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Introduction: Zoonotic risk is a major public health concern that should be addressed through close collaboration between veterinarians and physicians. Yet the few studies available in this field highlight the absence of such collaboration and point to organizational and cultural constraints as explanatory factors. None of them have investigated potential psychosocial determinants.

Methods: This qualitative study is a comparative exploration of veterinarians' and physicians' relationship to zoonotic risk and interprofessional collaboration. Individual exploratory interviews were held with fourteen practicing veterinarians and ten general practitioners - all of whom were French. Their different perceptions of zoonotic risk and collaboration were described by means of a thematic analysis. The social representations of each profession with regard to the other were investigated using attitudinal analyses.

Results: Collaboration between general practitioners and veterinarians is commonly perceived as non-existent. The main limiting factors on collaboration are: first, greater psychosocial involvement with regard to zoonotic risk among veterinarians than among general practitioners, due to differences in the degree of exposure to these diseases and in the expertise and values regarding the human-nature relationship; second, contrasting assessments of the others' profession (social desirability), evidenced in veterinarians' negative representations of general practitioners who, conversely, deem veterinarians to be particularly competent; and, thirdly, different perceptions of collaboration (social utility), as a keen interest in collaboration is witnessed among veterinarians, whereas general practitioners see it as only moderately useful.

Conclusion: It is essential to promote places where physicians and veterinarians can meet locally, so that perceptions of zoonotic risk can evolve, particularly among physicians, along with veterinarians' beliefs about and attitudes towards them.