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As we stand at the forefront of a new era in animal health care, it is evident that digital health technology and artificial intelligence (AI) are poised to revolutionize the field. The rapid evolution of these technologies has opened up unprecedented opportunities for improving animal health, welfare, and productivity. As editors of this book, we are honored to bring together a diverse group of experts who share our passion for harnessing the potential of digital health technology and AI to transform animal health care. The book commences with an exploration of digital veterinary medicine and AI, highlighting the potential of these technologies to enhance clinical decision making and patient outcomes. The authors delve into the realm of digital veterinary medicine, discussing the applications of AI-powered technologies in disease diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. The chapter on reaching the unreached emphasizes the potential of digital health technology and AI to improve animal health care in resource-poor settings, where access to veterinary care is limited. Clinical decision support systems are a crucial aspect of modern veterinary medicine, and the chapter on clinical decision support using animal data: artificial intelligence and tele-veterinary medicine provides valuable insights into the applications of AI-powered technologies in this realm. The authors discuss the potential of AI-powered clinical decision support systems to enhance patient outcomes, reduce healthcare costs, and improve the overall efficiency of veterinary care.

Introduction In the last decade, digitalization has transformed every aspect of life and society, changing almost every area of our day-to day lives. Not just that; the rate of change that is happening is astonishing and only going to accelerate further. From the way, we work and communicate to how we organize our lives, digital tools and technologies are everywhere including the veterinary sector. Veterinarians are recognizing the need to depart “the analog island” and increasingly willing to embrace digital solutions. Undoubtedly, digitalization is crucial when it comes to boosting efficiency and quality in veterinary medicine and delivery of animal healthcare to masses across various geographies and resource poor setups. Uniquely these digital tools helps vets also to focus on the needs of patients and animal owners.

Veterinary oncology is an upcoming field in recent years due to the integration of the importance of spontaneous canine cancers in understanding and developing novel strategies for human cancer management. We are stepping towards a very exciting era in veterinary oncology, where comparative oncology has played a significant role for many decades in understanding the molecular basis of cancer in companion animals. The comparative animal models have generated remarkable interest in both academia and industry. Studies have demonstrated the utility of comparative oncology in understanding drug resistance and tumor biology, contributing to the translational research[1]. This has yielded breakthrough discoveries, from advanced diagnostics to novel therapies, providing opportunities to improve the longevity and quality of life of the pets. These inputs have led to advancements such as the first conditionally approved chemotherapeutic agent for lymphoma, novel BRAF testing for canine urothelial carcinoma, tyrosine kinase inhibitors for mast cell tumors, updates in stereotactic/FLASH radiation, and novel immunotherapeutics. As the understanding of cancer biology has advanced, the field of veterinary oncology has grown significantly, paralleling developments in human oncology. Veterinary oncologists treat a variety of cancers in domestic animals, particularly dogs and cats, but also in exotic animals, horses, and even zoo animals. While the types of cancers in animals share similarities with human cancers, treatment strategies can differ significantly due to species-specific differences in anatomy, physiology, and response to therapies [2, 3].

Opportunities India is home to largest milch animal population, totalling around 100 million cattle and buffalo (out of total population of 300 million) spread over 6.5 million census villages. India is the largest milk producer with CAGR of 4.5%, likely to go up to 5%, which is likely to create around 20 million jobs every year. The most significant factor is that dairy industry is likely to exceed IT industry in employment generation. In year 2018, India produced 146 million tonnes of milk contributing 26% of the agriculture GDP. But the foundation of dairy industry is economically vulnerable as per animal productivity and fertility are very low leading to meagre profits and frequent demands to enhance procurement price. National schemes like Operation Flood, National Dairy Plan-I and National Dairy Plan II, largely focussed on milk collection, processing, distribution and organising farmers but the animal component has been neglected. Enhancing per animal productivity by empowering farmers to scientific management and breeding to achieve genetic improvement needs urgent attention. Although numerous technologies to improve health and genetics are available but the single most important gap is failure to deliver these to farmers. Unlike western world, India has not been able to develop modern veterinary service delivery models. In order to cater to breeding and health services of cattle and buffalo (300 million in numbers) and also pet animals in rural areas and small towns, huge manpower and infrastructure will be required.

Rabies is an ancient, dreadful disease known to mankind from the vedic ages. It is a zoonotic disease caused by Rabies virus, genus Lyssavirus family Rhabdoviridae, affecting all mammals including man. The WHO categorizes rabies as a neglected zoonotic disease that causes around 59,000 human deaths globally annually after onset of symptoms. It is a vaccine preventable disease reported from over 150 countries and territories barring the island nations like Australia, Brunei, Japan, Maldives, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Timor Leste and the Pacific Island Countries. The Indian islands of Andaman Nicobar and Lakshadweep are rabies free so far. On the other hand, Africa and Asia has the highest burden of human rabies including South-East Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, DPRK, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. The Asia Pacific region having 60% of the world’s population includes the world’s most populous countries – India and China. Asia alone shares almost half of the global rabies deaths annually.

Veterinary Nuclear Medicine (VNM) Veterinary Nuclear Medicine (VNM) is a specialized field that uses radioisotopes to detect, diagnose, and treat diseases. Gamma scintigraphy involves injecting radioactive tracer pharmaceuticals into the animal’s body and imaging them as they move through the body using a gamma radiation-sensitive camera. This technique provides a 2D or 3D image of the whole body or a specific organ, allowing for the estimation of the quantitative distribution within the region of interest (ROI). Advancements in gamma scintigraphy have allowed for the acquisition of information about both static and dynamic high-resolution images, such as heart wall motion, blood flow, and myocardial perfusion. Unlike other diagnostic modalities viz X-rays, ultrasonography, and CT; gamma scintigraphy offers functional information of specific organs. The most commonly used gamma radiation-emitting isotope is 99m-Technetium (99mTc), which emits a gamma energy of 98% 140-keV photon with only 10% internal conversion. Other radionuclides used in veterinary nuclear medicine facilities include iodine (123I and 131I), Gallium (67Ga), and Thallium (201Ti).

Being polytocous animal, sow give birth several (8-14) piglets in each farrowing, mother pig find several deficiencies and disorders during gestation, farrowing and postnatal conditions. Prior to birth intrauterine competition amongst the feotus piglets for nutrition and gas exchange is a big stress for abortion. Several infectious and non-infectious causes may hamper proper growth and pathological conditions resulting mortality (15-20%) in piglets than weaner and adults (Sarma, et al, 2012). Several risk factors are also responsible for piglet mortality. Prenatal factors: Insults during pregnancy can impact a piglet’s ability to survive after birth and regulate their body temperature. Some maternal aspects that affect survability and mortality amongst piglets are prolong farrowing duration more than 4 hours, number of parity of sow, usually first and second parity show high mortality than subsequent parities and also older sow lose more piglets.

Introduction Climate change, a global phenomenon of present time, has emerged as the greatest challenge of the world in the twenty-first century. Rising earth’s surface temperature is one of the most threatening factors coming into view. The substantial changes in the earth’s climate have an impact on ecosystems, economics and societies in a variety of ways (Sharma et al., 2024). It is one of the important environmental, agricultural, human and animal health issue. Climate change is an association of multidimensional effects involving physical characteristics, causes and consequences (Visschers, 2018). The climate change has resulted in to increasing global average temperature of air and ocean, melting of snow, rising of ocean level, change in the rainfall pattern and extreme whether events such as drought, flood, heat waves, storms etc.

Punjab, known as the “breadbasket of India,” relies heavily on livestock, particularly cattle and buffalo, for its agricultural prosperity. These animals play a crucial role in the region’s dairy industry, contributing significantly to milk production and rural livelihoods. However, like all livestock, cattle and buffalo in Punjab are susceptible to a range of diseases that can impact their health, productivity, and overall well-being. Timely and accurate diagnosis is essential for effective treatment and prevention. This article explores some of the most common diseases affecting cattle and buffalo in Punjab, along with the diagnostic procedures used to detect and manage these health issues, ensuring the sustainability and growth of the dairy sector. Hydatidosis Hydatidosis is a zoonotic disease caused by metacestode stages of parasite Echinococcus granulosus and is recognized as a major public health problem worldwide. This tapeworm is found in small intestine of the canid (definitive host) where it produce proglottids containing eggs. Upon shedding through faeces the later are ingested by the cattle, buffaloes and other intermediate hosts including man. These hatch in their intestine and the oncosphere invade circulatory system and lodge in various organs (liver, lung, brain etc.) where they develop into large thick walled unilocular cavity called hydatid cyst, which expands and can reach very large size and buds hundreds and thousands of protoscoleces endogenously. In a survey on hydatid cysts, a prevalence rate of around 5% has been recorded in more than 4000 meat samples of different animals in Punjab.

AMR is undoubtedly the most serious challenge ever faced by the world health community because of its multifaceted complex nature and its overwhelming impact over the human and veterinary communities. Livestock sector is no exception to have the serious and devastating impact from the emergence and spread of AMR. Because of a steady shift towards intensive farming and increased stocking density there has been increase occurrence of infectious diseases. Growing world population, rapid urbanization, and deforestation, shrinkage of grazing land all aided to this process. This leads to increased usage of antimicrobials in food animals – cause of concern for the scientific community as AMU is known the single most important driver of AMR.

The Central Nervous System not only consists of the Brain but also involves the Spinal cord. The spinal cord is responsible for conveying information from the Brain to the rest of the body via the peripheral nervous system. The spinal cord can be divided into 4 functional segments. 1. C1-C5 (Upper Cervical Segments) 2. C6-T2 (Brachial Plexus) 3. T3-L3 (Thoraco - Lumbar) 4. L4-S3 (Lumbo-Sacral Plexus ) It is important to note that the motor and sensory function of the pelvic limbs are not only controlled by the Lumbo-Sacral plexus but also involve the Thoraco Lumbar segments (T3-L3) of the spinal cord. It is important to understand not only the neuroanatomy, but also the functional anatomy before approaching a neurological patient.

Cytauxzoonosis is an emerging tick-borne disease of domestic cats and wild felids caused by the protozoa of the genus Cytauxzoon. The common clinical findings in affected cats are similar to other hemoparasitic infections namely anorexia, depression, anemia, vomiting, icterus, and high fever. The first reporting of feline cytauxzoonosis with four fatal cases was done by Wagner in Missouri, USA in the year 1976. Bobcats (Lynx rufus) are recognized as the natural wild reservoir of Cytauxzoon felis with prevalence reaching up to 100% in some enzootic areas (Zieman et al., 2017). This infection is highly fatal in domestic cats with 97% mortality without treatment (Meinkoth and Kocan, 2005). However, subclinical infection in some cats has also been evidenced i.e., they were infected with C? felis but did not display the acute clinical signs of the disease before diagnosis (Brown et al., 2010 and Rizzi et al., 2015). Several other wild felids apart from bobcats and domestic cats have been found to be affected by fatal or nonfatal Cytauxzoon sp. infection. These include lions, jaguar, cougars, pumas, ocelots, Iberian lynx, meerkats, European wild cats and Asiatic wild cat, panthers, and tigers (Jakob and Wesemeier, 1996; Rotstein et al., 1999; Yabsley et al., 2006; Andre et al., 2009; Filoni et al., 2012 and Furtado et al., 2017).

Cardiomyopathies in acts can be classified broadly as Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and non-hypertrophic cardiomyopathies. Usually, no alarming clinical signs are detected during routine examination in the preclinical stage except cardiac murmurs in some cats with HCM. This is because, that the cats are sedentary and excellent in hiding the signs of illness from the pet parents. Hence the onset is often acute with the sudden appearance of the clinical signs linked to congestive heart failure like severe dyspnoea, cardiogenic shock, aortic thromboembolism, arrhythmias and even syncope and death Cats with CHF will be presented with severe dyspnoea, due to fulminant pulmonary oedema and or pleural effusion. The pleural effusion associated with CHF is usually a modified transudate, some cases it may be chylous .In echocardiography ,the size of the left atrium should be determined .If the LA size is normal ,then the dyspnoea may not be of cardiac origin .The presence of B-lines in the lung area in association with LA enlargement confirms cardiogenic pulmonary oedema. Stress, anaesthesia, I/V fluids and steroids leads to decompensation and fulminant pulmonary oedema. Thoracocentesis is will be helpful if there is dyspnoea due to significant pleural effusion. At least 300ml of effusion can be usually removed. The dyspnoeic cat is very fragile and should be handled carefully. Butorphanol may be given for anxiolytic effect. Oxygen administration is beneficial. Furosemide when given intravenously has an initial venodilator effect and should be repeated as required monitoring the sleeping respiratory rate (SRR). Addition of nitro-glycerine (vasodilator) reduces preload, decreases left atrial pressure and help in reducing pulmonary oedema. If the clinical signs are suggestive of cardiogenic shock or myocardial failure, Pimobendan I/V or Dobutamine CRI should be considered.

Tissue Doppler Imaging Doppler echocardiography relies on detection of the shift in frequency of ultrasound signals reflected from moving objects. With this principle, conventional Doppler techniques assess the velocity of blood flow by measuring high-frequency, low amplitude signals from small, fast-moving blood cells. In TDI, the same Doppler principles are used to quantify the higher-amplitude, lower-velocity signals of myocardial tissue motion. There are important limitations to TD interrogation. As with all Doppler techniques, TDI measures only the vector of motion that is parallel to the direction of the ultrasound beam. In addition, TDI measures absolute tissue velocity and is unable to discriminate passive motion (related to translation or tethering) from active motion (fiber shortening or lengthening). The emerging technology of Doppler strain imaging provides a means to differentiate true contractility from passive myocardial motion by looking at relative changes in tissue velocity.

Precision medicine and personalised treatment of systemic or tumour diseases gain their acceptance and application in veterinary care, too. The application of personalised medical protocols and companion diagnostics is easier and ethically well reasoned within the veterinary medical field – and it can offer many advantageous lessons to human clinical transformation, too [1]. In vitro companion diagnostics for testing the applicability and sensitivity levels of certain kinase inhibitor and immunotherapeutic drugs offer a greatly increased efficiency for veterinary cancer patients, too. As the understanding of cancer biology has advanced, the field of veterinary oncology has grown significantly, paralleling developments in human oncology. Precision medicine is an innovative approach to disease treatment and prevention that considers individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle. In the context of veterinary medicine, precision medicine aims to provide tailored therapies that are specifically designed for the unique genetic and molecular profile of each animal’s cancer. This approach moves away from the traditional “one-size-fits-all” model, instead focusing on targeted treatments that maximize efficacy while minimizing side effects. Companion diagnostics, such as molecular tests, help determine whether a dog or cat is likely to respond to a particular drug. For dogs and cats, precision medicine holds great promise in improving outcomes for cancers, which are among the leading causes of death in companion animals.

Introduction One of the remarkable advancements in veterinary medicine recently is the application of interventional cardiology techniques to treat various congenital heart diseases. In dogs and cats, congenital heart diseases can be treated much more easily and with fewer complications using minimally invasive interventional approaches, rather than through traditional open-heart surgery. Among congenital heart diseases, treatment options are available for conditions such as PDA (Patent Ductus Arteriosus), AS (Aortic Stenosis), PS (Pulmonic Stenosis), VSD (Ventricular Septal Defect), ASD (Atrial Septal Defect), extrahepatic shunt, and stem cell applications. These diseases often cannot be significantly improved by medical treatment alone, making the use of the aforementioned interventional techniques essential for effective management.

Renal failure is one of the most commonly presented conditions in veterinary clinics world over. Although the potential for recovery is favorable, most animals die due to multisystemic effects induced by azotemia. Hence, extracorporeal removal of endogenous and exogenous toxins is very essential for expanding the window of recovery. Hemodialysis has been used in treatment of veterinary patients for the last 50 years and is still one of the most expensive and technically demanding treatment modalities in veterinary medicine. It is an advanced extracorporeal renal replacement therapy which has recently transitioned from a clinical curiosity to a more advanced standard for management of acute kidney injury (AKI) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) in companion animals particularly dogs and cats. In addition to eliminating selective toxins that cause AKI, regardless of renal function, hemodialysis is also effective in the removal of pharmacokinetically active soluble uremic substances in CKD to enhance life expectancy and quality of life (Singh, 2021). Other common indications of hemodialysis in veterinary medicine include fluid overload, dysregulated body fluid composition, drug overdose or intoxications (Foster, 2020; Singh et al?, 2024). Medical management alone is often insufficient to control the clinical signs and metabolic abnormalities associated with uremia when AKI is severe or when there is involvement of acute on chronic kidney disease. Consequently, animals are at risk of death within a short therapeutic window, despite the potential reversibility of AKI and the improvement of life expectancy in CKD.

As the heart diseases in companion animals is becoming common as in humans, the research in canine cardiac diseases is one of the most extensive studies in the present scenario. As per the available literature, the overall occurrence of various cardiac abnormalities ranges from 0.37 percent to 1.67 percent in various parts of the country. Whereas, in western parts of the globe, nearly 8 million dogs suffer from heart disease accounting 10% of all dogs in the United States. Heart diseases are common among older dogs; up to 75% of senior dogs have some type of heart condition, and unfortunately, most go undiagnosed due to varied reasons. The recognition of canine cardiac diseases has been delayed, and ignored on account of lack of awareness and knowledge by the owner and inadequate diagnostic facility in our country. Physical examination, radiography, electrocardiography and echocardiography are most useful diagnostic procedures employed in diagnosing the cardiac diseases in dogs. However, majority of the acquired cardiac diseases are being managed medically with one or a combination of drugs. Improved diet management and health care of companion animals have led to increased life expectancy, as a result, cardiac diseases have become pivotal causes of death for both dogs and cats. For such reason, a major objective has become to increase the quality of life by reducing the expansion of cardiac diseases via early detection of diseases and provision of effective treatment.

Introduction Canine atopic dermatitis (CAD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease marked by itching (pruritus), redness (erythema), and recurrent infections. While traditionally considered an immune-mediated condition, recent studies highlight the significant role of skin barrier dysfunction in its development. A key aspect of CAD is the compromised skin barrier, which increases permeability to allergens, irritants, and microorganisms, thereby worsening the disease. The skin barrier is a complex, dynamic structure essential for protecting dogs from environmental challenges. The stratum corneum—the outermost layer of the epidermis—serves as a crucial defense against environmental insults, allergens, and pathogens. In dogs with atopic dermatitis, this barrier often becomes impaired, leading to increased transepidermal water loss (TEWL), greater allergen penetration, and secondary infections. This dysfunction both results from and contributes to the condition, creating a self-perpetuating cycle of barrier disruption, inflammation, and immune dysregulation.

Learning objectives 1. Recognise inflammatory cell types 2. Recognise common skin pathogens 3. Diagnostic test are best for each case 4. Gain experience in interpretation 5. Recognise important artefacts ″The most crucial step towards healing is having the right diagnosis″. While approaching a case, a clinician should follow appropriate steps in a systematic way for accurate diagnosis of dermatological disorders. A careful history is a first step to choose appropriate diagnostic tests.

Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) is the national heritage animal of India. This particular species now exists in 13 Asian countries including India. As per 2017 census, India is home to an estimated figure of 29,964 elephants that is >60% wild population of the globe. Once distributed across the country, now they are squeezed to 14 states grouped in four regions ie., southern (14,612), north-eastern (10,139), east-central (3,128) and northern regions (2,085). There are 2675 captive elephants across different states under both private and government custody. This largest terrestrial mammal is protected under Seclude I species of Indian Wild Life Protection Act, 1972. Both central and state Government are implementing short- and long-term programmes for health and well-being of captive as well as free-range elephants. The Central Government has established an ‘Elephant Cell’ at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun to provide technical inputs to the ministry for strengthening the efforts towards conservation of elephants. Add-on, the ‘Project Elephant’ was launched in 1991-92 in the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change to restore the elephant habitats and reduce their sufferings. Elephant habitats are notified as Elephant Reserves that are basic management units for elephant conservation and managements. A total of 33 Elephant Reserves has been notified in the country. A book titled, ‘Caring for elephants: Managing health and welfare in captivity’ is edited for field officers, veterinary professionals and elephant handlers.

Introduction A complete neurological examination is warranted whenever an equine patient displays signs consistent with neurological disorder or to establish that the horse is neurologically normal (e.g., pre-purchase examination). Neurological examination of equine patient is challenging due to their large size, which prevents veterinarian from using many of the tests used for small animals. The key to a successful neurologic examination is to do the examination in a consistent and organized fashion. It is important to develop a routine, then do it the same way each time. This approach ensures that some parts of the examination are not forgotten and it also increases the consistency of the exam as you examine more number of equine patients. A standardized examination form is a valuable aid in this and can be concise. The goals of the neurologic examination are to determine whether disease of the nervous system exists, to localize the lesion to a particular area of the nervous system, and to describe and record the responses as a baseline for future evaluations. In this paper, a complete neurological examination is described with special emphasis on field conditions.

Introduction Mithun (Bos frontalis), or ‘Gayal’ or ‘Eso’ or ‘Sial’ or ‘Sandong’ or ‘Wei’, is a rare bovine species, exclusively found in the northeastern hill region (NEHR) of India at an altitude of 300-3000 m. It plays an important role in the socio-economic and cultural life of indigenous tribes of Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur and is aptly referred to as the ‘Pride of Northeast India’ (Mukherjee et al. 2019). Besides India, mithun population is distributed to China, Bangladesh, Thailand, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Malaysia. The Indian mithun is a medium- to large-sized majestic ruminant with a characteristic jet-black body, an ash-colored forehead, and ‘white stockings’ on all the limbs. This unique animal has a special preference for salt feeding, is a skilled browser even in steep, hilly terrain, and does not need pasture land like cattle. Mithun is primarily reared under a free range system as an important source of lean meat, rich in amino acids, proteins, PUFA, etc. On September 1, 2023, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) officially certified the mithun as a food animal (Joshi et al., 2021; Lalchamliani et al., 2024; Ramesh et al., 2024). Compared to milk from other species, mithun milk has much larger quantities of fat, lactose, solids-not fat (SNF), calcium, important vitamins A, D, and E, essential amino acids, and polyunsaturated fatty acids (Devi et al., 2023).

Introduction Avian medicine is a rapidly growing field, with an increasing number of exotic bird species being kept as pets. However, the unique anatomy, physiology, and behaviour of these birds present several challenges as well as new opportunities for veterinarians and researchers.Now a day’s birds are gaining popularity over dogs and cats because of various reasons listed below: a. They are more suited in present life style as can be suited well in small spaces. b. They require low maintenance with relative low cost of maintenance and live longer life. c. They form very strong bonds with their owners. Birds can be classified into different families, such as Psittaciformes, Passeriformes, Columbiformes, Piciformes, Anseriformes, Galliformes etc. containing numerous species (>10,000). The first documentation of parrot as a pet was found in Rig Veda, written more than 3000 years ago. Evidence of bird keeping is observed in ancient civilizations of Greece, Rome, China and Egypt. In Greek mythology, Raven (a crow) was mentioned as a symbol of good luck and was associated with God Apollo (God of prophecy). Crows are also considered as ancestors in Hindu mythology and food (pinda) is offered to crows during ritual of paying homage to dead persons. In most of the countries psittacine and passerine birds are preferred as pet birds.

Introduction Canine epilepsy, a prevalent neurological disorder, significantly impacts the quality of life for both dogs and their owners. Traditional anticonvulsant therapies often yield inconsistent outcomes, necessitating the exploration of alternative treatments such as homeopathy [1][2]. Homeopathy’s individualized approach aligns with the principles of unicism, focusing on holistic care tailored to each patient’s unique symptom profile [3]. However, the subjective nature of remedy selection and response assessment poses challenges for practitioners. The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) offers a promising avenue to address these challenges [4]. Predictive models can analyze complex datasets to uncover patterns that guide remedy selection and treatment strategies. This study evaluates the comparative performance of Logistic Regression, Random Forest, and XGBoost in predicting treatment outcomes for canine epilepsy managed with homeopathic remedies.

Introduction Wound is a disruption to the epithelial integrity of the skin, extended in-depth to subcutaneous tissue and other body parts such as ligaments, muscles, blood vessels, nerves, and bone (Robson et al. 2001). An appropriate wound healing is essential for the restoration of disrupted anatomical continuity (Begum, 2000). We have observed increasing interest in research based on traditional medicines of the world in the recent era (Medina-Franco et al. 2013). Traditional and complementary medicine regains popularity not only in developing countries but also in developed countries. Common and known practices across the globe of traditional medicines include Herbal, Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, Iranian, Islamic, Vietnamese, Chinese, Acupuncture, African and other pseudo-medical knowledge (Dorai 2012). According to World Health Organization (WHO), traditional medicine ‘the health practices, approaches, knowledge and beliefs incorporating plant, animal and mineral-based medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises, applied singularly or in combination to treat, diagnose and prevent illnesses or maintain well-being’. Saxena et al. (2013) reported that phytochemicals present in plants are liable for preventing disease and promoting health. Antibiotics used in the treatment of wound infections are now proved to have adverse effects in the human body and in pathogens where resistance is emerging. Attention has, therefore, turned towards extracting biologically active compounds from plant species having wound healing property (Pattanayak and Sunita, 2008).

Introduction As India is the leading global economy with livestock contributing 4.66% in total GVA to Indian Economy (PIB, 2024) and ranks 1st in Milk Production, 2nd in Egg production, 5th in meat production (BAHS, 2024). Being the largest exporter of milk and meat in the world , this has led to the intensification of animal production due to the increasing demand of major livestock products (MLPs), which has led to an increasing overall use of antimicrobials. Antimicrobials are invariably used to preserve animal and public health, but also as growth promoters at a sub-therapeutic level. The overuse and misuse of antibiotics can contribute to antimicrobial resistance. The growing resistance to antimicrobial drugs could reverse the therapeutic benefits; animals’ resistance to antimicrobial drugs, reduces productivity and leads to economic losses. Unwanted antimicrobials residues may be present in products of animal origins, in animal waste contaminating soil and water and the environment. Seventy-five to ninety percent of antimicrobials used in livestock are excreted, mostly unmetabolized. AMR poses a serious threat to the safety and quality of animal origin food, food security and livelihoods. Unhealthy and unproductive animals are no longer able to generate food products of acceptable safety and quality for human consumption and can no longer contribute to income generation. Insufficient standards for residues in animal food products, reduces the livestock sectors potential of access to trade and increases public health risks (https://www.fao.org/antimicrobial-resistance/key-sectors/animal-production/ en/).

By 2050, the global population is projected to reach approximately 9.8 billion, requiring a 70% increase in food production to meet the growing dietary demands. The livestock sector will play a crucial role in addressing this rising need through sustainable animal production, contributing to food security, poverty alleviation, public health, and food safety. To tackle the challenges posed by population growth and to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), technological advancements and innovations will be essential in transforming the food and agriculture sectors. In light of these challenges, Veterinary Services are more critical than ever. They are essential for enhancing livestock health and productivity, ensuring high-quality food that meets safety standards, and mitigating risks associated with animal diseases and public health. Additionally, Veterinary Services must contribute to global efforts in addressing issues such as food security, antimicrobial resistance, climate change, and the depletion of natural resources.