Getting more pets into homes with training, behavior modification, social media and adoption program innovation will be the focus of the Maddie's® Shelter Medicine Program track at the Purdue Veterinary Medicine 2013 Fall Conference.
The conference will be held September10-14 on the Purdue campus in West Lafayette, IN, and will provide continuing education (CE) opportunities for the entire veterinary team. The shelter medicine track will be held all day on Friday, September 13.
Sheltering sessions include:
How We Did It: ReTails — A Unique Pet Adoption Venture
Dr. David Bash and Jill Kooiman
History, rationale, mission and operations of reTails Adoptions Store in Indianapolis, a unique all volunteer, mall-based pet adoption store.
Decision Making in Practical Shelter Dentistry
Dr. Gary Lantz
A brief review of practical dental anatomy will be followed by a review of selected commonly encountered oral pathologies. Diagnostic and treatment options will be presented. The focus will be basic economical shelter dentistry with the goal of increasing adoptability of these animals.
The Social Shelter
Bill Schroeder
Many shelters are interested in sharing their message via today’s most exciting medium, social media. This course will help shelters identify some of the most beneficial social media channels and will discuss techniques which will help excite pet owners about adoptions, drive contributions towards donating time or money, and ultimately share the story that is your shelter.
Dog Training Tricks to Increase Adoptability
Sheryl Walker
This session will review tips and methods to increase the adoptability of shelter dogs using positive reinforcement training. Research, as well as real life examples, will be discussed. This session is required for the afternoon training workshop.
Shelter Medicine Hands-On Workshop:
How to Teach Shelter Dogs Three Simple Cues to Maximize Their Adoptability
Dr. Sara Bennett, Dr. Niwako Ogata, Melinda Cotton
Fee: $15/participant (2 CE)
Limit: 40 participants, 24 observers (no fee)
Session attendees will learn about and observe three basic training exercises being applied to shelter dogs that will help to improve the dog’s behavior, presentation to the public, and consequently, its adoptability. They will then have the opportunity to practice teaching these techniques to a group of shelter dogs with the goal of learning how to apply these training exercises to dogs they encounter, whether in a shelter, rescue, kennel or veterinary setting, after completing the session.
View the shelter medicine track flyer here (PDF); get more information and register here.