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Introduction: Economic losses and health risks caused by disease outbreaks in farm animals pose a considerable threat worldwide. Rodents play a crucial role in the transmission of a variety of zoonotic pathogens acting as intermediate, main or reservoir hosts for many bacteria, viruses and parasites. Rodent-borne pathogen transmission can occur through direct or indirect contact, through contaminated food and water or through arthropod vectors. This review provides an overview about the current state of knowledge to demonstrate how rodents are involved in the transmission of the most relevant livestock pathogens. Material and methods: Two literature databases (Web of Science, PubMed) were used to create a list of publications on all relevant pathogen types (bacteria, viruses, parasites, other), the most mentioned rodent species involved in pathogen transmission and the most common livestock types (cattle, swine, poultry) published in English from inception to September 2025. Results: - wild rodent species are clearly underrepresented and there were mostly descriptive studies without consideration of processes and intervention. Conclusion: The role of rodents in transmission pathways of an extremely broad range of pathogens is demonstrated. Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms to decrease economical cost and health issues for commensal and field/forest rodent species alike.
Huels et al. (Sat,) studied this question.