(Please note that these optional breakfast forums are not included in the regular registration fee. Each forum is available for registration at $25.)
Small Animal Sessions
Equine Sessions
Description
Care of the critically ill patient has long been an area of specialization within the field of physical therapy. In this forum, we will explore how we can use these principles for our critically ill small animal patients.
Speaker Bio
Helen Nicholson graduated with a Bachelor of Physiotherapy from the University of Queensland in 1996 and began working with animals in 1999. She completed the APTA home study course and several practical courses from ACPAT (UK) and CHAP (Canadian) physiotherapists before being part of the first class and a peer tutor for the Master of Animal Studies (Animal Physiotherapy) program through the University of Queensland in 2003-2004. In 2005, Helen began the first PhD in canine physiotherapy that we know of in the world, with a focus on physiotherapy for critically ill dogs. Helen has lectured and taught practical courses to vets, vet nurses and physiotherapists in Australia, Italy, the UK and Japan, and looks forward to stimulating your interest in this exciting field of small animal care!
Feeding for Fitness, Friday, August 15
Julie Churchill, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM
Description
Nutritional therapy, partnered with rehabilitation, can improve outcomes in the management of canine rehabilitation patients and athletes alike.
Speaker Bio
Julie Churchill earned her DVM at Michigan State University and her PhD at the University of Minnesota. Her research interests include nutritional management of renal diseases, nutrition needs of geriatric patients, obesity management, and nutrition in the role of maintaining wellness. Dr. Churchill's clinical interests include weight loss management and obesity prevention, critical care nutrition, nutritional needs of geriatrics, and the role of nutrition in integrative medicine. In addition to her research and clinical work, Dr. Churchill also teaches Small Animal Clinical Nutrition to veterinary students.
Description
Assistive devices have been used to aide in the rehabilitation of dysfunctional patients. During this session, we will discuss the decision-making process for developing optimal orthotics and prosthetics for patients and how these assistive devices fit into the rehabilitation protocol. Emphasis will be on orthotics and prosthetics for small animal patients.
Speaker Bio
Ben Blecha is a Certified Prosthetist/Orthotist, who received his degree in prosthetics and orthotics from the University of Texas Southwestern in Dallas. He has worked at the Shriner’s Children’s Hospital in Greenville, South Carolina where he took an interest in the gait lab. When he moved to Denver, Colorado, he shifted his creative focus to working with animals at the Alameda East Veterinary Hospital. Currently he runs his own private practice that serves both human and animal patients. His outlook is simple... biomechanically-correct solutions.
Clinical Research Techniques, Thursday, August 14
Hilary M. Clayton, BVMS, PhD, MRCVS
Description
This talk will describe methods for objective evaluation of the effects of physical therapy and rehabilitation in the McPhail Equine Performance Center. The discussion will include cost of equipment, level of expertise and training required to use the equipment, and the value of the resulting information. Techniques that will be discussed include motion analysis, force plates and pressure mats, electromyography, ultrasonography and pressure measurements. The use of these techniques will be illustrated using examples from current research studies in the McPhail Center.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Hilary Clayton graduated from Glasgow University Veterinary College in 1973 and spent 2 years working in a mixed veterinary practice in Scotland before returning to Glasgow University to complete a PhD. Dr. Clayton’s research interests are in the area of equine sport science, especially biomechanics and conditioning of sport horses, and the interaction between rider and horse. Her research uses sophisticated equipment and computer programs to analyze the horse’s gaits and movement patterns. Dr. Clayton is a past President of the Association for Equine Sports Medicine and a former Board Member of the American Association of Equine Practitioners.
Equine Podiatry: Rehabilitation for Laminitis, Friday, August 15
Raul Bras, DVM
Description
This session will provide an introduction to the anatomy and physiology of the inner hoof wall and go through a description of laminitis as a disease of the foot. We will explore current research on laminitis, and will discuss clinical approaches to rehabilitating the laminitic foot.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Bras was born and raised in Puerto Rico showing Paso Fino horses. He graduated from Louisiana State University with a bachelor's degree in animal science. He continued with his veterinary education at Ross University and graduated in 2005 after a clinical year at Auburn University. He completed an equine internship at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Kentucky. After his internship he attended the Cornell University Farrier School with Michael Wildenstein where he worked in close association with the veterinary school. He returned to Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital as an associate and works in the Podiatry Department.
Horse and Rider Interaction: a physiotherapeutic approach in a veterinary-physiotherapeutic setting, Friday, August 15
Solange Schrijer, Animal Physiotherapist, The Netherlands
Description
This lecture will highlight the complexity of the biomechanical interaction of horse and rider, as well as the complexity of physiotherapeutic intervention in riding in a physiotherapeutic - veterinary setting. As an active rider with roots in Physical Education, and as one of the first animal physiotherapists interfering in training and riding at a Veterinary Practise on a structural basis in the Netherlands, Solange will discuss in an interactive approach general physiotherapeutic objectives in horse - rider interaction, required qualities for physiotherapeutic interference in training,limitations and possibilities for intervention in a physiotherapeutic - veterinary setting, "veterinary cultural hesitation" to interfere with training, current status in evidence based information, and the current status in the education on Animal Physiotherapy related to training / riding in the Netherlands.
Solange will discuss a developed protocol for horse - rider interaction interference based on 10 years of practice at the Veterinary Practise Bodegraven succesfully optimizing veterinary treatment efficacy and duration, reducing "cultural "/ emotional differences in opinion related to different styles in training, and supporting the increasing veterinary interest in management issues. Some case studies will be discussed to support the emphasized issues.
Speaker Bio
Solange Schrijer is a physiotherapist and instructor in equine physiotherapy and chiropractic in the Netherlands. She has been an invited speaker at the Schools of Veterinary Medicine in Utrecht, Gent and Barcelona as well as at former VetPT Symposia.