Sunday, October 4

Breakfast: 7:00 am – 8:00 am
Course: 8:00 am – 12:00 pm

Registration Fee:

$220 — Before August 27
$270 — Walk-up / On-site

Just Breathe: Anesthesia for Brachycephalics

Brachycephalic breeds—including French Bulldogs, English Bulldogs, Pugs, Shih Tzus, Boston Terriers, Persians, and Himalayans—are not only difficult anesthetic candidates, they are also predisposed to ophthalmic disease requiring anesthesia for both diagnostics and treatment of conditions such as corneal ulcers, entropion, cataracts, and globe injuries. Emphasis will be placed on strategies to safely anesthetize these patients for ophthalmic procedures, including tactics to minimize airway complications, reduce stress, and mitigate recovery-associated airway obstruction. This lecture aims to provide a practical, evidence-based approach to anesthetizing brachycephalic dogs and cats, covering preoperative preparation, airway assessment, anesthetic drug selection, extubation strategies, oxygen supplementation, and management of common emergencies.

Age is Not a Disease

Pediatric and geriatric patients can present anesthetic challenges that extend far beyond their chronological age. This lecture explores the physiologic differences that influence anesthetic drug selection, monitoring, and perioperative management in the youngest and oldest veterinary patients, with a focus on minimizing complications related to thermoregulation, cardiovascular function, respiration, and drug metabolism. Attendees will gain practical strategies for developing age-appropriate anesthetic protocols, recognizing common comorbidities, and optimizing recovery, particularly in ophthalmic patients where repeated anesthetic events, systemic disease, vision impairment, and extremes in age can be common.

 Seeing Red Flags: Cardiac Disease and Perianesthetic Risk

This lecture provides a practical approach to anesthetizing dogs and cats with suspected or confirmed heart disease, emphasizing how to interpret common cardiac diagnostics such as echocardiogram measurements, understand disease-specific hemodynamic goals, and select anesthetic drugs and fluid plans for patients with known cardiac disease. Attendees will also be instructed on how to create a cardiac-safe anesthetic protocol for patients with cardiac disease without a full cardiology workup prior to anesthesia.

Are We Out of the Woods Yet? Troubleshooting the Difficult Anesthetic Recovery

Anesthetic recovery is the period when veterinary patients are at the greatest risk for complications; this often-overlooked part of anesthesia should be heavily emphasized in all practices performing sedation and general anesthesia. In this lecture, attendees will learn how to develop a structured recovery protocol, identify patient- and procedure-related risk factors for anesthetic morbidity and mortality, and systematically troubleshoot common recovery complications. Through practical recovery algorithms and case examples, participants will gain confidence in recognizing recovery complications, prioritizing diagnostic and therapeutic interventions, and implementing evidence-based strategies to improve overall anesthetic outcomes.