The earliest information on the art of caring for animals in India is provided by the sacred texts of the Vedic religion. These texts, written between 1500 and 600 BC, were transmitted orally from generation to generation, over the centuries, before being written down. The oldest Vedic literature consists of collections of hymns, liturgical chants and sacrificial or magical formulae, mainly in verse, which constitute the Veda proper (1500-1000 BC). In these ancient times, knowledge already existed of how to prepare a number of remedies to counter prevailing ailments in human beings and also in animals. Thus, the Atharva veda (IV, 9,2) hails the benefits of a protective ointment for human beings, cows and horses. The concepts developed during this period formed the basis of subsequent medical doctrines. In fact, concepts incorporated in the Veda, sometimes retaining Vedic names, formed the basis of some of the most characteristic anatomical and physiological concepts of Indian medicine. These included the observation and recording of the behaviour of sick animals. For example, the Atharva veda (VIII, 7, 23) states that ‘the wild boar knows the herb which will cure it, as does the mongoose’. This example recalls the shepherd Melampus who, according to Theophrastes (327-287 BC), discovered the purgative properties of hellebore by observing its action on goats. Such references illustrate the importance of observation in the choice of medicinal plants (18). Towards the end of the Vedic period, Indian medicine began to adopt observation and rational procedure, which developed into a coherent system known as Ayurveda (from knowledge [veda] concerning longevity [Âyur]) (16,17). This knowledge served as a model for veterinary medicine, the history of which is still little known, producing a specialised literature in Sanskrit and in the other languages of India. Some of this literature was even translated into Tibetan, Arabic and Persian (4,12,18, 20). The surviving texts are concerned mainly with the treatment of horses and elephants. The legends incorporated in these texts present knowledge regarding the medical treatment of horses and elephants as being directly revealed by the gods. This may be explained partly by the need to provide veterinary medicine with an origin similar to that of the Âyur veda, which is also presented as ‘divinely-inspired’ knowledge. In fact, this veterinary medicine developed from the Âyur vedic model over the seven or eight centuries which preceded the Christian era. It is also known, from the inscriptions of Asoka in the middle of the 3rd century BC, that this Buddhist sovereign opened hospitals for animals (25). Unfortunately, no actual veterinary records exist from this period.