The World Health Organisation has set regional elimination goals for measles virus (MV) eradication to be achieved by 2020 or earlier.A major question is whether an opportunity for veterinary virus infection of humans may arise when MV is eradicated and if vaccination is discontinued.Lessons have been learned from animal to human virus transmission i.e.human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and more recently from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and avian influenza virus infections.We are therefore alerted to the risk of zoonosis from the closely related veterinary viruses in the same morbillivirus genus as MV.Of most concern with regard to zoonosis is the recently reported fatal infection of primates with canine distemper virus (CDV).These animals displayed neurological symptoms and pathology similar to CDV infection in dogs.