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CACVT’s Virtual Spring Symposium 2026- On Demand

May 19 @ 12:00 am - June 30 @ 11:59 pm
$120 – $220

CACVT’s Virtual Spring Symposium- On Demand is a CE event packed with 11 hours of high-quality content designed to strengthen your clinical skills and knowledge. Hear from outstanding speakers across multiple sectors of veterinary medicine as they share expertise, updates, and case-based learning you can bring back to practice. Don’t miss this opportunity to sharpen your skills, engage with leading experts, and celebrate the best of veterinary medicine this spring!

If you registered for Spring Conference 2026, you will also have access to this event—no need to register!

This event will be available on demand until 6/30/26.

Professional/Associate Members- $120
Students/Retired Members- $20
Non-members- $220

Click Here To register

Not a member? Become a CACVT member today and unlock $100 in savings on this event. Click here to explore membership options.

Track 1

BEAST Mode: Keeping Your Cool with Clients

In this presentation, I share my favorite tips & tricks for navigating and deescalating difficult clients. BEAST mode is an acronym I created early on in my career and is an easy-to-digest tool for coaching CSRs. B-Breathe, E-Empathize, A-Apologize, S-Satisfy, T-Thank Them. In my lecture, I break down this acronym to arm the audience with new strategies and easy-to-remember ways to keep your cool to charm an angry client. (T. Bye)

Clear is Kind: Keys to Creating a Kick-Ass Culture

In this lecture, I will dive into the critical and complex topic of creating a culture. With inspiration coming from notable leaders such as Brene Brown and Simon Sinek, I will provide tips & tricks for supporting the culture you need and your team deserves. (T. Bye)

Know Your Worth: Mastering Job Searches and Career Negotiation

Ready to take control of your career? This session helps veterinary technicians recognize their true value, communicate it with confidence, and navigate interviews and offers with clarity. Learn practical tips to stand out, avoid hiring pitfalls, and negotiate what you deserve—all to build a career that works for you. (I. Pyka)

Track 2

Let the Beat Drop: Perioperative Arrhythmia Management

This intermediate-level lecture explores cardiac physiology and the most common arrhythmias encountered in anesthetized patients. It employs case-based evaluations of ECG rhythms and emphasizes key questions anesthetists should ask to identify the type of arrhythmia. The session also discusses precipitating factors, typical manifestations, and evidence-based treatment strategies for perioperative arrhythmias. (N. Shuey)

Under Pressure: Blood Pressure Management in the Anesthetized Patient

This basic to intermediate-level lecture discusses blood pressure physiology and underscores its importance during anesthesia. It explores various measurement techniques and strategies to treat hypotension and hypertension in anesthetized patients in a strategic way based on the patient’s comorbidities and current anesthetic status. (N. Shuey)

Surviving Sepsis for the Veterinary Technician

This talk will discuss the physiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, management and nursing care of septic patients.  This lecture focuses heavily on the immune system’s role in sepsis, and discusses complications such as ARDs, DIC, and MODs, along with cytokine storm, CARs, and other syndromes.  This talk goes over diagnostic imaging and hematology changes that might be seen with septic patients, triage and initial stabilization, and pertinent nursing care of septic patients.  This talk also goes over some of the recent literature available for treatment and updates for septic patient management and gives veterinary technicians and assistants the tools needed to help successfully manage and care for the already difficult to treat septic patients.  Nursing care such as vascular access, husbandry, fluid therapy monitoring and nutritional methods are discussed. (M. Helton)

Pediatric Trauma: An Interactive Case Discussion

This talk will discuss the case of Misty, a pediatric kitten who sustained a severe traumatic brain injury from blunt force trauma. This talk will discuss both medical and nursing interventions, blood pressure support, support for presumed intracranial hypertension, and nutritional support for pediatric head traumas. This talk will also discuss neurogenic shock, polytrauma, vascular access techniques, and other concerns of the pediatric patient with polytrauma. Analgesia and long term management of the TBI is also discussed. (M. Helton)

Track 3

Critical Care of the Neonate Calf

Emergency intervention tips and tricks following parturition and critical care considerations of the neonate calf. (M. Harrington)

Managing Calf Scours

An overview of the common pathogens that cause calf scours, management tips and preventative measures. (M. Harrington)

Counseling Clients in Crisis

Technicians are often on the front lines when dealing with upset clients.  Learn the different relationship types clients have with their pets, how this affects the ways in which we deal with them, and how best to defuse a volatile situation. We’ll look at effective communication and the stages of grief.  Grief is this is one of the areas with the most potential for a loss in communication, and presents some of the most variability in how it is expressed. (A. Wortinger)

Gastrointestinal Microbiome

What is a microbiome, and what is going on in the gut?  We understand that there are good and bad bacteria living in our guts, but why are they there, and what are they trying to accomplish?  Are bacteria the only organisms we can modulate in the gut? We will look at the products available, including prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics,  in veterinary medicine, and why OTC products for humans may not be ideal. Learn what these active biologic communities are doing for our pets, and how we can best support their activities. (A. Wortinger)

Meet our Speakers

Taylor Bye, Sr. Practice Manager

As a Senior Practice Manager for a high-volume specialty and emergency pet hospital, Taylor Bye has spent over 12 years evolving from a CSR into a renowned leader in the veterinary field. Driven by her core mission of “taking care of the people that take care of the pets,” she utilizes a servant leadership style to build empowered, motivated teams. Taylor is dedicated to optimizing team culture and client experiences through a focus on psychological safety, trust, and collaboration. By implementing team-driven improvements and fostering a shared passion for veterinary medicine, she strives to advance the professional lives of those dedicated to this demanding and rewarding field.

Ingrid Pyka DVM, CVMI

Dr. Ingrid Pyka is a dynamic educator and long-time relief veterinarian who has spent more than 20 years helping veterinary professionals strengthen their clinical confidence and build careers that truly fit them. With experience spanning GP, ER, leadership, and animal health economics, she brings a uniquely practical and empowering perspective to both medicine and professional growth. As founder of VetMatch, Dr. Pyka has coached thousands of technicians and doctors to recognize their value, sharpen their problem-solving skills, and step boldly into expanded roles. Her programs are fast-paced, interactive, and designed to leave you feeling capable, confident, and inspired for what’s next.

Nicole Shuey, CVT, LVT, VTS (A&A)

Nicole has been working as a licensed veterinary technician for over 20 years. Her clinical experience ranges from working in a small general practice, to working in a university setting with multiple anesthesiologists, and finally moving to multi-specialty and emergency practices. She obtained her VTS in anesthesia and analgesia in 2018, shortly after moving to Portland, OR and is currently working in a new role at Ethos Veterinary Health. She is currently serving as Exam Committee Chair and President-Elect of the AVTAA. She has always had a special interest in teaching other technicians and students and is currently working on providing CE to members of the veterinary community on a local and national level. Nicole believes that excellent anesthesia can be performed by technicians at all levels and in all types of practices with appropriate training, mentoring, and knowledge. She spends her free time exploring the pacific northwest with her husband and being a crazy cat mom to her one and only, Bennie.

Mandy Helton, RVTg, VTS (ECC)

Mandy is an RVT and VTS in emergency and critical care who works at a large specialty practice in San Diego, California, where she a technician learning and development specialist.  Mandy earned her VTS in 2017 and has been in veterinary medicine since 2009.  She was in the US Navy prior to veterinary medicine.  Mandy enjoys teaching and has a passion for critical care cases such as distributive shock cases, polytraumas, cardio-respiratory cases, and neonatal and pediatric cases.  In her free time, she is an avid runner, and takes her two border collies, Whisper and Cannoli on both hikes and runs.

MegAnn Harrington, CVT, VTS (Production Animal Internal Medicine)

Meg Harrington BS, CVT, VTS(LAIM) is a veterinary technician specialist who specializes in livestock consulting and production animal care for Nashville Animal Hospital, located in Nashville, Arkansas. At home, she operates a cow-calf and feeder calf operation with her husband, Cody, and daughter, Hadley. They sell beef and tallow products directly to the local community. Growing up on a cow/calf operation in southern Indiana, she has always had a passion for the cattle industry.

She graduated from Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine with a bachelor’s degree in Veterinary Technology in 2010.  Meg has a strong desire to educate and develop herd health programs specific to the needs of their producers through risk assessment and disease surveillance, in addition to helping them see the economic benefit of utilizing certain products to boost production through weight gain, increased reproductive performance, and facilitate ways to decrease morbidity and mortality in high-risk cattle.

Meg advocates for keeping production animals healthy, our food supply safe, and America-fed.

Ann Wortinger BIS, LVT, VTS (ECC)-R (SAIM) (Nutrition), Elite FFCP (Veterinary), FVTE

Ann is a 1983 graduate of Michigan State University and got her specialty certification in Emergency/ Critical Care in 2000, in Small Animal Internal Medicine in 2008, and in Nutrition in 2013. In 2020, she attained her Elite Fear Free certification (Veterinary), and in 2025, gained her Fellow of the Association of Veterinary Technician Educators (FVTE).

She has worked in general, emergency, specialty practice, education, and management.  Ann is active in her state, national, and specialty organizations and has served on the Internal Medicine and Nutrition organizing committees.  She has mentored over 20 fellow VTSs and has worked on a variety of committees and positions.  She is currently at Appalachian State University’s Veterinary Technology Program as a Content Developer and Faculty, and an active speaker and writer.

Ann has over 50 published articles in various professional magazines as well as book chapters and a book, Nutrition and Disease Management for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses, in its third edition, coauthored with Kara Burns.

Her fur/feather/fin family consists of 5 resident cats, multiple foster kittens, chickens, guineas, and a pond full of goldfish. 😊

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