JAVMA News

DOI:
https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.251.7.746
Volume/Issue:
Volume 251: Issue 7
Online Publication Date:
01 Oct 2017
Full access
Sign In Reprints and Permissions

PEOPLE to PEOPLE

AVMA Convention attendees keep up-to-date with CE and friends

d1815860e108

Attendees at the AVMA Convention 2017 Veterinary Technician Appreciation Event enjoy petting dog sharks at the Indianapolis Zoo Oceans Building (above). Wet labs (top right) remain a popular continuing education option at the convention, while a virtual reality station (bottom right) is a hit in the exhibit hall. (Photos by Matt Alexandre Photography)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

By Malinda Larkin

Veterinarians, veterinary students, veterinary technicians, and veterinary staff looking to bone up on how to treat backyard chickens or honeybees, improve workplace morale and team building, or stay up-to-date on the latest changes in telemedicine or drug compounding found relevant continuing education and much more during AVMA Convention 2017, held July 21–25 in Indianapolis.

The event attracted more than 7,300 attendees, including at least 3,600 veterinarians, nearly 400 veterinary students, and 470 or so veterinary technicians and veterinary technology students. It featured 800 CE sessions from leading industry experts, a wide variety of hands-on laboratories, and 300-plus exhibitors showcasing their products and services, allowing attendees to stay ahead of the curve on the latest veterinary trends and advancements.

Interactive learning

The Association's Convention Education Program Committee continued to expand continuing education options for attendees. For the first time, the convention featured poster presentations in the exhibit hall on a variety of topics by practitioners and veterinary students. These were well-received, especially during times the authors were present so attendees could interact and ask more detailed questions, said Dr. Christine O'Rourke, chair of the program committee. Also, back by popular demand, the Meet the Experts roundtable was expanded, with over 40 experts present.

“The session was very well-attended and received excellent feedback from attendees,” Dr. O'Rourke said. “As one attendee commented: ‘How often do you get to sit down at a table and chat with Dr. Marty Becker?'”

Dr. O'Rourke continued, “As veterinarians take on ever-expanding roles in animal health, the AVMA Convention aims to keep pace through the CE offered. This was evidenced by a sold-out honeybee health field workshop. CEPC also planned continuing education sessions to pull together topics pertinent to all practitioners but especially relevant to the surrounding region. This year, that included a CE track addressing urban farming.”

If bones could talk

The convention also had renowned paleontologist Paul Sereno, PhD, a National Geographic explorer and professor at the University of Chicago, give a keynote presentation that explored how the history of the animal world relates to modern veterinary medicine.

Dr. Sereno talked about how human culture began in earnest when people began to live in large groups and domesticate animals. As a result, crowd diseases and zoonotic diseases developed. Most crowd diseases have an Old World origin dating to Neolithic times, Dr. Sereno said. Examples he gave were influenza, measles, mumps, and smallpox, which probably or possibly reached humans from domestic animals; hepatitis B, from apes; and plague and typhus, from rodents. Four of these diseases are of unknown origin.

Disease agents have mutated and evolved like everything else that is living, he said. Researchers looking at the graves of people who died in the 1300s found that the plague variant seen today, which is making a comeback in some places such as the Southwest, is not the same as the variant that caused bubonic plague—better known as the Black Death—which wiped out a large portion of the humans in Europe during the 14th century. And that variant was likely not the same as the one that may have contributed to the downfall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century.

“It's revolutionizing what we're learning about the plague, about leishmaniasis, which is shared with our companion animals, about tuberculosis,” Dr. Sereno said. “It's revolutionizing the evolutionary history for one health.”

Coming up next year

AVMA Convention 2018 will take place July 13–17 in Denver.

Michael Wilson, director of the AVMA Convention and Meeting Planning Division, joined the AVMA staff right before the 2017 convention (see JAVMA, Sept. 1, page 488). He felt the convention was successful and that Indianapolis represented itself well as a host city.

“With over 7,300 attendees, our numbers were down from what we projected. However, I feel that the overall consensus from Board members, exhibitors, and attendees was very positive and (that they were) pleasantly surprised as to what the city has to offer,” Wilson said.

“I am looking forward to 2018 and hoping to bring more creativity into the event. There will be a big push to increase the attendance numbers, using the excitement of being in Denver. We also want to drive attendance by focusing on offerings that will appeal to millennials.”

Dr. O'Rourke said the program committee plans to continue the Meet the Experts roundtable as well expand the poster sessions and give attendees additional opportunities to interact with poster authors. The program committee also is looking at ways to allow attendees to learn through a greater variety of methods, including expanded workshop opportunities and additional hands-on laboratories.

Popular CE sessions during AVMA Convention 2017

  • • “Medical Cannabinoids: Prayer or Prophecy”

Honeybee Health and Husbandry Sessions:

  • • “Beekeeping Basics”

  • • “Bee Hive Inspection”

  • • “Honeybee Health and Diseases”

  • • “VFDs and Prescriptions for Honeybees: Putting It All Together”

Orthopedic and Soft Tissue Surgery Sessions

  • • “Management of Cranial Cruciate Ligament Insufficiency in Dogs

  • • “Gastric Dilatation-Volvulus: The Clock is Ticking”

  • • “A Comprehensive Review of the Orthopedic Examination”

  • • “Pelvic Fractures: Conservative and Surgical Management Options”

  • • “Canine Hip Dysplasia: Diagnosis and Treatment Options”

d1815860e222

Renowned paleontologist Paul Sereno, PhD, a National Geographic explorer, talks in his keynote presentation about how human culture began in earnest when people began to live in large groups and domesticate animals. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

AVMA donates $100,000 to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts

The AVMA announced Aug. 31 that it has donated $100,000 toward Hurricane Harvey relief efforts. The funds will be allocated via grants administered by the Association's charitable arm, the American Veterinary Medical Foundation.

“This is a way for the AVMA to help our members, while simultaneously helping animals and their owners get the care they need in their time of need,” said Dr. Michael Whitehair, chair of the AVMA Board of Directors, in the announcement. He said the donation was made with the only condition being that the money go strictly to Harvey-related grants.

The first coordinated effort for animal search and rescue began Aug. 30 in the Houston area as the storm continued to move from Texas across Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. It is expected that more than a million animals have been impacted by the hurricane, which already had displaced 600,000 people by the end of August, with a million others under voluntary evacuation. Animal shelters and veterinary hospitals, most of which were already at capacity, worked overtime to accommodate an influx of animals.

“In addition to providing financial support, the AVMA is playing an important role in helping to disseminate information within the veterinary community, between the veterinary community and organizations providing animal and public assistance, and to animal owners and advocates so that those who need help get the right support as quickly as possible,” Dr. Whitehair said.

The AVMA has been in constant contact with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and is a member of the National Animal Rescue and Sheltering Coalition. Association staff and volunteers participated in daily NARSC conference calls to plan and coordinate the animal-related response to the storm and also reached out to the veterinary medical associations and veterinary colleges in the states affected by Harvey. In addition, AVMA members and industry partners across the profession contacted the Association asking how best to assist Harvey's victims. As a way to connect those in need with those wanting to help, the AVMA created a special webpage at http://jav.ma/HarveyAVMA with links to resource materials, hotlines, and companies offering in-kind products.

d1815860e255

On Aug. 24, Harvey intensified into a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. The storm made landfall in Texas as a Category 4 storm. (Courtesy of NOAA/NASA GOES Project)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

“Our thoughts and hearts are with the people affected by Hurricane Harvey,” said Dr. Jan K. Strother, a member of the AVMA Board and chair of the AVMF board of directors, in the announcement about the Association's $100,00 donation. “As the charitable arm of the AVMA, the AVMF has the capacity to directly aid those who are providing shelter and care for displaced pets, equids, food animals, zoo animals, and wildlife. By working together to assist our veterinary communities in need, we hope to ease the heartache caused by Hurricane Harvey and restore some type of normalcy as quickly as possible.”

Individuals wishing to support the efforts of veterinarians on the ground directly can consider donating to the AVMF. Donors should visit www.avmf.org/donate and use the code “Disaster Relief” to designate money for reimbursement grants, which assist veterinarians who are providing services and shelter in the impacted areas.

Preventing prescription errors

Associations for veterinarians, pharmacists working to reduce conflicts

By Greg Cima

Veterinary and pharmacy associations are trying to improve communication and avoid conflicts involving drug substitutions and pre-scriber identification.

Dr. Jennifer Buur, an assistant professor at the Western University of Health Sciences College of Veterinary Medicine and a veterinary clinical pharmacologist, suggested that veterinarians tailor their prescriptions for pharmacists and that pharmacists treat animal patients with the same care they give to pregnant human patients. In a session this July at AVMA Convention 2017, she and Maureen Schanck, PharmD, professional affairs manager for the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, described the rules governing pharmacies and methods veterinarians can use to improve understanding between the professions.

Dr. Buur, who also is a former small animal practitioner, said her biggest fear had been that a pharmacist would dispense a drug different than the one prescribed, which did happen and led to the death of a dog that was her patient. Dr. Schanck noted that pharmacists are prohibited from changing prescription drugs without checking with prescribers unless that switch is from a brand-name drug to a generic equivalent, and many pharmacists will consult with the prescribers in such cases, anyway.

Any other change, Dr. Schanck said, is an error.

Dr. Buur stressed that pharmacists are well-meaning, and changes often are intended to save clients money. She also said she has had conversations with pharmacists who, when told cats cannot tolerate ibuprofen, were visibly upset about the prospect that they could have harmed an animal.

Dr. Schanck said many pharmacists have received no college courses on veterinary medicine, although such courses are becoming available as electives. But pharmacists are interested in learning, and those who dispense veterinary medicines should have veterinary drug references.

Dr. Buur encouraged veterinarians to learn how to write prescriptions that use terms common in human dispensing, abandoning terms such as “SID” and “QD” and replacing them with instructions that are written out as, for example, “give tablet by mouth every 24 hours” or abbreviated as “q24h.”

Dr. Buur also noted that although many pharmacies have stopped asking for Drug Enforcement Agency registration numbers for prescriptions for drugs other than controlled substances, some still request National Provider Identifier numbers. These are issued in human health care by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services—a source of frustration for at least several veterinarians in the audience who said pharmacists told them that company software would not let them fill a prescription without an NPI.

Dr. Schanck suggested that veterinarians’ prescriptions include statements making it clear that such information is not missing but, rather, is not required for nonhuman patients. Her association also is working with pharmacy companies and disseminating information in efforts to avoid such problems.

Dr. Buur also suggested adding statements to prescriptions as to whether substitutions are permitted and training clinic staff to handle calls from pharmacists who have questions.

Dr. Schanck suggested calling pharmacists when errors occur and giving them another chance if they admit to a mistake. Veterinarians also can contact the parent corporation or state pharmacy board.

In addition to ensuring that pharmacists have veterinary drug references, Dr. Buur suggested giving pharmacies information on common adverse effects, tips for administering oral medications, and lists of after-hours animal hospitals, all of which can help clients.

When should a pet be allowed to suffer pain?

By Susan C. Kahler

In his line of work as owner of Compassionate Veterinary Hospice in Chicago, Dr. Amir Shanan comes in contact daily with people who hold commonly held ideas about pain in companion animals, such as: We shouldn't let animals suffer or be in pain. Animals hide pain. The most important determinants of animal quality of life are physical pain and appetite.

Those notions are false, he said during a talk July 21 at AVMA Convention 2017 in Indianapolis on animal cognition and ethical end-of-life decision-making. For one thing, an animal's quality of life cannot be measured solely in terms of values such as blood pressure, respiratory rate, or tumor growth.

“Emphasis on pain and suffering overshadows consideration of an animal's capacity for joy. Most suffering is perfectly consistent with life going on,” Dr. Shanan said, adding that when considering end-of-life decisions for companion animals, “The real question is: Is the animal suffering so much it's better off dead? How will we know?”

One tool he shared was the “4-box method” for end-of-life clinical decision-making, as described on page 59 of the 2017 book “Hospice and Palliative Care for Companion Animals” he co-authored with Jessica Pierce, PhD, and Dr. Tamara Shearer. The partitions are for clinical considerations, QOL, individual patient preferences, and contextual considerations. Recognizing patient preferences gives the animal a voice. How strong is the patient's will to live, for example?

“We need to listen to what an animal is telling us,” Dr. Shanan said. Recent research suggests individual animals have preferences they communicate, and they have different abilities to cope. Much of the brain function research has been done in live animals, which have brain anatomic regions similar to humans'. Animals have internal emotional lives, short- and long-term memories, and some ability to plan for the future, he added.

He referred to Dr. Franklin McMillan's research that animal QOL can be influenced only by things that matter to the animal, and cited researcher F. Wemelsfelder, PhD, who wrote that assessment of QOL in animals requires knowledge of species-specific behavior, experience observing and interacting with animals in different contexts, and willingness to communicate with them as sentient beings.

In human health care, the four commonly accepted principles of ethics are patient autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice. Autonomy can come into conflict with beneficence when patients disagree with what doctors believe to be in the patients’ best interest. The classical emphasis had been on beneficence—interpreted as “the doctor knows best”—until the late ‘70s, with the pendulum moving toward patient-centered care.

Can patient-centered care be applied to animals?

Decisions are always made by humans, presumably with the intention of doing what is best for the animal. Sometimes the client and veterinarian see a pet's best interests differently because of differences in their respective assessments, expectations of how the treatment options would change the animal's QOL, or value placed on an animal's life.

In those situations, veterinarians should engage in collaborative decision-making with clients to determine the best course of action, Dr. Shanan said. “Our duty is to support the client's choice, except in extreme situations, such as convenience euthanasia or a prolonged, severe intractable (disease).”

d1815860e351

New to this year's SAVMA House of Delegates meeting, student delegates took a page out of the AVMA House of Delegates’ book and hosted a Veterinary Student Information Forum. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Setting students up for success

SAVMA meeting features leadership panel, increased grant funding

By Malinda Larkin

Navigating the world after graduation may be bumpy at times, but Dr. Caroline Cantner, AVMA assistant director for student initiatives in the Western region, advised students to embrace it when the time comes.

“Be humble, but know yourself. Balance authenticity with (respect for others). You'll get to the point of changing the world eventually,” she said.

Dr. Cantner was part of a leadership panel held during the Student AVMA House of Delegates meeting, July 22–24 in Indianapolis, during which leaders from across the profession answered questions. One student asked for advice on involving more students in organized veterinary medicine, especially when it's seen as adding more to their plate when they're already busy.

Dr. Lori Teller, District VIII representative on the AVMA Board of Directors, recommended emphasizing the wellness aspect of it. “Organized veterinary medicine allows you to build a support system within the profession. It's never too soon to start building that,” she said.

Dr. Andrew Maccabe, CEO of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, said being involved in a professional fraternity during veterinary college gave him lots of opportunities to meet people outside his own veterinary class. Plus, “Peer-to-peer leadership is important. We all have the ability to influence people, whether we know it or not, and it can be positive or negative. You're all in positions of leadership; this is your opportunity to share that with other students. There's also that sense of empowerment: By becoming involved, you become part of the solution and are not just identifying the problem.”

Dr. Bridget Heilsberg, president of the Women's Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative, challenged students to make time to look for opportunities. “Change the home page on your browser to something you want to be involved in. Mine is the AVMA. That way, I can see announcements or calls for volunteers. Something that small has kept me in touch with what's going on,” she said.

Dr. Susan Little, a professor of parasitology at the Oklahoma State University Center for Veterinary Health, suggested starting with one step at a time. “Local VMAs are hungry for leadership. It's almost universal that they need people,” she said. “I also know students who have set up externships and first jobs based on people they met on AVMA committees that have student representatives. It's worth it to talk to professors, and they'll rearrange tests so you can go to an AVMA committee meeting.”

Another student asked how, after she graduates, she can be a leader in her workplace without stepping on toes.

Dr. Teller said, “For the first few months, just learn. You know the science of veterinary medicine more than you will at any other time in your life, but not the art of veterinary medicine. I'd suggest training support staff. Managers are overburdened, and if you can take over staff training, that would be helpful. The same goes for a clinic's social media presence. These are places you can show leadership in the practice pretty soon out of school.”

Dr. Heilsberg also suggested pointing out ways you can help improve the practice's efficiency. “Think like a practice owner,” she said.

Dr. Maccabe said, “Focus on your job, do it and do it well before you talk to other people about doing other things. It's key to read people to know where they are.”

On to business

During the business portion of the meeting, one focus of the SAVMA HOD was on revamping and restructuring its seven committees. At the budget meeting, the committees successfully requested $15,000 more from reserves for grant money for this school year, hoping that larger scholarships would draw more applicants and make a bigger difference, said Jeff Olivarez, SAVMA president.

d1815860e403

Above: A leadership panel held during the Student AVMA House of Delegates meeting touches on topics such as navigating the world after graduation, including how to be a leader in one's workplace without stepping on toes. Dr. Lori Teller (standing), District VIII representative on the AVMA Board of Directors, discusses why it's important to get involved in organized veterinary medicine. Below: Candidates for positions on the SAVMA Executive Board give speeches with puppies in their arms. Seen here is Steven Hanes, senior SAVMA delegate from University of Pennsylvania. (Photos by R. Scott Nolen)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Also on the topic of funding, the ALL for Students program—with ALL being an acronym for Achieving, Leading, and Learning—announced it had secured funding for the 2017–18 school year and presented the students with a $336,000 check, thanks to the AVMA, SAVMA, AVMA PLIT, and AVMA Life, which sponsor the program. This money is available through a grant application of up to $8,500 for each of the 37 chapters represented in the SAVMA House of Delegates, to be used for events and meetings that foster professional development, community outreach, and student wellness.

Olivarez said, “Our proposed bylaws and HOD manual changes were a bit light this year, except for the (student chapters of the AVMA) to SAVMA transition. Since we have been talking of this for a while now, the delegates had little to discuss on the topic and were eager to get it passed. The transition will hopefully take place later this year or early next year, but an official date won't be set until talking with each school's SCAVMA president,” Olivarez said.

New to this year's SAVMA meeting, student delegates took a page out of the AVMA House of Delegates’ book and hosted a Veterinary Student Information Forum. “A survey was sent out earlier this summer asking what topics our members think we should focus on nationally. We received great feedback, with a wide variety of topics ranging from internship and residency regulations to career opportunities in public health,” Olivarez said.

The Student Executive Board will use the topics discussed to guide future endeavors.

The SAVMA HOD held a joint meeting with the SCAVMA presidents again this year. They broke out into roundtables and had the groups discuss four topics: incorporating wellness in the fourth year, promoting public good and global animal health, creating a SAVMA mobile app, and collaborating with other organizations.

The meeting also saw a number of guests, but none were as well received as the puppies from the AVMA Political Action Committee.

“Oftentimes in these big meetings, people get bogged down by the procedure and formality of it all. The puppies provided a nice distraction. Our candidates even gave their speeches with a puppy in their arms. Not only was it adorable, but I really think it helps calm their nerves because all their speeches were fantastic, and no one came off as nervous. It was a true testament to the human-animal bond, and now we are looking into having pups at all our meetings,” Olivarez said.

The SAVMA Executive Board welcomed the following newly elected members: Ashika Seshadri (St. George's ‘19), treasurer-elect; Whitney Patz (Lincoln Memorial ‘19), secretary-elect; Stephie-Anne Duliepre (Cornell University ‘19), cultural outreach officer-elect; and Kyndel Lann (Midwestern ‘19), The Vet Gazette editor–elect.

The next meeting of the SAVMA HOD will take place at the 2018 SAVMA Symposium March 15–17, hosted by the University of Pennsylvania.

Screwworm infestation went unreported for months

Signs of screwworm infestation were reportedly seen in Florida wildlife and domesticated animals months before a biologist reported infestation to the state.

Dr. Diane Kitchen, veterinarian manager for bovine programs for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, said in a presentation at AVMA Convention 2017 that the first signs of the New World screwworm infestation in the Florida Keys appeared in wildlife in July 2016 as myiasis in Key deer, an endangered subspecies of white-tailed deer. In the ensuing months, veterinarians began to see signs of infestation in both owned and stray dogs and cats.

At least 20 infested deer in the National Key Deer Refuge had been euthanized by Oct. 3, 2016, when the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed the disease was present.

Following an effort that included releasing about 190 million sterile flies and conducting 17,000 inspections of pets and livestock, some of which were inspected multiple times, the USDA declared the pest eradicated March 23, Dr. Kitchen said. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimated about 135 Key deer were killed by the infestation, reducing the population to about 740.

Screwworms are named for their larvae, which eat the living flesh of animals. They become screwworm flies, which target wounds as egg-laying sites.

The U.S. eradicated self-sustaining screwworm populations in 1966. The U.S. and Panama maintain a sterile fly barrier at the Colombia border, keeping the flies from spreading northward from South America.

Dr. Kitchen said that releasing sterile male flies is effective in eradicating screwworms because each female screwworm fly mates only once. The effort in the Keys also involved administering treatment and preventive medication to thousands of Key deer.

Dr. Kitchen said it was lucky that the screwworm infestation occurred in an area with physical boundaries that allowed isolation of infested animals and contained minimal livestock populations. Even so, direct costs of the infestation exceeded $5 million, and indirect costs included impacts on trade.

The pets and other domesticated animals that became infested were generally those kept outdoors and those receiving less-than-ideal care. She also noted that the origin of the infestation remains to be determined, and that a better screwworm DNA library is needed.

Indy snapshots

Featured are photo highlights from AVMA Convention 2017 in Indianapolis, where for four days in July, fun and learning went hand in hand.

d1815860e479

Clockwise from top left: (A) Gin Blossoms, the ‘90s band famous for “Hey Jealousy” and “Found Out About You,” headline the AVMA Concert sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim. (B) The American Veterinary Medical Foundation charity event is where you go for food and entertainment. (C) 2016–17 AVMA President Tom Meyer speaks at the AVMA Keynote Brunch sponsored by Hill's Pet Nutrition. (D) Attendees network with convention speakers and AVMA leaders during the Meet-the-Experts Roundtable. (E) The AVMA Wheel of Well-being identifies activities that help improve the well-being of all members of the veterinary health care team. (F) Young veterinary professionals enjoy an evening in their honor at the NCAA Hall of Champions. (Photos by Matt Alexandre Photography and R. Scott Nolen)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Securing food by aiding animals

By Greg Cima

Dr. René Carlson said veterinarians need to be louder about the value of animal-source foods.

Dr. Carlson, who is president of the World Veterinary Association, also leads the AVMA Committee on International Veterinary Affairs, which she said is trying to decide how veterinarians can use their expertise to alleviate the food insecurity afflicting 800 million people and, in doing so, “transform the world.”

She made those comments as the first lecturer in the AVMA Convention 2017 Global Health Summit, a continuing education series focused this year on food security.

Insufficient nutrition is an underlying factor in the deaths of about 2.6 million children and 100,000 mothers worldwide each year, she said. Within the U.S., about 42 million people lack food security.

Animal-source foods provide essential nutrition and economic stability, and veterinarians can help by improving animal health and well-being beyond the industrialized countries, she said.

Dr. Carlson said the AVMA committee is planning to improve communication and wants to expand professional curricula and job opportunities to extend veterinarians’ work into needed areas. But, for now, the committee members are considering how to accomplish those goals.

In another lecture of the summit, Dr. David Sherman, a project manager for the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), described the devastation to food security and livelihoods caused by peste des petits ruminants, a deadly viral disease of small ruminants, as well as the potential he has seen for veterinary paraprofessional programs to combat such diseases.

Dr. Sherman said people in more than 300 million of the most impoverished households, most of them in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, depend on sheep or goats. PPR is a threat as well as the focus of an eradication campaign by the OIE and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, which have set a goal of eliminating the disease by 2030.

PPR was among diseases rampant in Afghanistan when Dr. Sherman arrived in that country in 2004. Livestock populations were later further depleted by war and drought.

The U.S. Agency for International Development provided $12 million for a 2.5-year project to train and equip local veterinary paraprofessionals. About 400 of them were working in Afghanistan as of 2006, making a living by charging fees for services such as deworming and vaccination. They administered about 16.5 million vaccinations during the project, Dr. Sherman said, and many currently remain in business.

Dr. Sherman said the FAO has since had success working with those paraprofessionals on controlling PPR in Afghanistan, plus those workers have become a national disease-reporting network.

Animal handling, through an animal's eyes

By Susan C. Kahler

“It's only recently that we've started thinking of animal handling from the animal's perspective,” said Dr. Kersti Seksel, an Australian veterinary behaviorist, at her July 23 talk on animal handling at AVMA Convention 2017 in Indianapolis.

Veterinary clinics are noisy, and animals’ hearing is at least four times as sensitive as people's, she said. Other stressors for animals include being outside their territory, encountering other animals and new smells, and being handling by strangers.

Behavior is influenced by genetic predisposition, learning, and environment. “We tend to think of these as silos, but it's a combination of all three. We can influence all of those,” Dr. Seksel said.

Dr. Seksel described the “traffic light” of behavioral emotional levels developed by pediatrician Michael McDowell. The green light denotes a low state of emotional arousal. Yellow-light behavior is more reactive and variable. The red light indicates fight-or-flight behavior, Dr. Seksel said; it is reactive, self-protective, and unpredictable.

She suggests that clinic staff members ask themselves why they use the handling practices they do, whether it's scruffing a cat or muzzling a dog. Use of gloves and towels for restraint is questionable. “It's a real welfare concern we're doing this,” Dr. Seksel said.

“Just because we can, should we do it? Just because we've always done it, it doesn't have to be the same now,” she said.

If a towel must be used for restraint, she advises practicing on a stuffed animal, then a calm animal, and then restraining the difficult one. She recommends the late Dr. Sophia Yin's publications on low-stress handling, restraint, and behavior modification.

Veterinary staff members must be aware of their own body language, voice volume, and scent. Dr. Seksel said animals’ sense of smell is a lot better than that of humans. A dog's sense of smell is at least 1,000 times as sensitive as that of humans.

Personal space is another consideration. The four F's—fight, flight, freeze, and fiddle (the last a normal behavior, out of context)—are an animal's distance-increasing signals. Moving slowly and quietly is important. “I would love to see veterinarians and veterinary technicians glide around the room,” she said.

“Take time for the courtesies,” she said. Let the animal approach you. Ignore the animal the first few moments, or approach the animal slowly, using a slightly curved path. Take breaks during handling, and break eye contact with the patient.

She rewards patients with tiny treats when they arrive and when anything is being done, even before anesthesia.

“Muzzles, you have to teach an animal from the get-go,” she said. In puppy class, she has the dog eat tiny treats from a plastic cup to accustom it to having its nose in a confined space. An open-basket muzzle allows a treat to be offered through the side.

Allow adequate time for animals with handling issues; perhaps schedule a double appointment. Canine or feline pheromones in collars, sprays, or diffusers can be helpful. In advance of a visit, stressed animals can be given medications such as gabapentin, diazepam, or trazodone. Sedation is an option for seriously stressed patients.

Dr. Seksel said that benzodiazepines can be very useful because of their anxiolytic as well as anterograde amnesic effects. If an animal does have a bad experience at the veterinary clinic, she said, “We should think about using benzo (diazepines) to block their memory, so it's not so hard for them at their next visit.”

Congress looking to increase cost of student loans

Fix the Debt initiative continues advocacy efforts

By Malinda Larkin

Gina Luke, an assistant director of the AVMA Governmental Relations Division in Washington, D.C., warns of potential cuts to federal student aid programs and further increases in the cost of student borrowing that could take effect as soon as award year 2018–19.

Luke was speaking during a panel discussion on the Fix the Debt Initiative held July 22 during AVMA Convention 2017 in Indianapolis.

Two committees within the Republican-controlled House of Representatives have been working on the budget and spending plans, including the education budget.

In late July, the budget committee discussed a proposed budget resolution that would provide a framework to guide spending decisions across the federal government, including those for federal student aid. Although the budget resolution doesn't spell out program-by-program cuts, she said the likeliest scenario is cutting student loan programs to reduce costs of the entire federal budget and help balance the budget at the end of 10 years.

Passing a budget resolution through the House would give the Senate a vehicle to move forward with budget reconciliation and provide the opportunity to pass a bill without having to achieve the 60-vote threshold typically needed to pass a bill in that chamber.

The House appropriations committee also worked on its Labor, Health and Human Services spending bill that would cut $2.4 billion from the Department of Education and $3.3 billion from the Pell Grant reserve fund, the largest need-based aid program for undergraduate students. By contrast, the budget proposed by President Donald Trump calls for more than $9 billion in cuts.

Luke noted that legislators are looking for money for tax reform, among other things, which is why they are eyeing funds from the student loan program.

“On their radar is removing the subsidy on undergrad loans and increasing their origination fees, from 1 percent to 4 percent,” she said.

“So that minimal amount of debt that students come into veterinary school with is sure to balloon, and we'll have to deal with that when they're entering the professional program.”

Congress is also considering doing away with public service loan programs or capping the amount of debt that can be forgiven at about $60,000 as well as simplifying income-driven and income-based repayment programs to shift greater costs onto borrowers, she said.

“We definitely need your advocacy and engagement around student loan rates and refinancing. The reauthorization of the Higher Education Act was supposed to be done in 2013, but it keeps getting pushed off. It may be next year, because it won't pass this session. That said, they're looking at other things to tweak and are looking at the budget and reconciliation process to do it. We do need your active engagement,” Luke said.

Fix the Debt update

The Fix the Debt initiative continues to lead advocacy efforts in this area. The three co-leads are now the AVMA, the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, and the newest lead, the Veterinary Medical Association Executives.

Ralph Johnson, CEO of the VMAE, said, “The VMAE has been engaged increasingly with the effort, and we've been trying to be supportive where we can. It seemed like the logical next step to formalize our commitment and help the initiative where the VMAE—in particular, state VMAs—can leverage resources.”

He gave the example of how more than 30 state VMAs have put in place Power of 10 programs, which are designed to help classes of recent graduates each year develop foundational skills in leadership, communication, business, and financial literacy.

As another example, he referenced the VMAE's collaboration with Partners for Healthy Pets on a campaign primarily through state VMAs that focuses on forward booking, which means scheduling each patient's next appointment before the patient leaves the practice premises.

Johnson also pointed out how the Colorado VMA, of which he is executive director, succeeded in partnering with Colorado State University to get the state legislature to create a state veterinary loan repayment program that will provide $70,000 in debt relief for two veterinarians a year.

So far, about 20 states now have their own veterinary loan repayment programs, but unlike Colorado, many do not have funding appropriated for them. A list of state programs is available at http://jav.ma/stateloanprograms.

“We may not be able to get state legislatures to put 10 percent more money into higher education, but putting attention on the issue by going for a loan repayment program in other states would be interesting,” Johnson said. Or getting them to add some level of funding.

He says another way the VMAE—and by extension, state VMAs—can help the Fix the Debt initiative is by extending the reach of communications and acting as a pathway to engage volunteers in work groups.

“This is a heavily volunteer-driven effort. We need perspective and expertise, which lots of volunteers have. If we can align volunteer interest and pool that with an orchestrated effort, then great,” Johnson said.

On July 22, 50 volunteers met during the AVMA Convention to discuss progress and plans for the next steps of the Fix the Debt initiative.

“We are grateful for the many organizations who are working in the areas of increased scholarship funding, raising awareness of nonclinical careers, increased financial literacy, and supporting practice ownership,” said Dr. Caroline Cantner, AVMA assistant director for student initiatives in the Western region.

The next volunteer meeting will be at AVMA Convention 2018.

Fixing the patchwork that is veterinary wellness support

States encouraged to beef up wellness resources

By Malinda Larkin

d1815860e656

Drs. Anna Reddish and Marci Kirk, assistant directors in the AVMA Membership and Field Services Division, show off an enlarged Wheel of Well-Being at the AVMA Pavilion during AVMA Convention 2017. They're holding the actual Wheels of Well-Being, which were designed to help incorporate wellness activities into everyday life. The Wheel of Well-Being is a new wellness handout that debuted at the convention. Below, it is pictured with a gratitude journal, one of the more than 30 activities included on the wheel. There is a heavy emphasis on activities that take only minutes to complete and can have an immediate effect on improving the well-being of those who are using it.

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

The question posed in Dr. John D. Jacobson's talk, “State veterinary wellness committees: Do they work?” was answered before he even said a word. Just his presence was a testament to their success.

Dr. Jacobson served on the faculty at Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine for 10 years in the ‘90s. But that came to an end when he was arrested for stealing narcotics at the teaching hospital. He was sent to the closest psychiatric hospital, then went home over the weekend, came back on Monday, and met with a psychiatrist who told him: “We'd bring in two retired physicians and put you on a plane to treatment, but because you're a veterinarian, I don't know what to do with you.” Dr. Jacobson made an appointment with a psychologist for two weeks later. “I needed help and wasn't getting it,” Dr. Jacobson said. But then, Dr. Richard S. Hawe, head of the Virginia VMA's wellness committee, got wind of Dr. Jacobson's situation and helped get him into treatment for his alcohol and opioid addictions within a few days.

“The truth is, the (physician health) program he got me into that allowed me to stay licensed in Virginia and go back to work didn't exist until two years prior to my arrest. Before that, there wasn't a good path to go to,” said Dr. Jacobson, who is now a postdoctoral fellow and clinical psychologist who sees patients at Duke Integrative Medicine in Durham, North Carolina.

Limitations in getting help

Two resources typically exist at the state level.

State wellness committees—usually connected to a state VMA—have been set up primarily to do interventions. These are always composed of veterinarian volunteers and occasionally include veterinary technicians, veterinary students, and AVMA Auxiliary members. In the past, Dr. Jacobson notes, it was often just one or two veterinarians in the state who wanted to help and allowed their phone numbers to be published. Some states have statutes that protect these committee members from liability. “The role of state wellness committees is now largely open to the imagination and will of the vets in the state,” he said.

Another resource has been physician health programs. These programs are established by state medical societies or are created after winning contracts with the state licensing agencies. In either case, they are funded by licensing fees under state statues that allow their existence and determine the nature of their relationship with the state board of examiners. These are typically run by administrators and mental health professionals who evaluate and monitor other health professionals in need, with the goal of returning them to work. That is to say, this happens among the better-managed ones. In reality, the quality of services provided by each varies widely across the U.S. Some are effective and have even expanded their function. Some have been developed recently, Dr. Jacobson said. Others exist with limited function, have ceased to exist, or never were developed.

“If we can get impaired veterinarians to resources and get help with flexibility in their schedules, that doesn't mean it will totally work out, but if they know they're in an environment where they don't have to hide their distress and put energy into that, that's a game changer. It takes stress off the community when that person is getting help,” Dr. Jacobson said.

“Getting help shouldn't be dependent on where you live—not in a profession that cares this much.”

Recent efforts aim to correct that. The AVMA Division of State Advocacy team—along with the Veterinary Wellness Steering Committee that formed as a result of the Veterinary Wellness Roundtable convened by the AVMA in March 2016—performed extensive research to identify state veterinary wellness programs as well as applicable confidentiality policies and regulations. Launched in July, the AVMA State Wellness Programs for Veterinary Professionals is available at http://jav.ma/vetwellnessprograms.

Advocacy efforts also have started in the 14 states that do not have specifically outlined wellness committees or confidentiality protections, said Ralph Johnson, CEO of the Veterinary Medical Association Executives, Colorado VMA executive director, and member of the AVMA steering committee. This will require changes in statutes and rules to put resources in place for licensees and for state boards as well, he said.

“Wellness committees have been a little sleepy. They were typically addressing alcoholism, and programs were responsive to that issue, and that's important for sure, but now what we're seeing is more structured programs addressing not only substance use issues but also emotional health issues,” Johnson said. “They're broadening the view of what resources can be and are making pathways to access (treatment) resources so they're more visible both to those who want to voluntarily access them and state boards connecting licensees to them before the licensee or public is endangered.”

Dr. Jacobson also observed, “It's important for state boards to identify where impairment is coming from. It's not always psychiatric issues. There could also be physical disability, training deficits, ethical negligence, or otherwise.”

Treatment depends on the mental health issue and can range from medication to cognitive behavior therapy to residential treatment to support groups. Dr. Jacobson himself did a three-month residential treatment program that cost $27,000 and says this kind of treatment has gotten even more expensive. He noted that the Alberta VMA in Canada provides loans for practitioners to get treatment, and every loan has been repaid.

Social worker joins AVMA staff

A leader in the effort to improve the mental health and well-being of veterinary professionals, Jennifer Brandt, PhD, has been hired at the AVMA to continue her work on a greater scale.

She started Aug. 21 in the newly created position of director of member wellness and diversity initiatives.

Dr. Brandt comes to the AVMA from The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, where she has served as veterinary student affairs coordinator. She worked to provide students, faculty, and staff with the communication, interpersonal, and teamwork skills essential to quality veterinary care and veterinary career success. Her professional coaching, consultation, and mediation services offered applied learning opportunities to increase self-awareness, improve wellness and resilience, resolve conflict, and enhance veterinary team communication.

Dr. Brandt has lectured nationally and internationally at veterinary colleges and conferences and has served as a master trainer and facilitator for the Institute for Healthcare Communication since 2003. Last year, she helped start the Veterinary Mental Health Practitioners group with Kathleen Ruby, PhD, a licensed professional counselor at Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine. The group comprises about two dozen members who deal with veterinarian well-being, most of them based at veterinary colleges. These individuals have come together to provide a stronger voice and relevant expertise to help inform decisions being made by veterinary colleges and the profession.

Dr. Brandt previously served as a medical social worker, educator, and researcher specializing in work with survivors of crime and trauma and in bereavement facilitation. She received her master's and doctoral degrees in social work from The Ohio State University.

“We're talking about our colleagues, our people. These are folks who, for the most part, are incredible and good vets, and if they are in a community that helps them get back on track, they remember that. They become role models for others. I think there's a greater cost in not doing it in the short run. Economics are a big deal. We're almost at a point where money doesn't matter,” Dr. Jacobson said.

During Dr. Jacobson's time in treatment, Dr. Hawe wrote letters to everyone from Dr. Jacobson's former department head to the state veterinary board of examiners members to pave the path for him to return to work. “I don't expect everyone to do that, but he went to any length for sure, and he hadn't even met me,” he said.

Dr. Hawe died two weeks after Dr. Jacobson got his license back, and he's never forgotten the help he received. “I'm doing this because he's not around to do it,” he said.

Exploring more options

The Veterinary Wellness Steering Committee continues to evaluate other potential areas where help would be most effective. Members are researching the feasibility of offering a national veterinary-specific hotline or other member assistance programs to develop a sustainable model for 24/7 assistance. Several programs are under final review to identify which will provide the best resources for the entire profession, including students and veterinary support staff.

The steering committee also is looking at the potential for collaboration with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in the U.K. and emulating its Mind Matters Initiative (www.vetmindmatters.org). Representatives from the Royal College visited the AVMA in late August to discuss an international version of the initiative.

Launched in December 2014, the U.K. initiative is supported by a task force comprising eight veterinary organizations that represent students, schools, veterinarians, veterinary nurses, and practice managers.

Its main activities are research, a communications program to increase awareness and reduce the stigma associated with mental health issues, and identifying aspects of the profession's structure and activities—from veterinary education to retirement—that exacerbate stress and mental health problems and examining how they may be addressed.

Finally, the next Veterinary Wellness Summit will take place, April 15–17, 2018 in Schaumburg, Illinois. The focus will be sharing best practices and creating a culture of well-being in the workplace.

“Never more than now has the AVMA and the steering committee been responding to difficulties in the veterinary community. What's been happening in the past two to three years is amazing and heartwarming. I hope we can continue to maintain momentum and still go in a direction to improve the culture of the veterinary profession and make it a healthier community and allow people to more easily ask for help and get that help,” Dr. Jacobson said.

AVMA announces newest Future Leaders class

The 10 veterinarians selected as the 2017–18 AVMA Future Leaders class were announced during a press conference July 22 at AVMA Convention 2017 in Indianapolis.

Funded by Zoetis Animal Health and guided by High Impact Facilitation, the Future Leaders program is a one-year curriculum that hones the strengths and leadership skills of veterinarians who have graduated from veterinary school within the past 15 years.

“Each class develops leadership skills to advance veterinary medicine, the veterinary workplace, and society as a whole, as well as creating resources for their veterinary colleagues,” said Dr. Tom Meyer, AVMA president at the time of convention.

Members of the seventh class of Future Leaders are Drs. Gillian Angliss, of Bethel, Connecticut; Katie Ebers, of Hattiesburg, Mississippi; Stephanie Janeczo, of Clifton, New Jersey; Amanda Landis, of Phoenix; Tiffany Lyle, of West Lafayette, Indiana; Tak Niino, of Cary, North Carolina; Jananne O'Connell, of Cary, North Carolina; Jonathan Shearer, of Silver Spring, Maryland; Kayla Stomack, of Clinton Township, Michigan; and Alina Vale, of San Diego.

d1815860e767

Dr. Tiffany Lyle (left), part of the incoming Future Leaders class, receives a commemorative compass from outgoing class member Dr. Katie Rhorig. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Dr. Christine Jenkins, chief veterinary medical officer at Zoetis, noted that the membership of each class has been diverse, strong, knowledgeable, and deeply committed to their patients, clients, and colleagues. “Each of these new leaders will use their skills to benefit the veterinary workplace, society, and organized veterinary medicine,” Dr. Jenkins said.

Dr. Katie Rhorig, a member of the outgoing Future Leaders class, presented Dr. Lyle of the incoming class with a commemorative compass. “This represents the guidance and direction this program provided us on our journey in veterinary medicine. We know it will do the same for you,” Dr. Rhorig said.

Learn about the Future Leaders program at www.avma.org in the Membership section.

AVMF introduces pain management grant

The American Veterinary Medical Foundation will begin providing at least $25,000 to support research on management of pain due to osteoarthritis or other diseases common in older dogs. The grants are made possible through a bequest from the estate of Susan I. Maylahn and her dog, Igloo.

Any veterinary clinician or scientist with an interest in the prevention or treatment of pain due to osteoarthritis or other diseases in older dogs is eligible to serve as principal investigator. Collaboration with additional researchers who are members or student members of the AVMA is strongly encouraged.

One grant, with a maximum of $25,000, will be awarded in 2018, and at least one grant of $25,000 is anticipated to be awarded in 2019 as well.

The deadline for submissions is Nov. 15; a decision will be made by Jan. 15, 2018.

For more information, visit www.avmf.org/programs/research-support or email ckowal@avma.org.

Steeper tuition seen as recessionary fallout

By Barbara Dutton

Ever since the end of the Great Recession, net tuition income has represented a substantially higher percentage of total educational revenue for public higher education institutions in the United States—a state of affairs that likely reflects higher tuition costs. The trend is explained in the 2017 AVMA & Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges Report on the Market for Veterinary Education, in which the report's authors also ruminate about potential reasons behind this trend.

“Escalations in tuition appeared during and right after recessions in past decades as tax cuts were implemented to jump-start the economy and public support of colleges was slashed to comply with shrinking budgets and focus on other priorities,” observed Bridgette Bain, PhD, assistant director of analytics in the AVMA Veterinary Economics Division, which generated the report. “A consequence of this reduced public support was an increasing share of educational costs shouldered by students.”

The amount of funding for public higher education from state governments has been in a continuous decline, concurred Gina Luke, assistant director of the AVMA Governmental Relations Division. “This has driven up the cost of tuition. A decade ago, state governments paid about two-thirds of the cost of education at public universities per full-time student; (currently), states pay only about one-third of the costs, with students now paying about two-thirds of the costs.”

The report notes that during recessionary periods when government budgets were slashed or held constant in nominal dollars, schools were forced to make do with less—and that after the recessions, education budgets tended to remain lower than they had been previously.

“This erosion of allocations,” Dr. Bain explained, “caused a ‘step increase’ in the percent of public higher education comprising tuition, with each step up a product of the preceding recession.”

Relying on public funds to contend with costs isn't expected to get any easier in the near term. “State budgets are increasingly tight,” Luke observed. “Where to devote limited discretionary dollars for education is a delicate balancing act between K-12, undergraduate education, and graduate-professional education,” she added, in addition to other important items on a state's budget ledger, such as roads, bridges, and first responders.

d1815860e831

Net tuition income as a percentage of public higher education total educational revenue, U.S., fiscal 1989–2015 (Source: 2017 AVMA & AAVMC Report on the Market for Veterinary Education)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Against the backdrop of public funding challenges are the various costs that schools are facing. Factors mentioned in the AVMA/AAVMC economic report as contributing to higher costs per student are the cost of administration, burgeoning pension and health care costs, and expanding state and federal red tape. With the prospect of these pressures on school budgets remaining unabated in the foreseeable future, stakeholders in public-supported veterinary education will have to be proactive in finding financial relief (see page 760).

“I anticipate the graduate-professional sector to be continually squeezed,” predicted Luke. “There is a good understanding by veterinary deans that controlling costs, limiting increases to tuition, and maintaining quality are all desirable. Veterinary college leadership, faculty, and students will need to get involved and engage with state legislatures to make the case for continued investments in veterinary education. Absent their voices, someone else is making the case for the state funding available for education.”

Barbara Dutton is the economics writer/content coordinator for the AVMA Veterinary Economics Division.

Education council schedules site visits

The AVMA Council on Education has scheduled site visits to five schools and colleges of veterinary medicine for the remainder of 2017.

Comprehensive site visits are planned for the University of Saskatchewan Western College of Veterinary Medicine, Oct. 1–5; Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine, Oct. 8–14; Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine, Oct. 29-Nov. 2; and Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Nov. 5–9.

A consultative site visit is scheduled for the University of Nottingham School of Veterinary Medicine and Science in Nottingham, England, Dec. 3–7.

The council welcomes written comments on these plans or the programs to be evaluated. Comments should be addressed to Dr. Karen Martens Brandt, Director, Education and Research Division, AVMA, 1931 N. Meacham Road, Suite 100, Schaumburg, IL 60173. Comments must be signed by the person submitting them to be considered.

Rodenticides top poison control calls in 25 states

In calls to a national poison control hotline, rodenticides were the most common known causes of poisonings among pets in 25 states during 2016.

Bromethalin was the most common source of those poisonings in 17 states, and anticoagulants were the most common in eight, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The organization recently identified the top substance related to calls from each state or district to the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, as seen in the accompanying map.

Ibuprofen was the top cause in another 10 states, and chocolate was top in eight states and the District of Columbia. The following were the leading causes of poisonings in one state each: oral flea medication in Alabama, fertilizer in Alaska, ivermectin in Maine, topical flea medication in Montana, vitamin A supplements in Nebraska, and permethrin among cats in South Dakota.

In March, the ASPCA also published a listing of the overall most common categories of products related to the 180,000 calls to the center during 2016. Human-use prescription drugs together accounted for 17 percent of calls, the most of any category, although just more than the total for over-the-counter drugs.

Those substances were followed by human foods other than chocolate, animal-use products such as prescriptions or over-the-counter supplements, household items such as paint or glue, chocolate, insecticides, rodenticides, plants, and garden products.

d1815860e876

(Source: ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Research honored at scholars symposium

Students present results, hear from accomplished researchers at annual event

By Greg Cima

d1815860e895

About 500 veterinary students presented research results through posters at the 18th annual National Veterinary Scholars Research Symposium, which ran Aug. 4–5 at the National Institutes of Health campus in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photos courtesy of Boehringer Ingelheim)

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Working in research helped Dr. Patricia A. Conrad explore the world while helping to relieve hunger.

At a research symposium in August, she told veterinarians and veterinary students that her veterinary education, along with a doctorate in protozoology and tropical animal health, gave her opportunities to work on global problems, starting in the mid-1980s with her work in Kenya to protect cattle from East Coast fever. She had thought as a veterinary student that research was not for her, yet her career in research gave her opportunities to act on her deep concern about global hunger and surprised her by being fun.

“I think what I loved about research is big problems, a team effort, and asking ‘What if?’ and challenging the dogma,” she said.

Dr. Andrew T. Maccabe, CEO of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, said Dr. Conrad's presentation was among the most inspiring during the 18th annual National Veterinary Scholars Research Symposium, which features accomplishments of veterinary students who are completing summer research internships through the Boehringer Ingelheim Veterinary Scholars Program. Dr. Conrad, who is the associate dean for global programs at the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, co-director of the university's Global Health Institute, and a professor of parasitology, received the AVMA Lifetime Excellence in Research Award during the meeting, which ran Aug. 4–5 at the National Institutes of Health campus in Bethesda, Maryland. The event included 650 attendees and a record high of about 515 student research poster presentations.

Dr. R. Mark Simpson, director of the NIH Comparative Biomedical Scientist Training Program, said this year's poster presentation count was up from about 430 in 2016. Dr. Simpson also leads the Molecular Pathology Unit within the Laboratory of Cancer Biology and Genetics of the NIH National Cancer Institute's Center for Cancer Research. A senior scientist and an investigative pathologist, he was one of the organizers of this year's symposium alongside fellow NIH staff and leaders of the AAVMC.

Benefiting the whole profession

Dr. Simpson said he had wanted the symposium to provide presentations by high-caliber investigators in human and veterinary medicine, providing a joint platform with perspectives from the various medical fields. The symposium provides a great opportunity for the veterinary profession, he said, because veterinarians often are considered to have a segmented role in national health care, yet the meeting showed the diversity and accomplishment of veterinary students and recent graduates.

The NIH has interests in veterinary medicine and research, including veterinarians’ research that contributes to human health, Dr. Simpson said. Hosting the meeting at the NIH campus allowed veterinarians and students to become better acquainted with the NIH and its investigators.

The AAVMC has co-sponsored the national symposium for more than 10 years to ensure that students at all AAVMC member institutions have opportunities to participate in such a program, Dr. Maccabe said. Most of the students presenting posters were presenting information on their original research work for the first time at a scientific conference.

Dr. Maccabe said practicing evidence-based medicine requires that a veterinarian appreciate the role research plays. An outcomes assessment from the program shows that few of the participating students will pursue research careers, but all of them will have a deeper appreciation and understanding of the effects of research on veterinary medicine, he said.

Dr. Ed Murphey, assistant director of the AVMA Education and Research Division, said the program gives students opportunities to gain research experience they can use to consider career options as well as career starting points and mentors for those who want to work in research. He shared two examples of presentations at this year's symposium: descriptions of how studies on fruit flies are providing insight into neurodegenerative diseases in humans, and similarities between results of recent studies on dogs with osteosarcoma and observations made by bone surgeon William B. Coley in the early 1900s that, among people with bone cancer, infections often were associated with improved clinical outcomes. The latter research, he said, is being used to develop treatments for osteosarcoma in dogs and children.

Veterinarians, students honored

Four veterinarians, including Dr. Conrad, were honored during the symposium with AVMA Excellence in Veterinary Medicine awards from the AVMA, American Veterinary Medical Foundation, and Winn Feline Foundation.

d1815860e939

Jenna Parks, a student at Cornell University, describes her research to Dr. Roberto Alva, executive director of the Boehringer Ingelheim Veterinary Scholars Program.

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

Dr. Michael R. Lappin received the AVMA Clinical Research Award. He is director of the Center for Companion Animal Studies at Colorado State University and a professor of small animal clinical veterinary medicine at the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, and he helps direct the university's shelter medicine program. His research interests include infectious-disease prevention, feline upper respiratory disease complex, infectious causes of fever and diarrhea, and zoonoses of cats.

Dr. B. Duncan X. Lascelles received the AVMF/Winn Feline Foundation Excellence in Feline Research Award. He is director of the Comparative Pain Research and Education Center at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine and a professor of small animal surgery and pain management. He has focused on developing methods of measuring pain in pets with spontaneous disease and probing tissues from well-phenotyped animals with spontaneous disease to improve understanding of neurobiology. He has intended for that research to improve pain control in pet cats and dogs and aid pain control improvements in humans.

Dr. Darryl Millis received the AVMA Career Achievement Award in Canine Research. He is director of the CARES Center for Veterinary Sports Medicine at the University of Tennessee and a professor of orthopedic surgery in the College of Veterinary Medicine. His research has been focused on osteoarthritis, physical rehabilitation, and fracture healing, and it has included gait analysis techniques and treatments for osteoarthritis.

Three other veterinarians were honored for their presentations during the symposium.

Dr. Meghan Vermillion, Johns Hopkins, received first place in the AVMF Young Investigator Award competition for her presentation, “Modeling congenital Zika virus infection in immunocompetent mice.” Dr. Xuan Pan, University of Wisconsin-Madison, received second for the presentation “Molecular determinants for polycomb group protein YY1 control of hematopoietic stem cell quiescence,” and Dr. Zachary Freeman, University of Michigan, received third for the presentation “Immune checkpoints are discordantly regulated by chromatin remodeling.”

Five veterinary students received the AVMA/AVMF Second Opportunity Research Scholarships, which are awarded to students who conducted a summer research project and want another summer of research experience. Those recipients are Samantha Fousse of the University of California-Davis, Kim Haight of the University of Georgia, Rachel McMahon of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Courtney Rousse of North Carolina State University, and Courtney Smith of Texas A&M University.

Dr. Murphey said the scholars program has developed from a meeting among a handful of veterinary students from Georgia and Iowa to one encompassing projects at more than 30 veterinary colleges in North America, France, and The Netherlands. The program introduces first- and second-year veterinary students to biomedical research through mentored research during the summer at established laboratories, seminars, and discussions on careers in science. Research findings are presented at the annual symposium.

Dr. Conrad said in an interview after the event that her career sprang from a pair of revelations she had during a vacation in her fourth year of veterinary college at Colorado State University. She realized she wanted to live in some other country, and she had deep concern about world hunger.

“Sometimes we have to pause, and we have to listen to what's really deep inside us,” she said.

At UC-Davis, Dr. Conrad tells her students to pause and be unafraid to see whether a new experience resonates and gives them new areas they want to explore.

“You should never underestimate the incredible education we're receiving and how well it prepares us to really contribute to teams and to make important discoveries that will be to the benefit of animals, humans, and the environment,” she said.

AKC Canine Health Foundation honors Breitschwerdt

d1815860e979

Dr. Edward Breitschwerdt

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

The American Kennel Club Canine Health Foundation announced Aug. 8 that Dr. Edward Breitschwerdt, a professor of medicine and infectious diseases at North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, is the recipient of the 2017 Asa Mays DVM Award for Excellence in Canine Health Research.

“Dr. Breitschwerdt's leading-edge research in the field of infectious disease has advanced our knowledge of deadly pathogens that cross species barriers, contributing to both canine and human health,” said Dr. Mary Smith, CHF board member and chair of the CHF Scientific Review Committee, in the announcement.

“As a clinician, research scientist and educator, he has impacted not only our current understanding, but has prepared many young scientists to continue this work into the future.”

Dr. Breitschwerdt is an adjunct professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Center and a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He has contributed to research on bartonellosis in animals and humans and is an expert on vector-borne diseases. He isolated and identified a novel Bartonella species from a dog with worsening endocarditis. CHF has awarded Dr. Breitschwerdt five grants for research on bartonellosis and lymphoma.

$4.8M grant funds work on vaccine for coccidioidomycosis

The National Institutes of Health has awarded a four-year, $4.8 million grant to the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson to fund work on a vaccine against coccidioidomycosis in dogs. Also called valley fever, the sometimes-deadly respiratory illness is caused by Coccidioides spores found in soils of the Southwest.

The vaccine candidate, a live vaccine known as delta-CPS1, was developed by a multidisciplinary team of investigators. Among the team members is Dr. Lisa Shubitz, a veterinarian and associate research professor.

The vaccine already has protected mice from coccidioidomycosis. The research goal is to test and possibly license the vaccine for use in dogs to protect them from contracting coccidioidomycosis. Anivive Lifesciences Inc., a California-based biotechnology company, has licensed the vaccine from the UA and will provide additional investment and expertise to fully develop the vaccine for dogs.

Scientists at Colorado State University also are collaborating on the project through the CSU College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences and the laboratory of Dr. Richard A. Bowen, a veterinarian and professor.

If the vaccine proves safe and effective for dogs, the next step probably would be evaluation and possible approval of a vaccine to prevent coccidioidomycosis in humans.

Allender and Lamkin win $10K research award

Mazuri, an exotic animal food company, this July announced it had awarded a $10,000 research grant to Dr. Matt Allender, director of the Wildlife Epidemiology Laboratory at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine, and second-year veterinary student Irini Lamkin.

The award supports Dr. Allender and Lamkin's research characterizing the microbiome in red-eared slider turtles.

d1815860e1027

Dr. Matt Allender and second-year veterinary student Irini Lamkin.

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

“To have the opportunity to evaluate what effect turtle diets have on the intestinal microbiome allows the whole industry to promote better turtle health,” said Dr. Allender. “This award sets Irini up for a successful career by combining both clinical and research experience into bettering the overall health of animals.”

Dr. Allender received his DVM degree from the University of Illinois in 2004 and is a diplomate of the American College of Zoological Medicine.

Winn Feline Foundation calls for grant proposals

The Winn Feline Foundation is calling for grant proposals for feline health studies, including for the New Feline Investigator Grant Award and the Feline Genomics New Investigator Grant Award.

The deadline for receipt of applications is Dec. 11, and awards will be announced in April 2018. Aside from the grants for new investigators, the maximum grant amount is $25,000. Continuation of grants awarded in 2017 or earlier will be considered.

Studies applicable to all cats are encouraged. Winn Feline Foundation also is interested in projects that address issues in specific breeds as well as nutrition and behavior. The foundation has dedicated funds for research in feline infectious peritonitis, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, lung cancer, and abdominal cancer. Breed-specific funding is available for studies of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in Norwegian Forest Cats and Persians, heart disease in Birmans, health issues in Abyssinians, and amyloidosis in Siamese-related breeds.

Winn Feline Foundation established the New Feline Investigator Grant Award this year. The foundation, in collaboration with Wisdom Health, also seeks to support the emerging field of feline genomics through the Feline Genomics New Investigator Grant Award for a new investigator whose research focus will enhance the understanding of feline genomics as it applies to feline health. The maximum grant award for new investigators is $15,000.

Details are at www.winnfelinefoundation.org/grants/grant-process.

Alton F. Hopkins Jr. 1933–2017

Former AVMA president Dr. Alton F. Hopkins Jr. of Dallas died Feb. 15, 2017, at age 83. Equality of representation among AVMA members was a theme of his presidency.

The AVMA's 108th president, he led the Association from 1986–87 and, before that, represented members in District VIII on the Executive Board, chairing the Board in 1984.

Born July 7, 1933, in Dallas, he received his DVM degree from Texas A&M University in 1956. He worked in private practice at a Dallas animal clinic from 1957–62, then spent a year inspecting chicken farms for the Department of Agriculture. Texas Veterinarian of the Year in 1988, he spent a half-century as co-owner and practitioner at Highland Park Animal and Lakewood Animal clinics.

Dr. Bill Ard of Tyler, Texas, was his veterinary college classmate and close lifelong friend. “Our lives paralleled. I think I did all the veterinary stuff I did because of Al,” he said, including serving in the AVMA House of Delegates. “He was a hard worker, was always a little smarter than the people around him, had a lot of savvy with money, and was competitive. He was president of everything he ever joined, working to run it.”

Dr. Hopkins represented Texas as alternate delegate in the AVMA HOD from 1977–79. From 1977–78, he chaired the AVMA Manpower Advisory Committee and served on the ad hoc Committee on Dog and Cat Population Control. He was the only chair of the AVMA's former Public Relations Committee. He also served on the National Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.

After leading the Dallas County VMA in 1969, he became Texas VMA president in 1976. He chaired several TVMA committees and was a founding member and board member of the Texas Academy of Veterinary Practice.

Dr. John Wood of Lufkin, Texas, was his colleague and friend for some 40 years. They fished, quail hunted, and golfed throughout the state. “He was an extremely competitive person but was always a sportsman,” he said. “He was one of the most excellent role models for veterinary medicine in the last 30 years. He personified professional veterinary medicine in everything he did.”

In his 1986 presidential address to the HOD, Dr. Hopkins called for creation of an ad hoc redistricting committee to address “extremes” in the numbers of members between Executive Board districts and the numbers of states within districts, which prevented smaller states within a district from having a member of their state elected to the Board.

d1815860e1087

Dr. Alton F. Hopkins Jr.

Citation: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 251, 7; 10.2460/javma.251.7.746

The Board created the ad hoc redistricting committee to design a more equitable apportionment of the Board districts, but this effort led instead to the HOD in 1988 equalizing Board representation among districts by amending an AVMA bylaw to prevent an AVMA member residing in the same state as a Board member whose term was expiring from being eligible for nomination to the seat.

The 1988 HOD also adopted a bylaw amendment Dr. Hopkins proposed to strengthen the position of food animal and equine practitioners on three important AVMA committees and councils by replacing the large animal categories with specific food animal and equine practice categories.

AVMA sponsorship of the Candidates’ Introductory Breakfast that continues today, preceding each AVMA Convention, arose from Dr. Hopkins’ recommendations for making campaigns for AVMA officer positions more equitable and curbing campaign spending.

The Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine gave him its Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1980, and the TVMA, its President's Award in 1983. He received the American Animal Hospital Association's Service Award in 1981.

Dr. Hopkins is survived by his wife of 64 years, Bobbie Anne, and his children: Jan Hopkins Hankinson, Larry Hopkins, and Susan Hopkins Atchison; seven grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter.

Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer's Association, 3001 Knox St., Suite 200, Dallas, TX 75205, www.alz.org; or to the Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Office of Development, 4461 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, with checks made payable to the Texas A&M Foundation and “Dr. Al Hopkins” on the memo line, www.txamfoundation.com.

By Susan C. Kahler

Obituaries: AVMA member AVMA honor roll member Nonmember

Shawna L. Chastain

Dr. Chastain (Texas A&M ‘03), 40, Sachse, Texas, died May 23, 2017. A small and exotic animal veterinarian, she was an associate at CityVet Uptown in Dallas for the past seven years. Dr. Chastain also bred and raised Rhodesian Ridgebacks, owning Vyrtuous Rhodesian Ridgebacks. Earlier, she worked at Emergency Animal Hospital of Northwest Austin in Austin, Texas; Sachse Veterinary Clinic; and Stonebridge Veterinary Hospital in Rockwall, Texas.

Dr. Chastain is survived by her husband, Gared; a daughter; her father and stepmother; her stepfather; and her two half-brothers.

Christina M. Chesvick

Dr. Chesvick (Washington State ‘06), 36, Manhattan, Kansas, died March 14, 2017. She was a resident in the Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging Residency program at the Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine since 2016. Following graduation and after completing an equine internship in Phoenix, Dr. Chesvick practiced small animal medicine in the Puget Sound area of Washington state for several years. In 2011, she moved to Monterey, California, where she served as a relief and emergency veterinarian. During that time, Dr. Chesvick also taught at California State University in Monterey Bay. She moved to Los Angeles in 2015, completing a diagnostic imaging internship at the Animal Specialty and Emergency Center before joining the residency program at KSU.

Dr. Chesvick was a member of the American College of Veterinary Radiology. She is survived by her life partner, Ramsey Meyer; her parents; and a brother. Memorials toward a fund at the KSU CVM in Dr. Chesvick's name may be made to KSU Foundation, 1800 Denison Ave., Suite 200, Manhattan, KS 66505.

Pedro A. Cintrón-Zayas

Dr. Cintrón-Zayas (Ohio State ‘65), 83, San Juan, Puerto Rico, died June 21, 2017. He practiced small animal medicine in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, for more than 25 years. Dr. Cintrón-Zayas also taught veterinary assistant courses in his clinic, with the backing of the island's Department of Education.

Dr. Cintrón-Zayas is survived by a son and four daughters, four grandchildren, and a brother and sister.

W. Luke Fry II

Dr. Fry (Kansas State ‘77), 64, Merriam, Kansas, died April 30, 2017. A small animal veterinarian, he owned Quivira Road Animal Hospital in Shawnee, Kansas, for 35 years.

Dr. Fry is survived by his wife, Sharon; a daughter and a son; four grandchildren; and his mother, father, and three sisters. Memorials may be made to Christian Veterinary Mission, 19303 Fremont Ave. N., Seattle, WA 98133, https://gifts.cvmusa.org, or toward the Dr. Luke Fry Memorial Scholarship, c/o Kansas State University Foundation, 1800 Kimball Ave., Suite 200, Manhattan, KS 66502, with “Dr. Luke Fry” notated on the memo line of the check.

Robert L. Gochnauer

Dr. Gochnauer (Ohio State ‘75), 68, Hamptonville, North Carolina, died May 10, 2017. A large animal veterinarian, he owned Mobile Large Animal Veterinary Service in Troutman, North Carolina, for the past 21 years. Earlier, Dr. Gochnauer co-owned North Mecklenburg Animal Hospital, a mixed animal practice in Cornelius, North Carolina, with his wife, Dr. Karen Karaffa (Ohio State ‘74), for 20 years. He was a lifetime member of the North Carolina VMA, American Association of Equine Practitioners, and American Association of Bovine Practitioners.

Dr. Gochnauer is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter, and a sister and brother. His daughter, Dr. Mary K. Gochnauer (Ohio State ‘06), practices at Mobile Large Animal Veterinary Service. Memorials may be made to Samaritan's Purse, P.O. Box 3000, Boone, NC 28607, or Heifer International, P.O Box 8058, Little Rock, AR 72203.

Eldon O. Harrison

Dr. Harrison (Texas A&M ‘56), 84, Lafayette, Indiana, died June 20, 2017. A veterinary neurosurgeon, he owned a referral practice in Richardson, Texas, for several years after graduation. Dr. Harrison also raised Polled Hereford cattle while in Texas. A member of the Texas VMA, Dr. Harrison received its Veterinary Medical Specialty Award in 2002. He was a veteran of the Navy.

Dr. Harrison is survived by his wife, Peggy; three sons and three daughters; 16 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and a sister. His cousin, Dr. Richard Smithwick (Texas A&M ‘61), is a veterinarian in Howe, Texas.

Bruce L. Leuschen

Dr. Leuschen (Iowa State ‘83), 59, Story City, Iowa, died April 14, 2017. A bovine veterinarian, he most recently worked at Braum's Dairy in Tuttle, Oklahoma. Dr. Leuschen began his career practicing in Iowa at Cascade and LaMotte. From 1992–2006, he worked for Postville Veterinary Clinic in Postville, Iowa. He subsequently served as a staff member at the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine before joining Braum's Dairy. Dr. Leuschen was a member of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners. He is survived by his wife, Kelly; a daughter and two sons; and five brothers and six sisters.

Albert S. Pugh IV

Dr. Pugh (Texas A&M ‘74), 65, Bridge City, Texas, died May 16, 2017. A small animal veterinarian, he owned Bridge City Animal Hospital since 1977. Earlier, Dr. Pugh served as a captain in the Army, stationed in Virginia. He was a member of the Texas and Southeast Texas VMAs. Active in his community, Dr. Pugh served as president of the Bridge City Chamber of Commerce and Bridge City Rotary Club. He was a past recipient of the chamber's Citizen of the Year Award and was named to the Rotary District Wall of Fame.

Dr. Pugh is survived by his fiancee, Cheryl Joyner; a daughter and a son; three grandchildren; and three sisters. Memorials may be made to Bridge City Animal Shelter, P.O. Box 846, Bridge City, TX 77611.

Derek D. Skaife

Dr. Skaife (California-Davis ‘71), 75, Los Altos, California, died June 30, 2017. He practiced small animal medicine in the Los Altos area for 34 years prior to retirement in 2005. Dr. Skaife is survived by his wife, Linda; two sons; two grandchildren; and a sister and brother.

Philip R. Woods

Dr. Woods (Wisconsin ‘87), 64, Vass, North Carolina, died June 5, 2017. A large animal veterinarian, he owned Dogwood Equine Veterinary Clinic in Vass for 15 years. Following graduation and after completing a residency in large animal medicine at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Dr. Woods served as an assistant professor at Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine for four years. He later practiced equine medicine in Arizona, Kentucky, South Carolina, Texas, North Carolina, and the United Kingdom before moving to Vass.

Dr. Woods was a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He is survived by his wife, Vivienne; a son and a daughter; his father; and a sister. Memorials may be made to Pinecrest Women's Lacrosse, 250 Voit Gilmore Lane, Southern Pines, NC 28387.

Leslie W. Yarbrough

Dr. Yarbrough (Texas A&M ‘71), 76, Helotes, Texas, died May 11, 2017. A diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine, he was director of the vivarium of the School of Dentistry at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston prior to retirement. Earlier, Dr. Yarbrough served as a captain in the Army Veterinary Corps. He was a member of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science and the Texas branch of the AALAS.

Dr. Yarbrough's wife, Suzanne; a son and a daughter; five grandchildren; a great-grandchild; and a brother survive him. His cousin, Dr. Steven H. Yarbrough (Texas A&M ‘81), practices mixed animal medicine in Devine, Texas.

Correction

Dr. Warren W. Kent Sr., whose obituary was published Sept. 15, 2017, on page 639, was an AVMA honor roll member.

Cover Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
ISSN:
0003-1488
Publication Date:
01 Oct 2017
  • View in gallery

    Attendees at the AVMA Convention 2017 Veterinary Technician Appreciation Event enjoy petting dog sharks at the Indianapolis Zoo Oceans Building (above). Wet labs (top right) remain a popular continuing education option at the convention, while a virtual reality station (bottom right) is a hit in the exhibit hall. (Photos by Matt Alexandre Photography)

  • View in gallery

    Renowned paleontologist Paul Sereno, PhD, a National Geographic explorer, talks in his keynote presentation about how human culture began in earnest when people began to live in large groups and domesticate animals. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

  • View in gallery

    On Aug. 24, Harvey intensified into a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. The storm made landfall in Texas as a Category 4 storm. (Courtesy of NOAA/NASA GOES Project)

  • View in gallery
  • View in gallery
  • View in gallery

    New to this year's SAVMA House of Delegates meeting, student delegates took a page out of the AVMA House of Delegates’ book and hosted a Veterinary Student Information Forum. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

  • View in gallery

    Above: A leadership panel held during the Student AVMA House of Delegates meeting touches on topics such as navigating the world after graduation, including how to be a leader in one's workplace without stepping on toes. Dr. Lori Teller (standing), District VIII representative on the AVMA Board of Directors, discusses why it's important to get involved in organized veterinary medicine. Below: Candidates for positions on the SAVMA Executive Board give speeches with puppies in their arms. Seen here is Steven Hanes, senior SAVMA delegate from University of Pennsylvania. (Photos by R. Scott Nolen)

  • View in gallery

    Clockwise from top left: (A) Gin Blossoms, the ‘90s band famous for “Hey Jealousy” and “Found Out About You,” headline the AVMA Concert sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim. (B) The American Veterinary Medical Foundation charity event is where you go for food and entertainment. (C) 2016–17 AVMA President Tom Meyer speaks at the AVMA Keynote Brunch sponsored by Hill's Pet Nutrition. (D) Attendees network with convention speakers and AVMA leaders during the Meet-the-Experts Roundtable. (E) The AVMA Wheel of Well-being identifies activities that help improve the well-being of all members of the veterinary health care team. (F) Young veterinary professionals enjoy an evening in their honor at the NCAA Hall of Champions. (Photos by Matt Alexandre Photography and R. Scott Nolen)

  • View in gallery
  • View in gallery
  • View in gallery
  • View in gallery

    Drs. Anna Reddish and Marci Kirk, assistant directors in the AVMA Membership and Field Services Division, show off an enlarged Wheel of Well-Being at the AVMA Pavilion during AVMA Convention 2017. They're holding the actual Wheels of Well-Being, which were designed to help incorporate wellness activities into everyday life. The Wheel of Well-Being is a new wellness handout that debuted at the convention. Below, it is pictured with a gratitude journal, one of the more than 30 activities included on the wheel. There is a heavy emphasis on activities that take only minutes to complete and can have an immediate effect on improving the well-being of those who are using it.

  • View in gallery
  • View in gallery

    Dr. Tiffany Lyle (left), part of the incoming Future Leaders class, receives a commemorative compass from outgoing class member Dr. Katie Rhorig. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

  • View in gallery

    Net tuition income as a percentage of public higher education total educational revenue, U.S., fiscal 1989–2015 (Source: 2017 AVMA & AAVMC Report on the Market for Veterinary Education)

  • View in gallery

    (Source: ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center)

  • View in gallery

    About 500 veterinary students presented research results through posters at the 18th annual National Veterinary Scholars Research Symposium, which ran Aug. 4–5 at the National Institutes of Health campus in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photos courtesy of Boehringer Ingelheim)

  • View in gallery

    Jenna Parks, a student at Cornell University, describes her research to Dr. Roberto Alva, executive director of the Boehringer Ingelheim Veterinary Scholars Program.

  • View in gallery

    Dr. Edward Breitschwerdt

  • View in gallery

    Dr. Matt Allender and second-year veterinary student Irini Lamkin.

  • View in gallery
  • View in gallery

    Dr. Alton F. Hopkins Jr.

Attendees at the AVMA Convention 2017 Veterinary Technician Appreciation Event enjoy petting dog sharks at the Indianapolis Zoo Oceans Building (above). Wet labs (top right) remain a popular continuing education option at the convention, while a virtual reality station (bottom right) is a hit in the exhibit hall. (Photos by Matt Alexandre Photography)

Renowned paleontologist Paul Sereno, PhD, a National Geographic explorer, talks in his keynote presentation about how human culture began in earnest when people began to live in large groups and domesticate animals. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

On Aug. 24, Harvey intensified into a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. The storm made landfall in Texas as a Category 4 storm. (Courtesy of NOAA/NASA GOES Project)

New to this year's SAVMA House of Delegates meeting, student delegates took a page out of the AVMA House of Delegates’ book and hosted a Veterinary Student Information Forum. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

Above: A leadership panel held during the Student AVMA House of Delegates meeting touches on topics such as navigating the world after graduation, including how to be a leader in one's workplace without stepping on toes. Dr. Lori Teller (standing), District VIII representative on the AVMA Board of Directors, discusses why it's important to get involved in organized veterinary medicine. Below: Candidates for positions on the SAVMA Executive Board give speeches with puppies in their arms. Seen here is Steven Hanes, senior SAVMA delegate from University of Pennsylvania. (Photos by R. Scott Nolen)

Clockwise from top left: (A) Gin Blossoms, the ‘90s band famous for “Hey Jealousy” and “Found Out About You,” headline the AVMA Concert sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim. (B) The American Veterinary Medical Foundation charity event is where you go for food and entertainment. (C) 2016–17 AVMA President Tom Meyer speaks at the AVMA Keynote Brunch sponsored by Hill's Pet Nutrition. (D) Attendees network with convention speakers and AVMA leaders during the Meet-the-Experts Roundtable. (E) The AVMA Wheel of Well-being identifies activities that help improve the well-being of all members of the veterinary health care team. (F) Young veterinary professionals enjoy an evening in their honor at the NCAA Hall of Champions. (Photos by Matt Alexandre Photography and R. Scott Nolen)

Drs. Anna Reddish and Marci Kirk, assistant directors in the AVMA Membership and Field Services Division, show off an enlarged Wheel of Well-Being at the AVMA Pavilion during AVMA Convention 2017. They're holding the actual Wheels of Well-Being, which were designed to help incorporate wellness activities into everyday life. The Wheel of Well-Being is a new wellness handout that debuted at the convention. Below, it is pictured with a gratitude journal, one of the more than 30 activities included on the wheel. There is a heavy emphasis on activities that take only minutes to complete and can have an immediate effect on improving the well-being of those who are using it.

Dr. Tiffany Lyle (left), part of the incoming Future Leaders class, receives a commemorative compass from outgoing class member Dr. Katie Rhorig. (Photo by R. Scott Nolen)

Net tuition income as a percentage of public higher education total educational revenue, U.S., fiscal 1989–2015 (Source: 2017 AVMA & AAVMC Report on the Market for Veterinary Education)

(Source: ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center)

About 500 veterinary students presented research results through posters at the 18th annual National Veterinary Scholars Research Symposium, which ran Aug. 4–5 at the National Institutes of Health campus in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photos courtesy of Boehringer Ingelheim)

Jenna Parks, a student at Cornell University, describes her research to Dr. Roberto Alva, executive director of the Boehringer Ingelheim Veterinary Scholars Program.

Dr. Edward Breitschwerdt

Dr. Matt Allender and second-year veterinary student Irini Lamkin.

Dr. Alton F. Hopkins Jr.

Advertisement