Anxiety, Keep On Trying Me:
Small Animal Behavior for the General Practitioner 

Dr. Nalla grew up in Worthington, MN and knew from an incredibly early age that she wanted a career working with animals. The first thing that came to mind was becoming a veterinarian and the idea just stuck with her! She completed her undergraduate studies at Carleton College in Northfield, MN and loved her psychology and neuroscience courses. While in college, she stumbled upon an article about veterinary behaviorists and immediately knew veterinary behavior was the path for her. Dr. Nalla completed her veterinary degree at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in 2019, followed by four years of working in general practice in the Twin Cities. Although her experience in general practice focused more on her patients’ physical health, she found that a significant number of clients had concerns for treating their pets’ mental health, and that often, the two were intertwined. This encouraged Dr. Nalla to continue her pursuit of animal behavior education, including obtaining her Fear Free Certification, Low Stress Handling Silver Certification, and Human-Animal Bond Certification. Dr. Nalla is excited to be working towards becoming a board certified veterinary behaviorist under the supervision of ACVB diplomates Dr. Amy Pike and Dr. Amy Learn. She enjoys providing pet owners with the tools to better understand their pets’ emotional state and needs, and hopes that developing unique behavioral treatment plans for each individual will lead to an improved quality of life and a strengthened bond between people and their pets.

Anxiety, Keep On Trying Me: Small Animal Behavior for the General Practitioner

8:00 am-9:00 am
Onsite attendees: Registration and Continental Breakfast
Online attendees: Log into WebEx

9:00 am-10:00 am-Raising Pawsome Pups: Providing Guidance to Dog Breeders
Dog breeders help to bring many of our patients into the world. As general practitioners, it is pertinent for us to provide them with appropriate guidance in raising behaviorally sound puppies so they are set up for success when they reach their loving new homes. This can include how to pick appropriate breeding pairs, understanding sensitive developmental periods, age appropriate puppy socialization practices, and how to best match potential families to their new best friend.

10:00 am-11:00 am-No One is Going to Urgent Care Today!: Pre-Visit Pharmaceutical and Sedation Plans for Fearful Patients
Situational anxiety or phobias when it comes to veterinary visits is one of the most common comorbidities I see in my patients. Patients who are fearful of veterinary visits use aggression as a distance creating tool to get themselves out of a scary situation. In doing so, they can pose a risk for us and our veterinary team. Patients we cannot touch them and thereby treat appropriately can add to our own stress, and be time consuming in our already busy days. In this talk, we will discuss PVP and sedation plans for the fearful pet to ensure safety and reduce stress for us and the patients in our care.

11:00 am-11:10 am-Break

11:10 am-12:10 pm-The Interplay Between Pain and Behavior
Behavior changes in our patients can be the first sign clients notice when their pet is experiencing pain or discomfort. Pain is also one of the most underdiagnosed conditions that directly contributes to problem behaviors. Learn what subtle signs may be indicative of pain in our patients, what the current literature on the interplay between pain and behavior tells us, and how to appropriately treat these complex cases when it comes to both acute and chronic pain.

12:10 pm-1:00 pm-Lunch

1:00 pm-2:00 pm-Why Can't We Friends? Managing Intercat Aggression
Not all people get along, and the same goes for our feline companions. When intercat aggression occurs in a multi-cat household, it is stressful for all parties involved! Learn what cats are more likely to get along, and how to properly introduce a new feline companion into your home with your resident cats. Understanding feline body language is essential to understanding how comfortable cats are around each other, as is optimizing the environment with enrichment that allows for cats to engage in feline typical behavior. We will discuss how these strategies, and more, help promote a harmonious household.

2:00 pm-2:10 pm-Break

2:10 pm-3:10 pm-Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome in Dogs and Cats
Time catches up to us all. As our patients age, their bodies and minds go through degenerative changes. Early detection of cognitive dysfunction syndrome is essential to slow down the disease process before it becomes more apparent. In this lecture, we will review neurophysiological causes of the syndrome to monitor for, treatment options, and ways we can behaviorally support our pets cognitive health so that we can provide the best care for our senior patients.

3:10 pm-3:20 pm-Break

3:20 pm-4:20 pm-Debunking Common Behavior Medicine Myths
Are fluoxetine and Reconcile the same? How cautious do I need to be about prescribing an SSRI to my epileptic patient? Does hypothyroidism cause aggression? Do puppies need all their vaccines before they explore the world they live in? Does a dog really know when they did something wrong because they have that guilty look on their face? All these questions and more will be answered for attendees so we can provide better guidance to our clients and better behavioral medicine for our patients.

This Seminar is Sponsored by

• Earn 6.0 hours of continuing education credits
• Availability to participate onsite (limited) and online
• Breaks and lunch are provided to onsite attendees
  
• Handouts are provided to all attendees
• Registration changes (onsite to online) must be received 72 hours prior to the seminar. Changes incur a $40 administrative fee.
• Registration cancellations must be received 72 hours prior to the seminar. Cancellation refund less a 10% administrative fee. 

• Disclaimer: All logos, photos, etc. used in this presentation are the property of their respective copyright owners and are used here for educational purposes only. Please do not take photos of any of the slides.