June 18, 2026
Cracking the Code: A Master Class in Acid-Base Disturbances
7:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Speakers
• Dr. Amie Koenig
• Dr. Amy Kaplan
Learning Objectives:
• How to interpret arterial and venous blood gas values (and know when each is appropriate)
• A stepwise strategy for identifying the primary acid-base disturbance
• Common differentials for each type of disturbance and how to prioritize them
• How to identify and manage mixed disturbances that might be hiding in plain sight
• When to worry—and when not to—based on compensatory patterns
Cytology Confidence: Mastering Sample Collection & Interpretation
7:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Speakers
• Dr. Sarah Beatty
• Dr. Holly Brown
Lectures:
• From Patient to Slide to Stain to Scope: Sample Collection & Pre-Analytic Success in Cytology
• Lumps & Bumps: Cytology of Skin and Subcutaneous
• Also at the Scope: Blood Films and Fluid Cytologies
• Reading the Nodes: A Practical Approach to Lymph Node Cytology
• Real World Microscopy: Cytology Potpourri Challenge
Learning Objectives:
• Best practices for cytologic sample collection and preparation
• How to avoid non-diagnostic or artifact-laden slides
• Step-by-step analysis of lymph node, cutaneous mass cytology, joint fluid, blood smears and urine samples
• Interpretation of inflammatory vs. neoplastic processes
• When to send out vs. when to interpret in-house
• Real-world case examples that reinforce practical application
June 19, 2026
Coffee Talk
7:00 AM-7:30 AM
Coffee Talk
Morning Yoga
7:00 AM-7:30 AM
Conference Extras
What’s New, What’s Tricky, What’s Critical
9:15 AM - 10:15 AM
Speakers
• Dr. Garret Pachtinger
• Dr. Justine Lee
Lectures include:
AI in VetMed - Why Knowing It Exists Isn’t Enough — You Need to Use It!
Leaf It Alone: Common Plant Poisons in Small Animals
Blocked & Broken: Navigating Feline Urethral Obstruction and Tears
Living the Sweet Life
9:30 AM- 10:30 AM
Speakers
• Jessica Wilson-Hess
• Amanda Shelby
Lectures include:
• Sugar, Spice, and Everything Precise: Chronic Diabetes Management That Works
• Sweet Talk: Communicating Diabetes Care That Sticks
• Sweet Dreams: Anesthesia for the Diabetic
Laboratory-Know-How: The Art of Clinical Pathology
10:45 AM - 11:45 AM
Speaker
• Dr. Holly Brown
Lectures include:
• The Diagnostic Blind Spot: Decoding the Challenging Diagnosis of Acute Anaplasmosis
• Using the In-Clinic Lab to Get Critical, In-time Insights into Body Cavity Effusions (When Finding Out Tomorrow May Be Too Late!)
• Pale Patient Panic: Anemia Made Simple
CSI: Clinical Sample Investigation
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Speaker
• Jessica Wilson-Hess
Lectures include:
• Earful of Evidence: Cracking the Case of Chronic Otitis (Wilson-Hess)
• The Golden Clue: Crystals in Urinalysis (Wilson-Hess)
• The Fluid Files: Making Sense of Ascities
Lunch
12:45 PM - 1:45 PM
ECC Curveballs: Bites, Blood Sugar, and Blunt-Force Trauma
1:45 PM - 3:15 PM
Speaker
• Dr. Amie Koenig
Lectures include:
• DKA in Disguise: How SGLT2 Inhibitors Mask Diabetics in Crisis
• When the Bite is Worse than the Bark (Koenig)
• Feline Hyperaldosteronism: The Underdiagnosed Syndrome of the Overactive Adrenal
• Low-Speed but High Impact: Characteristics of Low-Speed Vehicular Rollover Injuries in Dogs
Cancer on the Clock: Updates, Evidence, and Emergencies
3:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Speaker
• Dr. Craig Clifford
Lectures include:
• Oncology in Review: Top 5 Advancements
• Bladder Cancer in Dogs: What's the Latest?
• Anything New With Canine Mast Cell Tumors?
• Oncology Emergencies: How To Handle and What To Do
Lab Logic
3:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Speakers
• Dr. Holly Brown
• Jessica Wilson-Hess
Lectures include:
• Beyond the Printout: What The CBC Isn't Telling You
• Well, Well, Well(ness): Finding the Value in Routine Labwork
• Getting it Right Before You Hit "Run"
• Real-World Lab Tips They Don't Teach You in School
June 20, 2026
Morning Yoga
7:00 AM - 7:30 AM
Elanco Sponsored Breakfast Lecture
8:00 AM - 8:50 AM
Gastrointestinal Surgery From Ingestion to Incision
9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Speakers
• Dr. S. Christopher Ralphs
• Dr. Amy Kaplan
Lectures include:
• Knot Your Average Closure OR Knotty but Nice: How to Bury Like a Boss
• Gut Instincts: Mastering Gastrotomy & Gastropexy
• Hold It Together: Secrets to Successful Enterotomies
• Don't Lose Your Lunch: Tackling Post-Operative Vomiting and Regurgitation
The Broken Bite: Managing Feline Jaw Fractures
10:45 AM - 11:45 AM
Speakers
• Amy Johnson
• Emily-lone Kinney
Lectures include:
• Jaw Dropping Cases: An Introduction to Feline Jaw Fractures
• Purrfectly Managed: Anesthesia and Pain Protocols for Feline Jaw Trauma
Sedation With a Purpose: Outpatient Diagnostics From Jaw to Joint
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Speaker
• Dr. S. Christopher Ralphs
Lectures include:
• Q's Favorite Outpatient Sedation Protocols
• Hindlimb Lameness & Interpreting Stifle Rads
• Shut Yo Mouth! Solving the Mandibular Malalignment Mystery
Lunch
1:00 PM - 1:50 PM
From Womb to Woof: Practical Theriogenology for Neonatal Success
2:00 PM - 3:15 PM
Speakers
• Dr. S. Christopher Ralphs
• Dr. Jane Quandt
Lectures include:
• Whelp...That One is Stuck!
• Lights Out, Litter Out: C-Section Anesthesia
• Stat C-Section! Calm, Clean, and Confident
• Fading Fast: Neonatal Critical Care
Ocular Oddities
3:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Speaker
• Dr. Shelby Reinstein
Lectures include:
• The Angry Cornea: But What if the STT is Normal?
• Ocular FIP: A Cut & Dry Diagnosis
• New Fear Unlocked: Eye Worms!
• All Things Eyeball Q:A
TBI: When the Head Takes a Hit
3:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Speakers
• Beka Major
• Amanda Shelby
Lectures include:
• Triage and Initial Response to Head Trauma
• Brainstorming Anesthetic Strategies for TBI
• Critical Connections: Nursing Interventions for Traumatic Brain Injury
• Life After TBI
June 21, 2026
Morning Yoga
7:00 AM - 7:30 AM
Blue Buffalo
8:00 AM - 8:50 AM
Labs, Lies, and Radiographic Truths
9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Speakers
• Dr. Justine Lee
• Dr. Amy Kaplan
Lectures include:
• Hidden in Plain Sight: Sneaky Lab Clues in the ER
Small, Spicy, & Special
9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Speakers
• Amy Johnson
• Amanda Shelby
Lectures include:
• How will I know? Sexing & Handling of Small Exotic Mammals Part 1
• How will I know? Sexing & Handling of Small Exotic Mammals Part 2
• Sedation & Anesthesia of Not So Common Species
• Anesthesia/Analgesia for Brachycephalics: Minimizing Risk
Anesthesia is Easy...Until it Isn't
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Speakers
• Dr. Jane Quandt
• Dr. Amy Kaplan
Lectures include:
• Anesthesia for the Heartworm Positive Dog
• Capno-Confessions: What Those ETCO2 Waves Are Telling You
• When Dreamland Turns to Code Land: CPR Under Anesthesia
The Art of Anesthesia
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Speaker
• Amanda Shelby
Lectures include:
• Decoding the Swiggle, ECG Interpretation of Common Arrhythmias
• Reading the Waves of Capnography
• Rebreathing vs Non-rebreathing: Making the Best Selection
