Registration Opens for the 2021 AABP Annual Conference, Theme Is 'Science With Practice'

The “Crossroads of the West” will offer “Science with Practice” at the 2021 54th American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) Annual Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, Oct. 7-9. The 2021 conference will feature both in-person and virtual registration options. AABP members and non-members can register for the in-person event, and members can register for virtual components. Register at http://aabp.org/meeting/register2021.asp. Preregistration for in-person attendance ends September 3, and online registration ends September 24.

“The AABP Annual Conference is our largest event each year,” says AABP Executive Director Dr. K. Fred Gingrich, II. “Even though our event was disrupted last year, our organization continued to provide member benefits with a successful virtual conference. We are looking forward to meeting in person in Salt Lake City, implementing appropriate safety measures and encouraging those who are able to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to get immunized so that we can network and socialize with fellow bovine enthusiasts.”

AABP will also offer a virtual live-stream of the conference for those who choose to participate at home. “Attending in-person or at home will allow our members to obtain the important continuing education that AABP provides,” Gingrich says. The 2021 conference offers 22.50 continuing education credits.

AABP President-Elect and 2021 Program Chair Dr. Pat Gorden says, “The theme ‘Science with Practice’ was chosen because I often hear practitioners say, ‘Wow, that was neat science, but how do I apply it to my practice?’ With that in mind, and the uncertainty of potential speakers being able to travel, I challenged the program committee to make this year’s meeting as applicable as possible, but make sure there is good science to support the applications.”

Gorden says that one example of this interaction is in the dairy session, where Ron Erskine will give the presentation “Bovine Leukosis: The Silent Thief” followed by a talk by Don Niles presenting “Practical BLV Eradication Measures for Commercial Dairy Farms”. In addition to the dairy sessions, scientific sessions at the conference will include cutting-edge information on beef and dairy bovine medicine and health, practice management, clinical skills, preconference seminars, clinical forums, research summaries, student sessions and more (see the schedule at https://aabp.org/meeting/conference.asp). The conference will be submitted for RACE-approved continuing education.

Preconference seminar offerings include milk quality and mastitis, nutrition troubleshooting, replacement heifers, beef heifer development, vaccination, clinical pharmacology, genetics, ET seminar, animal welfare implementation and more. “We are excited to announce a wide variety of preconference seminars, including several brand new seminars, with topics of value for both dairy and beef veterinarians,” says AABP Vice President and Preconference Seminar Chair Dr. Sandra Godden. In addition to scientific preconference seminars, also offered is one addressing mental health as well as financial health of practices. AABP members are invited to register for a preconference seminar(s). Each preconference seminar offers eight hours per day of CE credit. See preconference seminar information at https://aabp.org/meeting/preconference.asp.

Again this year the Amstutz Scholarship Auction will be available to all members whether they attend virtually or in-person. The GiveSmart platform will enable members to view and securely bid on silent auction items, as well as the live auction on Friday, October 8 which will be live-streamed. Members can also easily donate an item online at http://aabp.org/auction/.

This year’s 5K Stampede Fun Run will include a virtual component for virtual registrants as well! Virtual 5K runners will be invited to submit photos of themselves running and/or shots of their 5K times to the AABP Facebook page.

Virtual attendees will be able to live-stream the conference and participate in questions and answers with presenters via the Slido app. In addition to the in-person trade show, the virtual exhibit hall will also allow all participants to access in-depth information in the form of documents, presentations and more on the online platform.

Family-friendly, the conference also offers a Mother’s room, childcare room and complimentary registration for childcare givers.