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Newsletter
August 2026
President's Message
Stephen Pittenger, DVM, Dipl. ABVP® (Canine & Feline Practice), President, ABVP®
August always feels like a month of transition. Here in Texas, the temperatures are scorching hot, but beginning to hint that cooler weather may actually be on the way, and families everywhere are settling back into the rhythms of another school year. For ABVP®, this time of year also brings plenty of activity behind the scenes as we continue preparing for the months ahead.
One project I am particularly excited about is the continued development of our learning management system at learn.abvp.com. Our goal is to create a central home for educational offerings for ABVP® Diplomates — a place where accessing continuing education is simple, organized, and increasingly seamless.
As part of that effort, we are planning to transition our Journal Clubs to the LMS as well. Over time, this should make it much easier to see which Journal Clubs you have completed, which ones you still want to explore, and where you stand with your educational activities. Just as importantly, I hope that we can eventually eliminate the extra step of having to submit each Journal Club into Prolydian for credit.
These may sound like relatively small administrative improvements, but collectively they matter. One of our responsibilities as an organization is to make it as easy as possible for our Diplomates to take advantage of the educational resources ABVP® provides. The less time our members have to spend tracking down links, remembering what they completed, or entering the same information in multiple places, the more time they can spend learning, practicing, teaching, mentoring, and doing the work that brought them to ABVP® in the first place.
September is also an important time for the many volunteers who make our certification process possible. A tremendous thank-you goes to the members of our Exam Committees, who are preparing for our next group of examinees. The thought, expertise, and time that go into creating and administering a high-quality specialty examination are substantial, and I am grateful for your commitment to maintaining the standards represented by the ABVP® Diplomate credential.
That gratitude extends equally to our Credentials Committees. Long before an examinee reaches the examination, a tremendous amount of careful work has already taken place to review credentials, evaluate applications, and help candidates reach this important milestone. Your work is essential to the integrity of our certification process.
And, of course, those committees represent only a portion of the volunteers who keep ABVP® moving forward. Across our specialties, committees, task forces, leadership teams, and other initiatives, so much of what ABVP® accomplishes happens because our Diplomates choose to give some of their limited time and energy back to the organization and to their colleagues. Please know that your contributions are noticed and deeply appreciated.
Looking ahead, once we get into September, I plan to reboot Pints with the President, our informal online forum for conversation and connection. We enjoy the opportunity these gatherings provide to hear directly from Diplomates about what is working, what could work better, and what ABVP® can do to help our colleagues receive the greatest possible benefit from being part of this organization.
ABVP® is, at its heart, a remarkable community of veterinarians who have invested deeply in their areas of practice and who have an extraordinary amount of knowledge and experience to share. I want us to continue finding better ways to connect those people, strengthen those relationships, and make the resources and opportunities that come with Diplomate status easier to access.
Thank you, as always, for everything you do for ABVP® and for our profession.
Your MOC Update
Sonnya Dennis, DVM, DABVP® (Canine & Feline Practice), MOC Chair
Need help?
We have options! A new training webinar is in the works. There will even be a short quiz so you can earn CE credit. Stay tuned for more information.
Meanwhile, there will be a help session on September 12th from 12-1 pm ET. Drop in!
Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89233288253?pwd=3RprqoyXZkqIadvA8XvT1C7IhVX9Of.1
Links:
Individual RVS MOC Vice Chair emails are listed in the Certification Guidelines.
Journal Club: Keep up with Journal Club! Back issues will not be available once they are removed from the website.
Women's Equality Day
In celebration of Women’s Equality Day on August 26, the DEIW Committee recognizes the generations of women who have challenged barriers, expanded opportunities, and strengthened veterinary medicine and the broader scientific community. Women’s Equality Day commemorates the certification of the 19th Amendment on August 26, 1920, which prohibited denying the right to vote on the basis of sex. While that milestone represented an important step toward equality, the history of women’s rights also reminds us that progress has not been experienced equally by all women and that the work of creating truly inclusive institutions continues.
Learn more about the history of the 19th Amendment from the National Park Service.
For veterinary-specific historical perspectives, the American Veterinary Medical History Society’s history of veterinary medicine in the United States offers a valuable look at the people and milestones that have shaped our profession.
This Women’s Equality Day, we invite ABVP® members to recognize the contributions of women in veterinary medicine, celebrate the colleagues and mentors who advance our profession, and consider how each of us can help create opportunities for all veterinary professionals to thrive.
Don’t forget that ABVP® has classified listings for open positions all over the world!
Call for Speakers: Represent ABVP at the 2027 ACVIM Forum in Montreal!
Dear ABVP® Diplomates,
We are excited to announce that ABVP® has been allocated two dedicated sessions at the 2027 ACVIM Forum in Montreal, Quebec. This is a fantastic opportunity to represent our specialty and share your expertise with a national audience of veterinary professionals.
We are currently seeking two speakers to present 60-minute in-person sessions for the ABVP® track. We welcome proposals on topics that highlight the expertise and value of ABVP® Diplomates. Suggested areas include, but are not limited to:
· Complex multi-system disease management
· Innovative diagnostic approaches in general practice
· Updates in therapeutics for common conditions
· Any other topic relevant to advanced general practice
To express your interest, please send the following information by September 10 to ce2@abvp.com
- Your full name
- Your email
- Proposed session title and session length
- In person or on demand
- A brief session description
- 2-3 learning objectives
- any special requirements e.g audiovisual setup
Selected speakers will have the privilege of representing ABVP® on a national stage at this prestigious conference. We encourage submissions from diplomates of all experience levels.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Sincerely,
Dr. Tommy Theng, BVSc, DABVP® (Canine & Feline)
CE Committee
ABVP® is happy to partner with VIN to make Rounds available to all ABVP® Diplomates. You must be a VIN member and/or an ABVP® Diplomate to attend. Those who attend the live session earn 1 hour of CE credit. Sessions are also recorded for viewing later with NO CE credit attached.
- Sunday, September 27, 9 PM Eastern, Muting the Chaos: Sensory Challenges for the Small Herbivore in Clinic, Marc Silpa, DVM, DABVP® (Exotic Companion Mammal Practice)
- Thursday, October 15, 9 PM Eastern, Topic TBD, Marianne Caron, DVM, DABVP® (Reptile and Amphibian Practice)
- Sunday, November 15, 9 PM Eastern, Gastic Torsion and Gastropexy in Rabbits, Stephen Chan, DVM, DABVP® (Exotic Companion Mammal Practice)
- Thursday, December 3, 9 PM Eastern, Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP): From Death Sentence to Daily Practice, Petra Cerna, DVM, DACVIM, ECVIM, DABVP® (Feline Practice)
If you have not received access to VIN, please email VIN directly at rounds@vin.com. ABVP® cannot assist with access since Rounds are on the VIN platform.
If you are a newer Diplomate and interested in presenting, please email vinrounds@abvp.com. Each lecture is about 50 minutes long and you will need to keep an eye on your lecture's message board after the lecture for a couple of weeks. VIN will pay you for your lecture. ABVP® will help you with your lecture by assigning you a mentor, if you would like.
ABVP® CALENDAR
December 31, 2026
Final day to be a called a Diplomate for those who failed to MOC on time
January 15, 2027
Credentials deadline for both Initial Applications and Re-Applications. All documentation must be submitted online by 11:59 PM Central Time
Swine Health Management Entry Exam registration and fee deadline. Registration must be completed online by 11:59 PM Central Time
Semi-Annual Residency Logs deadline. Logs must be submitted online by 11:59 PM Central Time
April 1-4, 2027
ABVP® Symposium, Chicago, IL
July 1, 2027
2027-2028 Diplomate and Emeritus Diplomate fees payable
July 15, 2027
Semi-Annual Residency Logs deadline. Logs must be submitted online by 11:59 PM Central Time
July 15, 2027
MOC Renewal Applications Deadline
