I first attended WVC as a brand new RVT. I was completely astounded by the amount of knowledge available and I soaked up lecture after lecture. I realized that I wanted to share this knowledge and after returning home, I took a job as an instructor for an RVT program. I eventually became the program director which opened doors for me to become involved with the local shelters. I returned to WVC two years later and discovered a full and current shelter lecture program. Discovering the large community of shelter medicine and humane education inspired me to return home and start my own non-profit rescue for neonatal and special needs kittens. I now work full time at the SPCA, run a successful rescue and participate in community humane educat ion. My experiences and education at WVC transformed me from a fledging animal lover into an educator, rescuer and highly trained RVT. Thank you WVC!

I was in my first semester of a vet tech program. I was a bit put off at being the only person in class with grey hair and a birthyear in the middle of World War II. To make matters worse, all the training and related activities were focused on cats, dogs and gerbils, none of which I wanted to deal with. I wanted to work exclusively with camelids. Most of my classmates and none of my instructors had ever seen an alpaca. I had to explain that they were not minature camels. I went to a WVC with a heavy heart thinking I may have made a mistake. Not just this major lifestyle change but thinking I could make a go of a camelid business. At WVC I found a lot of encouragement to complete the program and not get hung up on species. I came back to school and worked with my instructors to arrange internships with alpaca breeders and did a number of projects with large animals. I even took my turn caring for the two class rodents! Long story short, I completed my coursework, was awarded my degree, pass the state exam to become certified and now have a herd of 17 alpacas and work freelance farmsitting and assisting alpaca ranchers with breeding and birthing. My success story really began at WVC.

My husband is a veterinarian. We have attended this conference a number of times. The first time we came was actually our honeymoon. We were married in Jan. of 1985 and couldn't take off any time for a honeymoon. My husband's employer had already planned on letting him attend the conference, so this was the first trip we took as husband and wife! I had a blast!!! There were so many opportunities for guests of the attendees that I had lots of fun during the day while my hubbie learned all kinds of new and different things in his chosen field. Every evening held even more fun with headline entertainment, receptions, and the exhibit hall. We are looking forward to coming this year because our lives have made a big change. After being in the profession for over 30 years, we had a sole proprietorship for 20+ years , sold out, became employed by other practitioners, and now we are about to step out there and open a new practice! I guess "retirement" comes in lots of different configurations.

I got the chance to attend the 83rd Annual Western Veterinary Conference in February of this year. As a first time attendee and a first year Veterinary Technology student, I really didn't know what to expect from the experience, but I knew from the start that all of the things from this conference would be an opportunity, and that I should take each and every one of those opportunities as I can.

Once I entered the entrance hall to the WVC conference on the first day, I was in awe. I was excited, nervous and intimidated all rolled into one. I was in awe because of the sheer size of the conference. I was excited because it was the first conference I have ever attended. I was nervous because of the very same reason and because of all the new things and people in front of my eyes. I was intimidated because I knew and felt that I was in the company of knowledgeable, influential, and compassionate people in the veterinary field. I knew that each and every one was there to learn and impart their knowledge. Each and every one of the attendees was there to try to make the field of veterinary medicine better.

I resolved from the very first day that I will attend as much of the seminars as I can. I attended the afternoon symposium for Veterinary Technicians on the first day. For the next couple of days from Monday to Thursday, I attended almost all of the sessions that I was interested in. I tried to attend 4 sessions in the morning, and 4 sessions in the afternoon, for most of the week. Every single session I attended had knowledge to impart, and there were a lot of helpful information that greatly widen my knowledge on certain topics such as caring for exotic mammals, avian patients, and reptiles, blood transfusions in emergency care setting, parasitic zoonoses, small ruminant medicine, and various aspects of animal behavior just to name a few.

The speakers were definitely eager to share their knowledge to those who were there for the session they were presenting. Each session that I attended truly left a big impression on me and definitely gave me a lot of information and knowledge that I will always be grateful for. It has already helped me with my studies, and has also helped me better care for the animals around me. I am also positive that all the information and knowledge that I have gained from the sessions will help me in my future career in the field of Veterinary Medicine.

During the conference, I also got the chance to check out the exhibit hall and the technician fair. The exhibit hall was truly a sight to behold. I got the chance to get information and even sample or try my hand at products, services, and organizations. It was a very rewarding experience to see what's currently new in the field and it also provided a window for what is in store in the future.

The technician fair was also an experience. It gave me the opportunity to talk and network with a diverse group of technicians from different parts of the country. It was also another window into a future that I look forward to, my career as a licensed technician in the future.

As I left the conference after attending the whole week and taking in as much of the experience as I could, I left with a vast amount of knowledge and information, a much more profound respect for veterinary professionals, and a much more deeper understanding and love of the veterinary field.

Attending the 83rd Western Veterinary Conference was definitely a positive experience for me, it made me have a renewed and stronger passion for the veterinary field, in its goal to aid and better the lives of animals. I will definitely make it a point to attend the next WVC conferences in the years to come, and just as my first time attendance, I expect to leave with more wisdom, and passion for the field of veterinary medicine.