Special Events & Limited Enrollment Session Descriptions
Speaker: Jennifer Hertzoff, CVT
This two-hour dental instrumentation and sharpening workshop takes the guesswork out of dental instruments—what to use, how to use them, and how to keep them sharp. During the one-hour lecture, attendees will review recommended prophy and extraction instruments, proper instrument use, sharpening stone selection, instrument design considerations (including elevator length), and step-by-step sharpening techniques demonstrated through video. The second hour is a hands-on lab where participants can practice on real instruments, receive individualized coaching from Jennifer on proper sharpening techniques, and handle a variety of recommended prophy and extraction instruments. Designed to build confidence and efficiency, this session equips RVTs with practical skills that reduce patient trauma, improve dental outcomes, and carry over into everyday practice long after the conference ends.
Why This Workshop Is Worth It
This isn’t a one-time lab. For $160, you’ll gain hands-on sharpening training and a take-home kit you can use throughout your career. Sharper instruments, smoother dentals, and a practical return on your investment—starting day one. Cost $160.
Speakers: Laura Southworth, RVT, CCRP & Kacie Kempkes, RVT, CCRVT
Curious about rehab but not sure where to start? Join us for an engaging, interactive session where you’ll learn foundational techniques that you can bring back to your practice the very next day. Discover how small rehab interventions can make a big difference in your patients’ quality of life. Bring it all together with demonstrations on live animals!
Why This Workshop Is Worth It
This workshop is an investment in practical skills that expand your impact at the patient level. By working hands-on with live animals, you’ll build confidence in rehab techniques that can be immediately integrated into daily appointments—with and without specialized equipment or a formal rehab service. Small, intentional interventions learned here can lead to meaningful improvements in comfort, mobility, and long-term outcomes, making this a high-value addition to your clinical skill set. Cost $50.
Speaker: Ingrid Pyka, DVM
In this highly interactive 2-hour workshop, RVTs—now authorized under new Colorado state statutes—will dive into common minor medical presentations and how to handle them. Using both systems- and problem-based approaches, emphasis is placed on effective history-taking, SOAP’s, diagnostics, and treatment/care planning. Learn how to partner with the doctor by leaning into your experience and growing skillset while stepping confidently into a stronger leadership role in everyday patient care.
Why This Workshop Is Worth It
This workshop equips you to confidently step into an expanded, statute-supported role in patient care. You’ll strengthen real-world clinical decision-making, improve efficiency through better histories and assessments, and become an even more effective care partner—making this a high-impact investment in leadership, utilization, and day-to-day practice value. Cost $50.
Speakers: Ki Goodman, RVT & Maggie Bruner, RVT
Back by popular demand, this hands-on suturing lab is where it’s at to master essential closure techniques! Learn and practice Simple Interrupted, Cruciate, Simple Continuous, and a bonus Intradermal pattern on models. Perfect for building confidence and precision in surgical skills—come ready to tie, stitch, and elevate your technique!
Why This Workshop Is Worth It
Colorado law now authorizes RVTs to close surgical incisions and perform wound treatment—this lab gives you the hands-on practice to do it well. By mastering essential suture patterns on models, you’ll build confidence, speed, and precision in a legally supported skill that directly elevates surgical efficiency, patient outcomes, and your value on the clinical team. Cost $100.
Speaker: Brad Patton, VSS Founder
What are veterinary practice managers supposed to do when they must contend with a staffing shortage mixed with an unpredictable economy? Leveraging staff has become one of the most important skills a manager must have. Beyond understanding what employees cost, costs associated with personnel are the difference between sanity and insanity. Knowing your numbers is the key to properly bridging the gaps and remaining agile.
Why This Workshop Is Worth It
This session turns staffing from a constant stressor into a strategic advantage. You’ll leave with a clearer understanding of how to use staffing data to support smarter decisions, protect margins, and build resilience—skills that continue paying off long after the workshop ends. Cost $50.
Speaker: Temple Grandin, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Animal Science at CSU
“Autism helped me understand animals because I am an extreme object visualizer. All my thoughts are in pictures. In my early work with cattle, I looked at what the cattle were seeing when they went through a chute. To understand animals, you need to get away from verbal language because animals live in a sensory-based world. There will also be a discussion of animal emotions and practical ways to improve animal welfare.” – Temple Grandin, PhD
Celebrating Different Ways of Thinking
Temple Grandin offers a powerful, firsthand perspective on neurodiversity and the unique strengths it brings to animal care. For RVTs, this members-only luncheon provides insight, validation, and inspiration that extends far beyond the conference—and if you’re not a CACVT member, this is the perfect time to invest in yourself and this unique opportunity. Cost: included with member registration.
Speakers: Ki Goodman, RVT & Maggie Bruner, RVT
Back by popular demand, this hands-on suturing lab is where it’s at to master essential closure techniques! Learn and practice Simple Interrupted, Cruciate, Simple Continuous, and a bonus Intradermal pattern on models. Perfect for building confidence and precision in surgical skills—come ready to tie, stitch, and elevate your technique!
Why This Workshop Is Worth It
Colorado law now authorizes RVTs to close surgical incisions and perform wound treatment—this lab gives you the hands-on practice to do it well. By mastering essential suture patterns on models, you’ll build confidence, speed, and precision in a legally supported skill that directly elevates surgical efficiency, patient outcomes, and your value on the clinical team. Cost $100.
Relax, unwind, and be one of the first to experience CSU’s expanded and modernized veterinary teaching hospital during this exclusive Spring Conference reception. Enjoy heavy appetizers and drinks while mingling with friends and colleagues in a relaxed, social setting. Transportation is provided, with buses departing Embassy Suites at 5:30 pm and returning around 8:30 pm. Registration is limited, so be sure to RSVP early.
Why This Reception Is Worth It
This reception offers an easy, low-pressure way to connect with your conference community while enjoying behind-the-scenes access to a state-of-the-art facility shaping the future of veterinary medicine. With food, drinks, and transportation included, all you have to do is show up and enjoy the experience. Cost: complimentary with conference registration.
Lecture & Limited Enrollment Session Schedule
Sponsors & Exhibitors
