Speakers

Lisa A. Fortier is the Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAVMA) and The American Journal of Veterinary Research (AJVR) and Publications Division Director at the American Veterinary Medical association. She is also the James Law Professor of Surgery at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. She received her DVM from Colorado State University and completed her PhD and surgical residency training at Cornell University. She is boarded with the American College of Veterinary Surgeons and practices equine orthopedic surgery at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York and at the Cornell Ruffian Equine Specialists in Elmont, New York.  Her laboratory has a particular interest in translational research including the prevention of post-traumatic osteoarthritis. In addition, Dr. Fortier’s research program investigates the clinical application of stem cells and biologics such as platelet rich plasma and bone marrow concentrate for cartilage repair and tendinosis.  She has received the Jaques Lemans Award from the International Cartilage Repair Society, the New Investigator Research Award from the Orthopaedic Research Society, the Pfizer Research Award for Research Excellence from Cornell University, and the SUNY Chancellors Award for Scholarship and Creative Activities, the Kappa Delta Award, and the American Association of Veterinary Clinicians Faculty Achievement Award. Dr. Fortier has served as the Vice President of the International Veterinary Regenerative Medicine Society, and President of the International Cartilage Repair Society.

• "How to get your work published and noticed - through the eyes of an Editor-In-Chief"
• Keynote Speech: "Intra-articular Approaches to Osteoarthritis"

Dr. Maria Camila Ceballos graduated in Animal Science in Colombia, at The National University of Colombia (2010). Following the completion of her undergraduate studies, she has worked in the field of animal welfare and behavior, first as a researcher in the CIPAV Foundation (Center for Research in Sustainable Systems of Agricultural Production), in Colombia, focusing on the evaluation of dairy and beef cattle welfare and behavior in sustainable production systems. Then, she started a Masters at the São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Brazil, addressing the effects of handling frequency of cattle kept under rotational and alternative grazing systems, with a focus on how cattle handling impacted their temperament. Afterward, she completed her Ph.D. at the same University (UNESP), focused on human-cattle relationships and its effects on cattle welfare, as reflected in temperament, behavior, physiology, and performance measures. By the end of her Ph.D. program, Maria Camila secured an internship at the Animal Welfare Science Centre (University of Melbourne - Australia), where she participated in a project focused on the human-animal relationship and dairy cattle welfare. In 2018, she started working at the University of Pennsylvania, the USA, as a post-doctoral researcher, mainly focusing on assessing the welfare and behavior of breeding sows housed in different housing systems. Dr. Ceballos is currently an Assistant Professor in Beef Cattle Welfare and Behavior, W.A. Ranches at the University of Calgary, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine. 

Horse welfare - what is it and why is it important?

Michael S. Davis is a veterinary physiologist and board-certified specialist in veterinary internal medicine and veterinary sports medicine at Oklahoma State University where he conducts research on animal exercise physiology and performance. His studies in horses have demonstrated the induction of asthma-like airway disease by strenuous exercise performed in cold environments. Canine studies have included the development and validation of preventative methods for exercise-induced gastric disease as well as helping to identify novel metabolic pathways used by elite canine athletes to support fatigue-resistant endurance exercise. These studies have provided the United States Armed Forces with valuable information on the physiological capabilities of working dogs, as well as the methods for producing maximal performance and sustainability of these dogs. His current research focus is the mechanisms by which mitochondria maintain (or fail to maintain) adequate supply of ATP during physiochemical extremes typical of strenuous exercise such as high temperature and low pH. As a professional educator for 20 years and with numerous national and international speaking events, Dr. Davis has extensive training and experience in educating a variety of different audiences.

Fresh Out of the Gate: Breaking News in Equine Exercise Physiology

Dr. Davis will present an overview of newly published studies and impactful insights in the field of equine exercise physiology and sports medicine, illustrating how these new ideas integrate into the knowledge base regarding equine athletes.

Dr. Rosa obtained her DVM from Cornell University (New York, USA) in 2004 and then completed an internship in Ambulatory and Production Medicine. She went on to work in New Zealand at the Massey University Equine Clinic and then obtained her PhD from Massey University in 2014. Her current work in veterinary pharmacology began with sessional instructing and progressed to completing a postdoc in pharmacology before accepting a position as Assistant Professor of Veterinary Pharmacology. As part of her academic appointment, Dr. Rosa also continues to practice part-time as an equine-focused general practice veterinarian in rural Alberta.

Equine Pharmacology News Flash: Current Updates 

In this session we’ll take an in-depth look at some of the new and exciting happenings in the world of equine medications. Expect to freshen up your pharmacology skills while we consider some of the hottest new treatments out there for horses. 
 

Thilo's career path took a fascinating turn. He started with a PhD in speech recognition at the Technical University of Munich, focusing on the technical side of communication. However, his interests shifted towards the biomechanics of movement, leading him to the Royal Veterinary College in London. There, he delved into animal locomotion, researching gait patterns in quadrupeds like horses and camels, and even applying his knowledge to lameness detection in cows and horses. This passion for animal movement analysis continued when Thilo joined the University of Calgary in 2021. Now, with a joint appointment in Faculty of Kinesiology and Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, he's utilizing both traditional and emerging technologies to further understand how animals move.

Quadrupedal Gait Analysis in the Field

What’s new in Equine Gait Analysis? Beyond ‘head nod’ and ‘hip hike’!

Artificial intelligence has led to the availability of equine gait analysis apps analyzing video data taken with your smartphone [1]. The convenience of this approach allows for gait analysis ‘at scale’ quantifying movement parameters associated with lameness, such as ‘head nod’ and ‘hip hike’. Based on the current literature, this overview will touch on the importance of accuracy and precision in the context of gait analysis [2,3], with particular reference to evidence-based decision-making based on dynamic movement parameters. 

We will then provide a brief overview of recent studies with relevance to clinical decision-making and injury prediction and explain, how additional movement parameters – going beyond ‘head nod’ and ‘hip hike‘ – allow for a differentiation between ‘primary’ and ‘compensatory’ movement patterns in lame horses [4]. Finally, we will outline how to benefit from gait analysis by enhancing our understanding about ‘whole body biomechanics’ through quantifying back movement [5–7] and how the measurement of ‘fundamental’ stride characteristics contributes to injury prediction.