Veterinary Students, Canine Health Professionals Gather in St. Louis for Insight on Medical and Scientific Advances

AKC Canine Health Foundation Hosts Successful 2015 National Parent Club Canine Health Conference Sponsored by Nestlé Purina PetCare 

The AKC Canine Health Foundation, a nonprofit organization celebrating 20 years of preventing, treating, and curing diseases in all dogs, hosted a successful 2015 National Parent Club Canine Health Conference August 7-9 in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals helped send 25 veterinary students from across the country to the biennial event sponsored by Nestlé Purina PetCare, which drew 230 attendees – an increase over the previous Conference in 2013 – and 23 speakers presenting the latest medical and scientific advances in preventing treating, and curing canine health issues.

“Purina was pleased to sponsor the AKC Canine Health Foundation National Parent Club Canine Health Conference. We especially are proud of working together for 20 years to help make dogs’ lives better. We are looking forward to many more years of this partnership,” said Sean Fitzgerald, Vice President, Professional Engagement Team, Nestlé Purina PetCare Company.

According to Susan Lilly, AKC Canine Health Foundation Chief Executive Officer, the biennial conference is a unique opportunity for supporters to hear from the foremost scientists and clinicians in the field of canine health research. 

“As the preeminent canine health organization, and the only one focused solely on dogs, we were proud to showcase our impact on the field of veterinary medicine,” she said. 

Lilly pointed to presentations such as “Stem Cell Therapy for Supraspinatus Tendonopathy” with Dr. Jennifer Barrett, “Regenerative Medicine Techniques to Treat Cartilage Disorders” with Dr. Brian Saunders and “The Human-Animal Bond/Quality of Life Scale” with keynote speaker, Dr. Alice Villalobos, as highlights of an outstanding speaker lineup.

“The human-animal bond is especially interesting as it relates to canine health issues, as there is increasing insight to the positive physical and mental health impacts on humans of bonding with dogs,” said the Foundation’s Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) Diane Brown, DVM, PhD, DACVP, adding, “New evidence also points to shared brain pathways between humans and dogs that may elucidate our understanding of important canine and human health issues.”

Dr. Brown was introduced as the Foundation’s new CSO at the Conference. 

Also featured at the Conference was the presentation of the Asa Mays, DVM Award for Excellence in Canine Health Research to Douglas Thamm, VMD, DACVIM, Associate Professor of Oncology at the Colorado State University Flint Animal Cancer Center.

“I am gratified to be one of the first clinical researchers to receive this award, and that CHF is continuing to fund outstanding clinical research in addition to their outstanding track record in canine genetics,” Dr. Thamm said.