The 2021-2022 Small Animal Seminar Series (SAS) series is packed with quality CE for you and your staff. Topics include Dermatology, Honoring Ourselves as We Honor the Veterinary Oath, Hospice and Euthanasia, Behavior, Internal Medicine with a special focus on feline renal disease, and Neurology. Our expert speakers from around the country will provide 6 hours of CE during each seminar. That's a total of 36 hours of CE if you join us for the entire series! Click the links below to learn more and register! 

SPEAKERS |  SCHEDULE  |  PACKAGE REGISTRATION (SALE!)  |  FAQ

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

LIMITED TIME PROMOTION: Register the same person for all 6 seminars and SAVE BIG! The deadline to register for all 6 seminars is Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021. After that date, you may register for individual seminars at their standard rates. 

BROCHURE: Please note, MVMA will not be mailing out a SAS brochure. Access to all the information, plus more can be found on this page.

LOCATION: The Meeting Space is located at 4039 Legacy Pkwy, Lansing, MI 48911. Free parking will be available for all attendees. A virtual option will be made available for those with difficulty traveling. Click here for important details. 

REGISTRATION: Registration is now open and can be accessed by clicking the links above. The "PACKAGE REGISTRATION" link above will direct you to the seminar package promotion. If you would like to register for the individual sessions, please click the registration links under each event in the Small Animal Seminar Schedule section. 

CANCELLATION POLICIES: To learn more about the Small Animal Series Seminars cancellation policies, click here. 

ON-DEMAND: These sessions will not be recorded and will not be available for on-demand at a later date. 

SMALL ANIMAL SEMINAR SCHEDULE

Sandra Diaz Vergara, DVM, MS Diplomate ACVD

Dermatology
September 8, 2021

Sessions Include:

• Feline Cutaneous Reaction Patterns
• Feline Eosinophilic granuloma
• Approach to Feline Facial Pruritus
• Management Feline Atopic Skin Syndrome
• Crusty Cats: Feline Pemphigus Foliaceus
• Miscellaneous Feline Dermatoses

Click Here to Register for Dermatology

Kimberly Pope Robinson, DVM, CCFP

Honoring Ourselves as We Honor the Veterinary Oath
October 6, 2021

Sessions Include:

• Finding Our Unique Path Towards Career Sustainability
• Discovering Resilience in Creativity
• What Bubbles Teach Us About
• Creating a Practice of Staying Connected to Our Passion
• Habits, The Patterns That Drive Us
• Summary - Living Our Authentic Individual Careers In Veterinary Medicine

Click Here to Register for Honoring Ourselves as We Honor the Veterinary Oath

Mary Gardner, DVM

Hospice and Euthanasia
November 10, 2021

Sessions Include:

• Practical Care for the Geriatric Patient
• Helping owners with Assessing Quality of Life
  
• 5 Ingredients to Veterinary Hospice
  
• The Art of Euthanasia
  

Click Here to Register for Hospice and Euthanasia

Theresa L. DePorter DVM, ECAWBM, DACVB

Behavior 
March 9, 2022

Sessions Include:

• Coming Soon

Click Here to Register for Behavior

Jessica M. Quimby, DVM, PhD, DACVIM

Internal Medicine [with a special focus on feline renal disease]
April 20, 2022

Sessions Include:

• Management of Acute on Chronic Uremic Crisis
• Feeding the Finicky Kidney Kitty
• Updates on Management of Feline CKD
• Hyperthyroidism & CKD: Now what?
• The Conundrum of Subclinical Bacteriuria
• Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Ureteral Obstruction

Click Here to Register for Internal Medicine

Heidi Barnes Heller, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM

Neurology 
May 11, 2022

Sessions Include:

Click Here to Register for Neurology 

SMALL ANIMAL SEMINAR SPEAKERS

Sandra Diaz Vergara, DVM, MS Diplomate ACVD

The Ohio State University Veterinary Medical Center 

Dr. Diaz Vergara is currently an Assistant Professor in Clinical Dermatology with the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences of The Ohio State University. She obtained her Bachelor in Veterinary Sciences in 1994 and her DVM degree in 1996 from the Universidad Santo Tomas located Santiago, Chile in 1994. Dr. Diaz Vergara received her MS from the University of Minnesota in 2003 and completed her residency in 2006. Her current research interests include disorders of hair and hair growth, canine and feline allergic disorders, and canine and feline otitis.

Small Animal Series Seminar:

Kimberly Pope Robinson, DVM, CCFP

1 Life Connected

Dr. Pope has been in veterinary medicine for over 20 years, practicing in both the large and small animal sectors. Her broad career experience has provided her a unique understanding of the stresses involved with maintaining a career in this industry. She now dedicates her time to providing wellbeing support for the profession in developing the 1 Life Connected movement and shares this message through 1 on 1 coaching, customized team events, author to “The Unspoken Life”, and as a dynamic international speaker. In the end, Dr. Pope truly believes that we are all 1 Life Connected. Dr. Pope lives in Maryland where she enjoys spending time outside exploring with her husband Jeff. They share their home with multiple furry and feathered friends including Dempsey (French Bulldog), Graciebird and Rainier (both tuxedo DSH cats), and Maui (Greater Sulphur Cockatoo) often showcased in the 1 Life Connected movement. In addition, she is active as an athlete and has completed 10 Tough Mudders and was working towards running a 1/2 marathon in every state prior to COVID 19 entering the stage.

Small Animal Series Seminar:

Mary Gardner, DVM

Lap of Love Veterinary Hospice

After graduating from the University of Miami, she began working as a Technical Business Architect for an order and supply chain management software company. Her innate talent for understanding logistics in a client-centric organization developed a unique skill set for a veterinarian. After 10 years in software she found herself longing for something different and more meaningful – the path she selected was to become a veterinarian. She completed her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine in 2008 from the University of Florida. After spending two years in general practice, her friend and fellow UF graduate, Dr. Dani McVay, reached out to her about partnering in Lap of Love, which offered end of life services for pets and had been flourishing in the year that she began its service. Together they took the company from one veterinarian in Tampa to over 130 veterinarians around the country. Dr. Mary leads development for Lap of Love's proprietary web-based practice management software called Sunshine. The program is specifically designed for veterinary hospice and euthanasia services and also dynamically ties to the Lap of Love website to allow families the ability to locate the veterinarian closest to them. Throughout the years, she has also developed The Pet Hospice Journal, an online Quality of Life Assessment program, as well as the first Quality of Life App (Grey Muzzle), both of which are free to the public. She received the Alumni Achievement Award from the University of Florida in 2016 and was voted the veterinarian to watch in 2018 by Fetch/DVM360. Geriatric medicine, the aging process in animals and teaching family’s practical ways to care and manage their elder pets is Dr. Mary’s passion. Dr. Mary is on the advisory board of Babel Bark, The Grey Muzzle Organization, Vet Soap, as well as Prized Pals.

Small Animal Series Seminar:

Theresa L. DePorter DVM, ECAWBM, DACVB

Oakland Veterinary Referral Services

Theresa DePorter is board certified diplomate in the American College of Veterinary Behavior (ACVB) and the European College of Animal Welfare and Behavioral Medicine (ECAWBM). She received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Purdue University and her Bachelor of Science in Biology in 1992. She has been seeing behavior consultations at Oakland Veterinary Referral Services in metropolitan Detroit, Michigan since 2004. Dr. DE Porter’s research and publication interests include: reducing stress during veterinary visits, cognitive dysfunction, canine anxiety, feline aggression, nutritional supplements and pheromones. She received the VBS R.K. Anderson ACVB Resident Award 2012 for research done with Leader Dogs for the Blind and CEVA Animal Health. Theresa DePorter enjoys traveling to conferences on veterinary behavior to bring innovative and international perspectives on behavior and welfare for our feline and canine family members. In addition to many regional veterinary medical associations, she has presented to the Companion Animal Behavior Study Therapy Group (Birmingham UK), European Society of Veterinary Clinical Ethology (Avignon, France and Martini, Switzerland), Interdisciplinary Forum for Applied Animal Behavior (New Orleans, LA), and Ontario Association of Veterinary Technicians (Toronto, ON). She attended the NAVC Institute Behavioral Medicine course by Karen Overall. Dr. DePorter is dedicated to using scientific and research based experiences to help the individual pet while promoting loving family bonds. Many pets suffer from behavior problems, anxieties and medical conditions which influence their behavior and their welfare. Theresa DePorter looks forward to helping you understand your pet’s misbehaviors and providing effective solutions which include kindness, respect, gentleness and compassion for dogs and cats.

Small Animal Series Seminar:

Jessica M. Quimby, DVM, PhD, DACVIM

The Ohio State University Veterinary Medical Center

Dr. Quimby received her veterinary degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and completed a small animal rotating internship in Sacramento, CA. She subsequently spent two years in feline practice in Grand Rapids, Michigan before moving on to Colorado State University for a combined small animal internal medicine residency and PhD program. She completed a PhD focusing on feline CKD in 2012 and was faculty at Colorado State until 2017. Dr. Quimby is now a faculty member at the Ohio State University. Her research continues to focus on chronic kidney disease in cats. Current research areas include the study of renal ageing, telomere length and cellular senescence, novel treatment strategies and evidence-based supportive care strategies. She has an interest in clinical trials and feline clinical pharmacology which is aimed at improving supportive care and quality of life in cats with chronic kidney disease. Dr. Quimby has received the International Renal Interest Society Award and the AVMF/Winn Feline Foundation Research Award for her contributions to nephrology and feline medicine.

Small Animal Series Seminar:

Heidi Barnes Heller, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM 

Barnes Veterinary Specialty Services, LLC

Dr. Barnes obtained her veterinary degree from Michigan State University in 2000, followed by a rotating internship at the University of Illinois and a residency in neurology/neurosurgery at the University of Florida. Dr. Barnes is board certified from the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. She was the staff neurologist outside of Chicago Illinois until December 2010, after which time she joined the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine in neurology and neurosurgery. In 2019, Dr. Barnes founded Barnes Veterinary Specialty Services; a mobile neurology and neurosurgery business serving Wisconsin and Northern Illinois with tele-neurology services nationwide.

Small Animal Series Seminar:

LIMITED TIME PROMOTION: Register the same person for all 6 seminars and SAVE BIG! The deadline to register for all 6 seminars is Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021. After that date, you may register for individual seminars at their standard rates.

Click Here to Register for the Six Session Small Animal Series