The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) was founded in 1954 by a group of 11 charter members who saw that together they could direct the focus of equine veterinary medicine.
The association was born during the rapid expansion of the equine industry that followed World War II. The horse now was increasingly in the roles of companion animal and athlete. The demand for veterinary care for the country’s booming horse population was unprecedented, and the veterinarians who gathered for the historic first meeting of the AAEP recognized this unique opportunity.
Today, the AAEP, headquartered in Lexington, Ky., at the Kentucky Horse Park, is the world’s largest professional organization dedicated to equine veterinary medicine, with over 9,000 veterinarians and veterinary students as members.
The AAEP brings together leading veterinarians from the areas of general practice, surgery, reproduction, sports medicine, research and academia in the pursuit of a common mission: to protect the health and welfare of the horse.
