡村地区非法狩猎获取的野生动物被广泛作为宠物饲养所带来的隐患。鉴于该问题兼具地理与社会双重维度，需采取整体化治理方案，既要打击此类非法狩猎活动，也要强化对查扣野生动物及密切接触非法狩猎宠物人员的健康监测，此举将同时惠及人类与野生动物。

研究方法
请参阅已发表论文的"方法"章节与补充材料。