Veterinarian (the English word) traces back to Latin and was used in ancient Rome for people who cared for animals under the yoke—horses and cattle. That Roman label has quietly shaped how we tell the story: begin with Hippocrates, Galen, or Vegetius, then move to Europe’s first vet schools. But the practice of caring for animals is far older and far wider than that. Long before classical authors wrote about it, communities across Asia, Mesopotamia, and Egypt were diagnosing disease, setting fees, and even publishing practical handbooks.
Before Greece and Rome
No one can pin down an exact “start date” for veterinary medicine, just as no one can definitively date the first shepherd, stable, or pet dog. As soon as humans domesticated animals—at least by 12,000–10,000 BCE, likely earlier—people began treating injuries, birthing problems, parasites, and strange fevers. By the time Greek and Roman writers took up the topic, they were adding to an already mature tradition.
China: From Myth to Method
One of China’s foundational myths credits the culture hero Fuxi, “the ox-tamer,” with teaching people how to domesticate and care for animals. Myth isn’t a lab manual, but it reflects reality: by 4500–3750 BCE (the Banpo period), animal husbandry was well established.
Early Chinese records show that specialists sometimes called “horse priests” used acupuncture to treat lame or colicky horses as early as c. 3000 BCE. Over time, practitioners combined needling, herbs, and incantations—a holistic toolset aimed at keeping valuable draft animals healthy and productive. From horses and cattle, care expanded to other species as the agricultural economy grew.
Mesopotamia: Gods, Laws, and the First Named Vet
In Mesopotamia, veterinarians are attested by c. 3000 BCE—and their work was closely tied to religion. The healing goddess Gula (often linked with protective dogs) and her divine family embodied the curative arts. Two kinds of healers practiced side by side:
- Asu: hands-on doctors who treated symptoms through observation and physical remedies
- Asipu: ritual specialists who used incantations, prayers, and herbs
Both could (and did) treat animals. There wasn’t a hard line between “natural” and “supernatural” medicine; people used both.
We even know the first veterinarian by name: Urlugaledinna, who served the Lagash court around 2121–2118 BCE. His seal shows surgical tools (including a kind of forceps) alongside the serpent staff of the healing god Ninazu—the same twining-serpents imagery later associated with Greek medicine.
Mesopotamian law codes also took animal disease seriously. The Code of Eshnunna (c. 1930 BCE) identified rabies and penalized owners of biting dogs. The Code of Hammurabi (c. 1754 BCE) formally recognized veterinarians as a distinct class and set their fees. In short: the profession was real, regulated, and respected.
Egypt: Textbook Medicine for Sacred Animals
It’s no surprise Egypt excelled here. Animals carried deep religious meaning, and people and livestock lived in close contact—ideal conditions for early veterinary practice. The Kahun Papyri (Middle Kingdom, c. 1860–1814 BCE) include a veterinary section with diagnoses and treatments, particularly for cattle but also birds, dogs, and fish (all kept as pets).
Notably, Egyptian texts discuss nagana (animal trypanosomiasis) transmitted by tsetse flies and stress hand-washing before, during, and after treatment—practical, infection-aware advice three and a half millennia old. Many scholars think Egyptian animal medicine began even earlier, perhaps back in the Old Kingdom (c. 2613–2181 BCE).
India: From Vedic Healers to Dedicated Vet Hospitals
In India, Vedic priests responsible for herds were early animal healers, and Ayurvedic literature wove animal care into broader medical knowledge. The great surgeon Sushruta (7th–6th c. BCE) laid down techniques for humans that were adapted for animals.
The most influential veterinary specialist was Shalihotra (c. 3rd c. BCE), often called the father of Indian veterinary science. His Shalihotra Samhita systematized anatomy, physiology, and treatment for animals—especially horses. By the time Emperor Ashoka (r. c. 268–232 BCE) ruled, sources speak of the world’s first veterinary hospital in India. It’s a powerful reminder: formal institutions for animal care existed outside Europe long before the Enlightenment.
Greece and Rome
Hippocrates argued that disease (human and animal) has natural causes—diet, environment, lifestyle—not divine punishment. He emphasized diet, exercise, sunlight, massage, rest, and baths. Although best known for human medicine, his influence spilled into animal care; by 130 BCE, Metrodorus of Lamia was renowned for horse surgery built on Hippocratic method.
Galen advanced anatomy by dissecting animals, drawing parallels to human physiology, and using those insights to treat people. But in the veterinary lane, few texts were as influential as Vegetius’ Digesta Artis Mulomedicinae, a practical guide to diseases of horses and cattle. Vegetius insisted, like Hippocrates, that disease occurs naturally, and he equipped working vets with a reference manual that would endure for centuries.
After Rome
When the Western Roman Empire fell in 476 CE, much classical literature faded from everyday use. Some later European church authorities discouraged dissection and showed little interest in pet care, viewing animals largely through practical or theological lenses. According to some historians, the most consistent veterinary work in early medieval Europe centered on horses (for war and transport) and cattle (for food and farming).
Meanwhile, Arabic-speaking scholars—especially in al-Andalus (Islamic Spain)—preserved, translated, and expanded medical knowledge, with a strong equine focus rooted in a deep horse culture. By the 12th–13th centuries, European interest in animal health returned, but it still largely tracked economic needs: keep the warhorse healthy; protect herds and draught animals.
The Enlightenment
The 18th century brought epidemics in European herds and a scientific push to respond. In 1762, Claude Bourgelat founded Europe’s first veterinary school in Lyon, France. Students made rapid progress in anatomy, pathology, and public health, prompting Louis XV to establish a Royal School in 1765. More schools spread across Europe through the late 1700s and 1800s; the Veterinary College of Philadelphia opened in the United States in 1852.
These institutions shaped modern veterinary education. But many Enlightenment writers didn’t yet know (or credit) the sophisticated animal medicine of China, Mesopotamia, Egypt, or India—so they naturally traced the field back to Greeks and Romans and crowned newer figures as “firsts.”
So… Who’s the “Father of Veterinary Medicine”?
It depends on where you look:
- Shalihotra in India is a strong candidate for “first dedicated veterinary author.”
- Vegetius gave Europe its enduring manual.
- Bourgelat founded the modern European vet school model.
- James Harlan Steele (1913–2013) helped elevate public awareness of animal health’s role in human health in the 20th century.
But the honest answer is humbler and bigger: there isn’t one parent. Veterinary medicine grew on many continents at once—shaped by herders, surgeons, priests, scribes, and stable masters whose names we’ll never know.
Why This History Matters Today
Three takeaways:
- One Health is ancient. Long before the term existed, societies understood that human well-being is tied to animal health and the environment. Rabies laws, fly-borne disease notes, and hand-washing instructions show the connection.
- Practical wisdom travels. From horse acupuncture in Bronze Age China to forceps in Sumer, from Egyptian papyri to Indian hospitals, good ideas moved and stuck where they helped people and animals survive.
- Vets carry a deep legacy. Modern clinics, imaging tools, and vaccines sit atop a 5,000-year tradition of compassion, craft, and science.
Quick Timeline
- c. 3000 BCE — China and Mesopotamia: established animal healers (acupuncture for horses; Asu/Asipu doctors)
- c. 1930–1754 BCE — Mesopotamian law codes recognize animal disease and veterinary fees
- c. 1860–1814 BCE — Egypt’s Kahun Papyri: veterinary diagnoses and treatments, hand-washing guidance
- c. 7th–3rd c. BCE — India: Sushruta (human surgery) → Shalihotra (veterinary classic); Ashoka supports animal hospitals
- 1st millennium BCE → CE — Greece & Rome: Hippocrates, Galen, and Vegetius systematize animal care
- 476 CE onward — Fragmented transmission in Europe; strong equine medicine in Islamic Spain; later medieval recovery
- 1762–1862 — European vet schools (starting with Bourgelat); 1852 in the US; modern profession takes shape
Final Word
From stable yards and temple courtyards to modern hospitals, veterinary medicine has always been about more than pets—it’s about livelihoods, public health, and the bond between people and animals. The next time you see a vet steady a nervous dog or treat a working horse, remember: they’re practicing an art that’s as old as civilization itself.
