30 countries represented at AASV annual meeting
The 43rd annual meeting of the American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV), held in Denver, Colorado, March 10-13, attracted just over 1,000 attendees from over 30 countries.
The meeting, held at the Hyatt Regency, drew 1,004 total attendees, among which a record 164 students. The participants represented 30 countries including the United States. Total attendance included 220 allied industry representatives.
The participants were presented with numerous educational sessions including nine pre-conference workshops, two general sessions, three break-out sessions, research topics, industrial partner sessions, 15 student seminar presentations and 54 posters.
Integrating science into practice
Dr Dean Boyd opened the Monday general session with the Howard Dunne Memorial Lecture.
His presentation, entitled “How to integrate science into practice to improve business viability,” explored the impact of animal health and performance on economic viability in pork production.
Science, welfare, economics
Dr Lisa Tokach followed up with the Alex Hogg Memorial Lecture entitled “Science, welfare, and economics: Are they cornerstones or just a balancing act?”
She provided a thought-provoking look into daily practice challenges in contrast to global perspectives derived from her recent experiences with the Heifer International Program.
The second half of the Monday morning session included presentations on swine immunology, applying evidence-based population medicine in practice and improving the welfare of the diseased or injured pig.
Control and elimination of PRRS
The Tuesday general session was devoted to swine influenza and the regional control and elimination of the PRRS virus.
All of the general session presentations on Monday and Tuesday were video recorded and will be posted in the video library of the AASV website in the near future.
Awards
The AASV awards reception was held Monday night followed by the AASV Foundation’s annual fund-raising auction. Dr Kerry Keffaber, 2008 AASV president and chair of the 2012 Awards Selection Committee, presented the recipients of the Howard Dunne Memorial Award (Dr Tom Stein), the Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year Award (Dr Brad Gramm), the Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year Award (Dr Deb Murray), the Meritorious Service Award (Dr Morgan Morrow), and the award for Swine Practitioner of the Year (Dr George Charbonneau).
The 2013 annual meeting will be held March 2-5 in San Diego, CA and the board selected New Orleans, LA as the site for the 2016 annual meeting.
Related website:
• Association of American Swine Veterinarians (AASV)
Join 18,000+ subscribers
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay updated about all the need-to-know content in the pigsector, three times a week.
