Calm that cat… is it Dermatology or Behavior?

Christopher Pachel, DVM, DACVB, CABC received his veterinary degree from the University of MN in 2002 and became board certified by the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists in 2010.  He has operated both house-call and office-based behavior practices and is currently the owner and lead clinician at the Animal Behavior Clinic in Portland, OR.  Dr. Pachel lectures regularly throughout the US as well as internationally, teaches courses at multiple veterinary schools in the US, and has authored several articles and book chapters on topics such as Intercat aggression and Pet selection for animal assisted therapy.  He is a sought-after expert witness for legal cases involving animal behavior, and is also a Vice-president of Veterinary Behavior on the executive leadership team for Instinct Dog Behavior and Training.

Dr. Ashley Bourgeois, DVM, Diplomate ACVD completed her bachelor’s degree at Iowa State University and graduated from the University of Missouri’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 2010. She then completed a one year small animal internship at Purdue University. Upon finishing her internship, she accepted a residency position with the Animal Dermatology Clinic’s Tustin, California location. She became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Dermatology in 2014 and has been practicing in Portland, Oregon since 2016. Dr. Bourgeois is an owner/shareholder and on the board of directors for her company which includes locations in California, Kentucky, Indiana, Georgia, Australia, and New Zealand. She has a strong interest in autoimmune skin diseases, allergies, and otology.

In her leisure, Dr. Bourgeois enjoys outdoor activities, traveling and watching sports. She and her husband stay busy with their daughter, son, and rescue terrier mix. Dr. Bourgeois is passionate about educating veterinarians in dermatology and work/life integration through her podcast and social media presence (The Derm Vet).

Dr. Learn grew up outside Philadelphia, PA and spent summers visiting family at the Jersey Shore where she still loves to visit. She attended undergrad in Bethlehem PA receiving a BS in Biology and worked at a wildlife conservation park in Texas before being accepted to the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. After graduation, she completed an internship at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital in NJ and then she went into general practice until 2017 at which time, she started a Residency in Clinical Behavioral Medicine under the mentorship of Dr. Lisa Radosta in South Florida and Dr. Amy Pike in Northern Virginia. She completed her residency training and is currently the Chief of Clinical Behavioral Medicine at the Animal Behavior Wellness Center in Richmond VA where she counsels clients from Richmond, Charlottesville, Hampton Roads, Virginia Beach and North Carolina. She has have contributed to veterinary textbook chapters, journal articles, blogs and received the RK Anderson Resident achievement award.

Dr. Prior is the previous owner of VCA Murphy Road Animal Hospital, an eight-doctor practice in Nashville, Tennessee, and is currently a partner in three emergency hospitals in Middle Tennessee. His professional interests include small animal medicine and surgery and the operations and metrics of well-managed practices. He is the immediate past  president of the Companion Animal Parasite Council. He is a practice management consultant and has been a speaker at national veterinary conferences and with various national media outlets. He will present recommendations and best practices that veterinary professionals can use to increase heartworm preventive compliance in their practice.

Dr. Padgett practiced small animal medicine in Charlotte, North Carolina, for several years. Since then, she has served in the animal health industry in leadership and executive positions. She is the president of Unfenced, an animal health consulting business. She has been a speaker at national veterinary conventions, sat on various advisory boards, and was recently recognized by Pet Age magazine as a Woman of Influence. Along with Ceva Animal Health, she led the heartworm preventive compliance research project and she will discuss the research design, fielding, analysis and insights.

Dr. Johnson is Senior Director of U.S. Veterinary Services and Pharmacovigilance at Ceva Animal Health, LLC. He also has more than 30 years of veterinary practice experience. His experience as a practice owner prompted him to earn an MBA. He has been active in business education for the veterinary industry and with the AVMA Economic Advisory Research Group. Dr. Johnson will provide background for the research on heartworm preventive compliance that Ceva Animal Health funded and is now sharing with the veterinary profession.