Sushruta (A peep into the past) - PART 2

PART 2

A tradition of veteterinary therapy developed very early in India and this has survived to the present time. Based on the Ayurveda, Indian bettering medicine is known for its specialized literature, which provides information on ancient methods of preventing and treating diseases of animals. Some of these treatments, little known outside India, are still practised today.

The oldest existing veterinary text from India is a treatise entitled ‘Asvayurveda Siddhartha’ (Complete Ayurvedic system for horses) attributed to Shalihotra (around 2350 BCE), the founder of veteterinary medicine. Subsequent, various treatises on horses and diseases of horses and disease of horses were composed. Nakula, one of the five pandavas, was a horse specialist himself. Among the best known works of animal literature is ‘Asva chikitsa’ ( Therapeutics of horses), written by Nakula! 

Sushruta, a disciple of Shalihotra, wrote on animal surgery. This made people aware of surgical methods, dressing of wounds, bandaging of fractures, etc. 

Later, during the region of Chandra Gupta Mariya (around 300 BC), veterinarians started accompanying armies, to treat horses, elephants as well as cattle.