WORLD VETERINARY DAY

World Veterinary Day

The word "veterinary" comes from the Latin veterinae meaning "working animals". "Veterinarian" was first used in print by Thomas Browne in 1646. Although "vet" is commonly used as an abbreviation in all English-speaking countries, the occupation is formally referred to as a veterinary surgeon in the United Kingdom and Ireland and now as a veterinarian in most of the rest of the English-speaking world.

Ancient Indian sage and veterinary physician Shalihotra (mythological estimate c. 2350 BCE), the son of a sage, Hayagosha, is considered the founder of veterinary sciences.

The first veterinary college was founded in Lyon, France in 1762 by Claude Bourgelat. According to Lupton, after observing the devastation being caused by cattle plague to the French herds, Bourgelat devoted his time to seeking out a remedy. This resulted in his founding a veterinary college in Lyon in 1761, from which establishment he dispatched students to combat the disease; in a short time, the plague was stayed and the health of stock restored, through the assistance rendered to agriculture by veterinary science and art.

A Veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a professional who practices veterinary medicine by treating diseases, disorders, and injuries in non-human animals.

World Veterinary Day celebrated on the last Saturday of April

Back in 1863, Professor John Gamgee of the Veterinary College of Edinburgh, invited veterinarians from Europe to attend a meeting which later became known as the first International Veterinary Congress. The meeting was about epizootic diseases and a discussion of possible preventive measures. This congress became a World Veterinary Congress. In 1906, at the 8th World Veterinary Congress, the members formed the Permanent Committee whose aim was to serve as an organizational link between congresses.

Then, at the 15th Congress in Stockholm, the Permanent Committee and the members saw the need for an international organization and constitution. Hence, on the next Congress in 1959, held in Madrid, the World Veterinary Association was established. The mission of the World Veterinary Association is to focus on animal health and welfare, as well as on the environment and public health. Nowadays, the World Veterinary Association collaborated with other prominent organization, such as OIE, WHO, and FAO.

The World Veterinary Association has members from more than seventy nations and features national veterinary associations from all over the world. A new constitution was welcomed in 1997 and the organization was restructured. Each veterinary association which is a member of the World Veterinary Association pays membership fees.

The World Veterinary Association created World Veterinary Day in 2000 as an annual celebration of the veterinary profession, falling on the last Saturday of April. Each year, the WVA and World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) choose a theme.

In 2001, the World Veterinary Association established that there will be a World Veterinary Day celebrated on the last Saturday of April. The aim of the World Veterinary Day is to promote the veterinary profession and work on improvement of the animal and human welfare, the environment, food safety, and practices of animal transport and quarantine. Each year, there is a different theme of this day. For instance, the first theme of the World Veterinary Association was “Rabies” in an aim to raise public awareness about vaccinating and spaying dogs as well as preventing rabies.

The World Veterinary Association together with the World Organization for Animal Health decided that there should be a World Veterinary Day Award. This practice started in 2008 and its goal is to reward the best contribution to the veterinary profession. The Kenya Veterinary Association was the first to receive this award.

Then, in 2011, which was the World Veterinary Year, the founding of the first veterinary school was celebrated.

The WVA and OIE confer the World Veterinary Day Award for the best contribution on the annual theme by a WVA member association working alone or with other veterinary groups.

There have been different themes throughout the years to celebrate the World Veterinary Day, such as Rabies, Antimicrobial Resistance, the Diversity of the veterinary profession, and the One Health Concept. What most people do during this day is finding ways to appreciate veterinarians. Moreover, pet owners also consider this day to be a holiday and decide to spend it with their pets.

HAPPY WORLD VETERINARY DAY