With HSUS Expo and the AVMA cancelling their in-person conferences, what are animal welfare veterinarians and veterinary technicians supposed to do to get the CE required to maintain their state licensure? Sites like VIN, Clinician’s Brief, Maddie’s University and ASPCApro often have single classes or webinars that provide RACE credits, but unless watched live, there is no opportunity to engage with the speaker or ask questions, and little opportunity to engage with friends.
Luckily, in an age of technology, upcoming animal welfare conferences are on-line in real time and provide RACE credit. Additionally, they provide opportunities for interaction and networking — enter the virtual cocktail/mocktail hour.
5/20-5/21/2020 Humane Canada’s National Animal Welfare Conference
This Wednesday-Thursday conference will be held online and everyone is welcome to attend. The conference includes break-out conversations and morning coffee hours with sponsors, and a host of speakers on a variety of topics from what to keep from the COVID response to First Nations dog programs to canine behavior and neonatal diarrhea. Featured speakers include Barbara Cartwright, Elisabeth Ormandy, Allan Corber, Alexandra Protopopova, and Jessica Dolce. Many lectures also count toward AAWA certification. Registration is CA$100, which includes a 30-day window to go back and watch any recorded content. All times listed are EST.
6/16-6/17/2020 AAWA’s Spring Conference for Animal Welfare
This Tuesday-Wednesday conference features a virtual exhibit hall, general sessions, four session tracks to choose from, and a new shelter medicine track in collaboration with the ASV. Topics include social media marketing, leading change, creating responsible pet ownership programs, and the science behind caring for neonates. Featured speakers include Sarah Wooten, Marty Becker, Julie Levy, Sandra Newbury, and Scott Weese. Registration fees vary according to your professional memberships and range from $99-$199. (ASV members can get $25 off two-day registration)
7/11-7/12/2020 ASPCA-Cornell-Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Conference
This annual Saturday-Sunday conference is going ahead as scheduled but switching to an on-line format. Two tracks (Staff/volunteer/management and Medical) will be offered. Speakers are just being invited and the schedule isn’t quite set, but this information will be available soon. Planned guests include Phil Bushby, Elizabeth Berliner and many others. Since this will be an on-line conference, registration this year will likely have no cap and may even be free of charge. Stay tuned!
7/31-8/4/2020 AVMA Convention Virtual Event?
Not much is currently available regarding this event and CE/networking opportunities. More details will be available in the next few weeks. Stay tuned for more information!
Will there be in-person conferences in the fall? It’s still uncertain. In the meantime, we’ll try to keep you updated as we hear more. Good luck and keep learning!
July 2020: HSUS Expo Online
Just announced, Humane Expo will also be going online in July of 2020. Although the dates have yet to be finalized, the cost of this conference has been reduced to just $29 dollars in honor of their 29th anniversary. We’ll update this post when we know more.
