Born in the Netherlands in 1960, and growing up a foster child in a little village in the south, Janek Vluggen grew up with swimming, horse riding windsurfing and sailing.

To be able to ride horses -being 12 years of age-, he drove his bicycle several times a week 40 miles to clean stalls so he could ride horses as a favor in return. Horses that nobody liked or wanted to ride as a result of so called bad behavior. It was his first encounter with troubled horses. With his patience, perseverance and riding skills he learned very early in life that most horses were either scared or in pain, and it made him finally able to successfully bring one of these supposedly bad horses back to the racetrack.

After graduating from highschool he studied five years at the Dutch Academy for Physiotherapy, part of the South Netherlands University, with Dr. H. Koolen, one of the early godfathers and founders of the old school fysiotherapy in the Netherlands.

After stages of gathering experience, in an ER station, a geriatric clinic, working in Switzerland ( a revalidation clinic,  where he also started several gymnastik and exercise self aiding groups for the local community, which as till today still exist.) a neurological and psychiatric hospital in Germany for several years, obtaining a psychology degree, and developing his skills in the neurological concepts of PNF, Janda, Voijta and Bobath, Janek Vluggen started his own private practice for physical therapy in Baesweiler Germany where he employed ten employees working in the neurological, post -surgery, post traumatic, pediatric and neonatal field for eighteen years.

Within a decade he established the largest existing osteoporosis self- aiding group in Europe, the ‘German osteoporosis self- aiding groups and research association ( Deutsche Verband der osteoporose Selbsthilfe Gruppen und Wissenschaftliche Untersuchung) starting out with two of his patients, and by the time he sold his practice, with 200000 members, trained by 4000 physical therapists on weekly basis under his responsibility nationwide.

In the same period he managed and treated many high ranked athletes from primary league soccer teams ( allemania Aachen, Roda JC Kerkrade, MVV Maastricht). He established a support and training program for and through the ‘Deutsche Volkshochschule’, the German Public University for pregnant women and their newborn babies.

It was in this time period he started studying human osteopathy at the International Academy of Osteopathy in Ghent Belgium as a five years monthly modular study, finalized with an exam before an international committee and a scientific thesis.

Janek graduated with honors with a published thesis about the relation of the mobility of the abdominal diaphragm and the vascularization in the upper limbs.

It was during his osteopathy study that Janek Vluggen met Pascal Evrard and since both therapists were active riders, very soon they both investigated the possibilities to their own horses and reported back to one another stimulating each other to proceed in their pioneering.

Contacts with the early French school and the University of Liege in Belgium and in specific with Professor Didier Sertain Phd. DVM, supported the two pioneers to research their results.

Time after time it was confirmed that the osteopathic principles were applicable, repeatable, and transferable to the equine, and were establishing preferable long lasting changes in homeostasis and balance where longtime veterinary applications were suppressing symptoms and needed continuous repetition. A complete new paradigm in animal science unveiled.

In order to better understand and be precise and true in their conclusions, both Janek Vluggen as well as Pascal Evrard studied with Professor Didier Sertain the complete anatomy, neurology and physiology curriculum of the veterinary university of Liege for three years. During this period osteopathic techniques were adapted and made applicable to the horse.

The equine osteopathic students of FISEO and Pascal’s widow asked Janek to pick up the torch and continue the education of veterinarians in equine osteopathy. He now started teaching simultaneously in San Marcos Texas and in Europe.

Janek was introduced to Dr. LuAnn Groves DVM in San Marcos. Dr. LuAnn Groves, understanding and recognizing the unique importance, art and significant skills of Janek, offered him to start teaching from her clinic in San Marcos and establish an educational institute.

Janek Vluggen was invited to lecture about equine osteopathy at the annual conference of the AHVMA (the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association) in Ogden Utah, and again a year later in Reno; he presented at the largest veterinary student conference in Columbus Ohio and at the annual Pfizer conference in Oklahoma City, and many national and International conferences in Europe.

In 2005 he was asked to join up and work with the veterinary medical team of the British Olympic dressage team that since then has won the European Championship In Windsor, the World Equestrian Games in Kentucky and the team Gold medal and individual gold, silver and bronze medal at the latest Olympic games in London.

Janek has been traveling between the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe ever since and educated over 500 veterinarians, chiropractors, osteopaths, physical therapists and equine bodyworkers worldwide in the principles of applied Equine Osteopathy through The Vluggen Institute.

In the last decade, the demand for this paradigm has been recognized by the horse community and veterinarians becoming rather popular. This increased demand and popularity resulted in an unforeseen problem: non educated individuals were representing themselves as equine osteopaths and were practicing on horses in manners that did not represent the principles of osteopathy as they were taught at the Vluggen Institute and all the other educational institutes in Europe. There was no legal protection nor recognition of the Equine Osteopathy as such anywhere in the world.

Janek Vluggen was asked as the foremost outpost, to create transparency and show the veterinarians and horse community who was or who wasn’t educated. After meetings with several veterinary as well as human osteopathic associations and educational institutions in Europe, Janek Vluggen created and trademarked the wordmark “Equine Osteopath EDO”  (Equine Diplomat Osteopath) to only be used by graduates of standardized equine osteopathy educational institutions.

To support this a professional International Association for Equine Osteopaths was founded out of the graduates from the different  equine osteopathic educational institutes. ICREO, DIPO, Equi- Libre in Europe and the Vluggen Institute in Europe as well as in the USA.

From the association members, a code of ethics was written and the standards for Equine Osteopathy and the Equine Osteopathy education, according to the internationally accepted CAN- MED model, to develop a standardized high level equine osteopathy education and profession worldwide. All controlled by the International Register for Equine Osteopaths founded in 2011 with committees of complaint, appeal, enforcement and postgraduate educational accreditation.

The rights for using the wordmark “Equine Osteopath EDO”, have been transferred by notary act to the International Registry for Equine Osteopaths and are no longer exclusive for, in the possession of or under the influence of the Vluggen Institute, as it was meant to be from the start.