In the years that followed the terms of service of military veterinary surgeons was put on a sounder footing, and systems and regulations were drawn up for the performance of their duties. By the mid-1850s there were sixty-four serving veterinary surgeons, of whom forty-three went with their units to the war in Crimea; however, as with the other military support services involved, lack of co-ordination and proper facilities severely hampered their work and led to criticism. As a result of the war, the Board of Ordnance was abolished and the Army's veterinary service reconfigured.