American Association of Bovine Practitioners

06/23/2026

One Week Left to Donate to the 2026 AABP Amstutz Scholarship Auction!

There’s only a week left! AABP Annual Conference registration is open, and so is the Amstutz Scholarship Auction donation portal! What will you donate to the scholarship auction by JUNE 30? AABP is seeking donations from members, student chapters, exhibitors and industry partners for the live and silent auctions to be held at the 2026 58th AABP Annual Conference Aug. 27-29 in Minneapolis, Minn. These auctions support AABP’s premier scholarship for aspiring bovine veterinarians and the AABP Foundation!

Almost anything is acceptable! Art, tools, homemade items, food gifts, antiques, vacation home trips, products, equipment, clothing and more! Student chapters are invited to donate gift baskets with vet school swag, clothing, gifts and regional food items.

It’s easy to donate and you don’t even bring your item to the conference; instead, you’ll ship it directly to the winning bidder. Just visit https://aabp.org/auction/ and click on “donate an item” (there is a separate link for student chapters) and simply put a name, description, fair market value and upload a photo(s). Listings and posters for the auction items will be created by AABP.

Another great way to support the auction is through a consortium of your fellow colleagues. Consortiums can donate an item to the auction or most importantly, pool their resources to bid on an item. This greatly increases the amount of money received during the auction and allows you to support the auction with a smaller investment! Visit http://aabp.org/auction/consortium/ for information on consortiums and sign up your group.
Donations on the auction portal are due June 30, 5pm EST.

The Silent Auction will take place during Exhibit hours Aug. 27-28; the Live Auction will be held Friday, Aug. 28.

06/23/2026

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-atlantic-veterinary-college-adding-seats-9.7245183

Canada needs thousands of veterinarians, and the Atlantic Veterinary College in Prince Edward Island is adding seats to help deal with the shortage.

06/23/2026

AABP Students! Deadlines Approach!

Important student deadlines for the 2026 AABP Annual Conference Aug. 27-29 in Minneapolis, Minn.

June 30 – Auction donations to the Amstutz Scholarship Auction are due! It’s easy! Upload your item and photo(s) on the online portal at https://aabp.org/auction/newstudentitem.asp. Popular student chapter items are vet school swag, baskets/bundles of local foods, cheeses, etc.! NO items are to be brought to the conference; donors are responsible to ship their item to the winning bidder post-conference.

July 15 – Quiz Bowl team entries. Schools can have a team of three or four members of any year in school. Second teams can be put on a wait list. Find out more at https://aabp.org/students/scholarships.asp. Send team member names to [email protected]. Each school must submit 4 questions to the Quiz Bowl portal. Find more information here: https://aabp.org/students/quiz_bowl/. You do not need to submit an additional four questions if you have a second team.

July 16 – 2026 Conference Registration – Please keep in mind this year the conference is almost a month earlier. Register for the conference by selecting the Continuing Education tab on the aabp website (https://aabp.org) – you must be logged in so it will direct you to the student registration page. AABP student members can register for free until July 16.

Important! Make sure your dues are current in order to attend the conference. You can join or renew your dues at https://aabp.org/dues/. If your dues don’t have a 12/31/2026 expiration date, you are not current. It can take up to three business days for dues to be processed, so do not wait for the last minute to join/renew your dues. To check your dues status, log on and hover over your name in the upper righthand corner. Join or renew by July 10 to make sure your membership is secure. Select My Account and scroll down to see your dues expiration date.

06/23/2026

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich discusses New World Screwworm in this article from the AVMA.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1E7dU1QbCY/

While confirmed cases of New World screwworm continue to appear in Texas, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration are fast-tracking funds for tools to fight the parasite and drug approvals. Experts urge livestock producers to report cases to stop the spread.

06/22/2026

There has been much discussion on flexible scheduling in a practice the last several years, so how important is it for practice owners to offer flexible scheduling for partners/associates? “Flexibility in scheduling is generally viewed as a perk,” says Dr. Todd Gunderson. “However, it is important to recognize that flexibility in scheduling should not be an end unto itself, but a means to an end.”

Gunderson will present “Flexible scheduling: Guidelines for navigating the demands of rural practice”, in the Practice Management session at the 2026 AABP 59th Annual Conference Aug. 27-29 in Minneapolis, Minn. “Associates and partners are more likely to benefit from flexibility in their schedule if it enables them to adapt their schedule to what is most important to them,” he adds. “So, while flexibility is important, it is most important to make sure that veterinarians in your practice feel that they can align their workload with their values and priorities.”

Gunderson says personally, burnout begins when he loses the ability to say no. “Clear boundaries are essentially guidelines for when we say no to certain things. Without clear boundaries, you may be more likely to say no when you should say yes, or yes when you should say no. Obviously, every decision has to be made on a case-by-case basis, but having clear boundaries can eliminate a lot of the frustration and stress associated with balancing our work needs with our personal needs.”

How do we accomplish this? Delegation is a start. Gunderson explains that delegation is a great thing, and the evidence shows that effective delegation is associated with better financial outcomes for veterinarians. However, it is important to recognize that delegating a task to someone else doesn’t eliminate all the work one needs to do to ensure the task is accomplished.

“Delegating an hour’s worth of work may require setting some time aside for mentoring and/or supervision,” he says. “This seems to be a commonly described problem in rural veterinary practice, especially in solo doctor practices trying to add an associate. The existing veterinarian hires an associate and wrongly assumes that their workload will be cut in half. If things go well, they should see a net decrease in workload, but in the short term, there will be additional tasks they will have to add to their work flow to ensure effective delegation.”

Gunderson says we often just settle for good or good enough instead of great, and he’ll give some personal examples in his talk where I had to choose between something that was good and something that was potentially great. “I firmly believe that good can be the enemy of great. That said, sometimes great can also be the enemy of good enough. It really boils down to priorities and values. There are certain areas of life where we might truly want, or even need, to be great. There are other areas where we really only need to be good enough, and chasing greatness might actually be harmful in the long run. This is where flexibility in work schedules, and planning life in general, can be a real asset, because it gives us the freedom to decide in which areas we want to be great, and where we just need to be good enough.”

All conference information can be found under the continuing education menu of the AABP website. For individual links:
• Session descriptions: https://aabp.org/meeting/sessions.asp
• Preconference seminar descriptions: https://aabp.org/meeting/preconference.asp
• Registration: https://aabp.org/meeting/default.asp
• Hotel reservations: https://aabp.org/meeting/hotels.asp

Early bird discount registration for in-person attendance closes July 16 at 5 pm Eastern, so register before then for the discounted rates!

06/22/2026

https://www.bovinevetonline.com/news/veterinary-education/what-veterinarians-wish-they-had-known-about-externships

AABP has mentoring resources! Find them at https://aabp.org/jobs/mentorship/

Two cattle veterinarians reflect on the mentors, mistakes and experiences that shaped their careers long after veterinary school.

06/22/2026

https://www.lancasterfarming.com/farming-news/dairy/manage-heat-stress-for-dry-cows-to-prevent-long-term-problems/article_43f58521-e71b-43fd-a6f3-bc3c4aa1f28b.html

Heat stress is known to affect milk production, but its impacts on pregnant cows and their offspring call for extra care for the group.

06/22/2026

AABP Have You Herd? Podcast – 59th AABP Annual Conference with President-Elect Dr. Mark Hilton

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich discusses the upcoming 59th AABP Annual Conference with Program Chair and President-Elect Dr. Mark Hilton. The conference will be held in Minneapolis, Minn. August 27-29, 2026. AABP members can register to attend the conference in-person or, new this year, a virtual option for attendance. The conference will offer 22.5 hours of RACE approved continuing education in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval.

Additional CE opportunities at the conference include Clinical Forums breakfast group discussions for two hours and preconference seminars for eight hours per day. Several social and meal events will also be offered, including the Zoetis Dinner and Scholarship Presentations followed by the live auction benefiting the Amstutz Scholarship Fund and AABP Foundation.

The conference has scientific sessions on beef cattle, dairy cattle, research summaries and student case presentations, practice management, clinical skills, joint beef-dairy session, student sessions and new this year a mixed animal session focusing on non-cattle species targeting mixed animal veterinarians.

Virtual attendees will receive a CE certificate for the conference just like in-person registrants. The goal of the virtual attendance is to remove any barriers to attending the conference. In-person attendees will also receive early access to recorded sessions prior to release for the AABP membership through our online CE portal.

All conference information can be found under the Continuing Education menu of the AABP website. View session descriptions at https://aabp.org/meeting/sessions.asp. Register for the conference by going to https://aabp.org/meeting/default.asp. Early bird discounted registration ends July 16, so register before that date. Hotel information can be found at https://aabp.org/meeting/hotels.asp..

Listen to this episode at https://www.buzzsprout.com/814177/episodes/19223159, and search for other Have You Herd? podcasts at https://www.buzzsprout.com/814177; listen on your favorite podcast platform.

06/21/2026

AABP Members,

You can still register up to Monday late afternoon for this week’s AABP Virtual Emerging and Evolving Diseases Conference to be held Wednesday and Thursday, June 24-25. Registration closes Monday, June 22 at 5pm Eastern. The conference will be from 10am to 6pm EASTERN on Wednesday, and from 1pm-6pm EASTERN on Thursday.

With New World Screwworm seeming to spread, it’s even more important for you to register for AABP’s first virtual-only conference. This two-day, members-only conference will provide 11 hours of CE which will be available immediately for those who join the live event. For those registered, there will be audience participation and Q&As with speakers, with recorded presentations also available immediately after the conference. Non-attendee members will be able to access recorded presentations after two months.

Register now at https://aabp.org/virtual/register2026.asp. Registration closes June 22 at 5pm Eastern.
NOTE: This is the virtual-only conference in June, not the 2026 AABP 59th Annual Conference Aug. 27-29 in Minneapolis, Minn. (find information on that conference at https://aabp.org).

Scheduled topics:
• European experience with major bovine diseases – Foot-and-Mouth Disease and Lumpy Skin Disease
• Two years in: The virology behind H5 influenza in dairy cattle
• USDA APHIS update on emerging and evolving bovine diseases – HPAI and New World Screwworm
• Influenza A H5N1 in dairy cows: Overview of what we have learned
• Understanding the impact of HPAI H5N1 on dairy cows
• Detection and persistence of IAV shedding in dairy cattle
• Environmental sites on dairies: Where can we detect H5N1?
• Prevalence and persistence of milk antibodies against HPAI
• Research summary panel Q&A
• Occupational task exposure associated with elevated serum antibodies to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (H5N1): A One Health perspective
• HPAI vaccination lessons learned from the global poultry industries and their application to the U.S. dairy industry
• New World Screwworm: Preparedness and current situation
• Update from FDA – Minor Use Minor Species Act: Conditional emergency use authorization approvals for New World Screwworm
• Bovine Tuberculosis in Western Canada: An overview of three recent investigations 2023-2025
• Bovine TB: A true One Health challenge
• California HPAI outbreak: Experiences and takeaways
• The tale of two parasites: Haemaphysalis longicornis and Theileria orientalis

06/18/2026

There have been calls for the use of ivermectin in feed as a tool to combat the spread of New World Screwworm. AABP understands the need to use all tools available while also avoiding unintended consequences that could negatively impact cattle health. The following statement from AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich addresses these potential negative impacts of using ivermectin in feed for New World Screwworm, including the development of resistance, treatment failures, and missing active infestations that require treatment since ivermectin has FDA authorization for prevention only in the injectable formulation. Inspecting cattle every 24 hours and reporting suspected cases is the primary control method that is needed for combating this pest.

AABP members can also find this statement under the Members Resources tab on the website, then the New World Screwworm resources page, or directly at https://aabp.org/resources/screw_worm/2026-6-16-AABP_NWS_Ivermectin_feed_statement.pdf.

June 16, 2026

The American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) is an international association of over 4,500 cattle veterinarians, veterinary technicians and veterinary students. The mission of the AABP is to provide support, continuing education, and advocacy for current and future veterinary professionals and the cattle they serve. The vision of AABP is to serve society as leaders in cattle health, welfare and productivity.

AABP members will be on the front lines to address the recent incursion of New World Screwworm (NWS). Although many of the products that may be used to treat these infestations in cattle are over-the-counter, AABP encourages all producers to work with their veterinarian to develop identification, treatment and prevention protocols for their operations.

The Food and Drug Administration Center for Veterinary Medicine (FDA CVM) has authorized the use of several products for cattle to treat and prevent NWS through Conditional Approvals or Emergency Use Authorization.

It is critical that veterinarians work with producers to ensure that animals are inspected daily to identify cattle infested with NWS. Identification of infected animals will allow for individual animal treatment as well as reporting to state and federal animal health authorities so that prevention measures based on the USDA New World Screwworm Playbook can be implemented. Reporting affected premises will allow for sterile fly dispersals and other interventions to control the spread of NWS.

AABP has been made aware of calls for FDA to authorize the use of ivermectin in feed or other products meant to be consumed on a free-choice basis for range cattle. Currently, AABP does not support the use of this delivery method.

There is a dramatic reduction in bioavailability of ivermectin delivered orally versus injectable ivermectin. In-feed ivermectin available free choice will also result in increased systemic ivermectin concentration variability due to the combination of variation in both oral bioavailability and feed intake differences between individuals. This may result in animals receiving a subtherapeutic dose which can result in therapeutic failure.

There is an increasing resistance to anthelmintics in cattle. Wide-spread use of ivermectin may increase resistance pressure of parasites to ivermectin and the development of resistance to ivermectin for NWS. This resistance development to ivermectin may potentially select for cross resistance to other NWS therapeutics which may limit our ability to treat individual animals with current drug approvals. There are numerous studies that have demonstrated widespread resistance to ivermectin in Central and South America.

AABP supports the use of the products that have been conditionally approved or are under emergency use authorization for NWS. In-feed ivermectin does not currently have this authorization and it is prohibited to use drugs extralabel in feed. If animals on open pastures have access to ivermectin, it may create a false sense of security resulting in underreporting of cases. Individual animal inspection and treatment are necessary to combat the spread of this fly.

AABP supports continuing research on treatment modalities for NWS in cattle, including research on the effectiveness and consequences of delivery of these medications through feed and other delivery methods.

References:
1. Anziani OS, Loreficce C. Prevention of cutaneous myiasis caused by screw worm Larvae (Cochliomyia hominivorax) using ivermectin. Zentralbl Veterinarmed B. 1993 Jun;40(4):287-90. doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0450.1993.tb00140.x PMID: 8237199.

2. Anziani OS, Flores SG, Moltedo H, Derozier C, Guglielmone AA, Zimmermann GA, Wa**er O. Persistent activity of doramectin and ivermectin in the prevention of cutaneous myiasis in cattle experimentally infested with Cochliomyia hominivorax. Vet Parasitol. 2000 Jan;87(2-3):243-7. doi: 10.1016/s0304-4017(9 9)00167-3 PMID: 10622617.

3. Lopes, W. D. Z. et al. (2013). Ivermectin and abamectin administered at different doses and routes against Cochliomyia hominivorax in the sc***um of newly castrated cattle from southeast region of Brazil/Ivermectina a abamectina em diferentes doses a vias de aplicacao contra larva s de Cochliomyia hominivorax embolsas escrotais de bovinos recem-castrados, provenientes da regiao sudeste do Brasil. Ciencia Rural, 43(12), 2195-2202.

4. Moya-Borja GE, Muniz RA, Umehara O, Goncalves LC, Silva DS, McKenzie ME. Protective efficacy of doramectin and ivermectin against Cochliomyia hominivorax. Vet Parasitol. 1997 Sep;72(1):101-9. doi: 10.1016/s0304-4017(97) 00082-4. PMID: 9403981.

5. Muchiut S, Miro MV, Anziani O, Nava S, Lifschitz A. Failure of doramectin and ivermectin in preventing Cochliomyia hominivorax myiasis in a subtropical region: A pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic study. Vet Parasitol. 2025 Feb;334:110384. doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2024.110384. Epub 2024 Dec 24. PMID: 39733599.

6. Benitez Usher C, Cruz J, Carvalho L, Bridi A, Farrington D, Barrick RA, Eagleson J. Prophylactic use of ivermectin against cattle myiasis caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel, 1858). Vet Parasitol. 1997 Oct;72(2):215- 20. doi: 10.1016/s0304-4017(97)00018-6. PMID: 9404848.

K. Fred Gingrich II DVM
Executive Director
American Association of Bovine Practitioners
[email protected]
419-606-3558 (cell)