Andrew Taylor Still (6-8-1828, Virginia, U.S.— 12-12-1917, Kirksville, Missouri, U.S.) was the founder of osteopathic medicine. He started as a physician and surgeon, but after losing his wife and 4 of his children, he started to question the traditional medical practices. Still concluded that medications, surgery and other traditional therapeutic practices often caused more harm than good. So, Still went searching for new and better methods of treatment.

Still discovered that by manipulating the musculoskeletal system, so that it would be properly aligned, would lead to good health, while an out-of-alignment system would result in poor health and ultimately disease. Bones, muscles, and joints can be manipulated and adjusted to improve a patient’s health, improving circulation so the body could heal itself, without the use of drugs.

A. T. Still was the founder of the first Osteopathic Medical School, the American School of Osteopathy (now A.T. Still University), in Kirksville, Missouri.

The founders of Equine Osteopathy are Janek Vluggen and Pascal Evrard, both started as human Osteopaths. 

Since they both had a passion for horses, they translated and adapted the osteopathic techniques of human Osteopathy to meet the special needs the equine.

After developing the technics for the horse, Janek Vluggen started the Vluggen Institute to pass his knowledge.