2025 Veterinary Heroes: Julie Churchill, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition)

Sponsored by Blue Buffalo Company

A professor of nutrition at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in St Paul, Julie Churchill, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition), teaches veterinary students at all stages, from first year to final rotations. “I have the luckiest job in the world,” she said. “I have the perfect mix of about 50% of my time is in the classroom and approximately 50% of my time is in the clinic. So I get to see patients, I get to work with clients, and I get to work with house officers in the clinical settings, so residents and interns as well as colleagues.”

Julie Churchill, DVM, PhD, DAVIM, is the 2025 Veterinary Heroes honoree in the nutrition category, sponsored by Blue Buffalo Company.

As a specialist in nutrition, Churchill does work that extends well beyond healthy food and preparing diet plans. It includes comorbidities and complex cases that do not always have a clearly identifiable dietary plan to help manage conditions. Her patients range from puppies and kittens to older animals. “I see such a variety [of patient cases], so it is never a dull moment,” Churchill said. “We do a nutrition assessment for every patient in [the] ICU [intensive care unit], so I have a great passion for critical care and our hospitalized patients. And I get to work with our primary care [team], so I get to see healthy [pets] too.”

Churchill is a volunteer for the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention and works with the organization to find ways to help health care teams prevent and treat obesity and educate pet owners about weight management. She was also invited by the American Animal Hospital Association to participate in a task force addressing the organization’s weight management guidelines.

“The goal was how can we develop tools to make weight management easier for the health care team….Nutrition is a team sport,” Churchill said.

She urged veterinary professionals to not shy away from conversations about obesity. “Pet parents are craving these conversations. Veterinarians and veterinary teams are still the most trusted source,” she said. “We not only care for the pets throughout life, but we build this lovely, loyal clientele. We build clients for life by having those conversations and being there for their pet at every stage of life.”

The 2025 class of dvm360 Veterinary Heroes will be honored at a celebratory luncheon at the Fetch dvm360 Conference in Kansas City, Missouri. Click here to learn more or register for the event.