About Us
Aim of the college
The primary objective of
the College shall be to advance health oriented bovine production management in
the herd context in Europe and increase the competency of those who practice in
this field by establishing guidelines and standards of training for postgraduate
education and experience prerequisite to become a specialist in the speciality
of bovine health management; examining and authenticating veterinarians as
specialists in bovine herd health management to serve the veterinary patient,
its owner, the consumer of products originating from the bovine and the public
in general, by providing expert care for cattle; encouraging research and other
contributions to the science and practice of bovine herd health management
including; animal husbandry, internal medicine, surgery, obstetrics and
reproductive management, as they relate to the epidemiology, pathogenesis,
diagnosis, therapy, prevention, and control of diseases directly or indirectly
affecting bovidae and the maintenance of healthy productive cattle herds. Bovine
health management also includes, at the level of the animal, those aspects of
bovine diseases and bovine derived pathogens that impact on quality and safety
of bovine products and gives special consideration to herd health and
production, production systems and targets and the management of cattle
populations; promoting communication and dissemination of knowledge related to
the above.
Current situation
At the moment (01/03/2021) the number of diplomates is 227, and the number of residents that are carrying out a standard or an alternative residency programme is 65.
Historical background
The European College of Bovine Health Management (ECBHM) was provisionally
recognised as a College by the European Board of Veterinary Specialisation
(EBVS) on October 20th 2003. However, the genesis of the ECBHM began much
earlier upon the initiative of prof. Baumgartner (Vienna) and prof. Klee
(Munich) at a meeting in Sydney on 7th July 1998 during the World Buiatrics
Conference. This meeting marked the beginning of a campaign to establish a
European specialist college in the field of buiatrics with the working name
‘European College of Cattle Health and Production.’ The establishment of this
working group on specialisation in buiatrics in Europe was a response to
significant changes in cattle production with increasing unit sizes, more
intensive production systems, coupled with increasing consumer demand for safe
food enhanced animal welfare and environmental protection. These changes had
resulted in a demand for change in a predominant professional role of cattle
vets reacting to problems (‘fire-brigade service’) and treating individuals or
small groups of animals to individuals proactive in the management and
healthcare of the herd. A provisional organising committee (POC) was
subsequently established on 24th November 1998 in Paris. The POC (Drs.
Baumgartner, Lekeux, Navetat, Klee, Noordhuizen and Schelcher) worked
towards establishing a European College and seeking accreditation by the EBVS.
Subsequent meetings of the POC as well as invited guests were held in the
following years. However, initial attempts at achieving recognition by EBVS were
unsuccessful but the POC decided to continue with the effort of convincing EBVS
of the need for a College in bovine health management. In this context, a meeting held in Hannover on 22nd August 2002, attended by Drs.
Barrett, Baumgartner, Bradley, Cannas da Silva, Eddy, Enemark, Gentile,
Jorgensen, Lekeux, Nuss, Klee, Rollin, Schelcher, Steiner and Szenci, was decisive for the final decision. This meeting was attended also by invited
guests from the already established European College of Animal Reproduction (Drs. Hässig
and de Kruif). The Hannover meeting, in fact, confirmed the resolve to continue
with the ideal of creating a European college of bovine production medicine, and
the POC began creating a constitution and a training brochure with the goal of
achieving provisional recognition by the EBVS. These efforts were finally
rewarded when on October 20th 2003, Professor Wolfgang Klee received a letter
from the President of EBVS informing him that the ECBHM had been successful in
achieving provisional recognition as a result of an electronic vote. The first
meeting of the Board of the ECBHM was held in the Pasteur Institute, Paris on
6th November 2003.
The college founders pictured in Paris on the 6th of
November 2003