These two volumes are the product of work by top world scientists. Over 130 diseases are presented, most of which are accompanied by very valuable and informative illustrations and photographs. Viral, bacterial, fungal and parasitic diseases of all livestock species, apart from poultry, that are encountered in temperate regions as well as in the hotter areas, such as the Mediterranean Basin, and in countries of the tropics, are discussed in detail. Numerous so-called 'emerging' diseases that threaten to invade temperate areas, or which have already started to do so, are described (bluetongue, African horse sickness, foot and mouth disease, etc.). Particular attention is devoted to the role of wildlife in the epidemiology of diseases that affect humans and livestock. Where appropriate, chapters stress the potential zoonotic characteristics of certain animal diseases and briefly describe the diseases in humans. Physicians, therefore, will also find a lot of extremely useful information. The reader will locate information with ease as the lay-out of each chapter is similar across the two volumes, with numerous subtitles, furthermore, a detailed index is presented at the end of the book. The illustrations are original and clearly presented, there is a wealth of colour photographs, tables and graphs that illustrate the text. In many cases a 'box' is provided to offer more detailed aspects of a disease. The manual is particularly intended for veterinary practitioners, veterinary public health officers, civil servants, zootechnicians and technical agents responsible for livestock development, protection and improvement. It will also be valuable for students in veterinary or animal science, veterinary public health and for those in agricultural schools. Medical physicians and biologists will discover the epidemiological data necessary to understand the mechanisms of transmission of animal diseases to humans and, more generally, the interactions between animal and human diseases.