Dr. Dominique Charron

Every year on November 3, One Health Day invites us to consider a simple but powerful idea: the health of people, animals and the environment is deeply interconnected.

The air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat all depend on healthy, functioning ecosystems. Diseases can move between animals and people. Environmental changes affect wildlife, agriculture and human communities. And the decisions we make about how we raise animals, produce food and manage natural resources have consequences that reach far beyond any one sector.

This is the thinking behind One Health: recognizing these connections and bringing different disciplines together to address shared challenges.

This year, the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association is marking One Health Day by launching Behind the Care, a national public education campaign built around the message Vets Protect More Than Pets.

It’s a fitting connection because veterinarians are essential contributors to One Health, often in ways Canadians may not recognize.

Consider something as familiar as breakfast. Before eggs, milk or meat reach our tables, veterinarians are helping protect the health of food-producing animals, prevent disease and support food safety. They work alongside farmers, food producers, researchers and public health professionals to promote humane animal care and strengthen the systems we depend on.

Beyond agriculture, veterinarians play an essential role in protecting animal welfare and wellbeing. Their work helps prevent suffering and improve quality of life. This commitment to animal welfare is fundamental to veterinary medicine and reflects a broader responsibility to the animals with whom we share our homes, communities and environment. Their contributions also extend into areas that may be surprising.

Veterinarians help monitor avian influenza, working with wildlife specialists, agricultural producers and government agencies to understand disease risks and prevent their spread.

They contribute to efforts to address antimicrobial resistance, helping ensure antibiotics are used responsibly in animals, so these important medicines remain effective for future generations.

Some even specialize in the health of bees, protecting pollinators that are vital to agriculture, biodiversity and healthy ecosystems.

These are just some examples of how protecting animal health contributes to protecting human and environmental health.

One Health also reminds us that no single profession can address these challenges alone. Veterinarians work alongside physicians, epidemiologists, ecologists, environmental scientists and many others. Each brings specialized expertise, but the greatest progress comes when we understand how our work intersects.

That’s especially important as we confront emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, climate change and growing pressures on our food systems.

The Behind the Care campaign offers an opportunity to make these connections more visible and accessible to Canadians. By showing the veterinary expertise behind everyday experiences, it helps us understand not only what veterinarians do, but why their work matters to all of us.

And perhaps that’s the most important message of One Health Day: that the health of animals, people and the environment cannot be separated. Protecting one means recognizing our responsibility to protect them all.

Dr. Dominique Charron is a veterinarian and an epidemiologist. She is a Visiting Scholar in  One Health at the University of Guelph where she contributes to developing research and education in One Health, with a focus on the science-to-policy interface. She is a member of the international One Health High-Level Expert Panel that advises the Quadripartite International organizations. She also provides One Health advice to the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association, Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Public Health Agency of Canada. Previously, she was Vice-President of Canada’s International Development Research Centre.