Fetch Coastal 2024 recap

From October 14 through October 16, veterinary professionals took over Atlantic City for the 2024 Fetch Coastal Conference. Attendees from all over came together to learn from key industry leaders, network with fellow veterinary professionals, and say goodbye to Fetch Coastal in Atlantic City for a final time before it moves to National Harbor, Maryland in 2025!

Even though it’s been a little over 2 weeks since the conference concluded, there is still so much to read and learn about from Fetch Coastal. To help, the dvm360 team complied this list of articles covering the 3 keynote addresses, recaps articles of sessions, and video interviews as a recap of the conference. Check out all the excitement that happened at Fetch Coastal this year and if you want to get in on the fun, join us for our first Fetch Coastal in National Harbor, Maryland, in 2025!

Keynote addresses

Fetch Coastal kicked off with a keynote address by Phillip Richmond, DVM, CAPP, CPHSA, CPPC, CCFP, on the green and red capes of veterinary professionals. Throughout the address, Richmond interacted with attendees to hear about their personal experiences in the clinic, how to help veterinary teams elevate and experience the things that make them happy within the clinic more often, and how to help find your teammates cape colors.

On Day 2 of the conference, Renée Alsarraf, DVM, DACVIM (Oncology), shared with the audience the 6 lessons that she has learned from her dog, the oncology canines that she works with, and her own battle with cancer. This recap of the lecture highlights 2 of the 6 lessons she shared with attendees to help them see the lessons learned from her own point of view to help others see the same.

On the final day of Fetch Coastal, Adesola Odunayo, DVM, MS, DACVECC, a professor of emergency and critical care at the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, provided 7 key points veterinary professional could take back to their clinics to better handle emergency situations with skills and confidence.

Sessions

Antimicrobial stewardship has become a major topic in both human and veterinary medicine. Because of this, treating common types of infections has changed due to new data becoming available. Kate Boatright, VMD, recaps a lecture delivered by Mark Acierno, DVM, MBA, DACVIM, on updated recommendations for managing urinary tract infections in canine and feline patients.

Want to see more of dvm360’s Fetch Coastal coverage? You can watch more interviews and read more articles on the dedicated Fetch Coastal section of the dvm360 website.

Richmond, after his keynote address, gave a lecture discussing multiple ways to mitigate negative behaviors in the workplace through psychological safety. Richmond used his personal experiences in his career to show the importance of listening to your team members, especially in the case of treating patients.

In a lecture of her own covered by dvm360, Boatright provided attendees in her 2-part lecture “Self-Care Isn’t Selfish: Essential Skills For Success,” multiple strategies veterinary practices can start doing in help prevent burnout among the staff, plus an overview of the current mental health state of the industry.

Interviews

Strategies for successful diet trials: In this on-site interview, Julia Miller, DVM, DACVD, shared with dvm360 some of the biggest diet trials tips she has for veterinary professionals to make them easier for clients, pets, and the veterinary team themselves.

Managing seizures in dogs and cats: Gaemia Tracy, DVM, DACVIM (Neurology), a practitioner at Eastern Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Center in Allentown, explains how to manage seizures in canine and feline patients after his lecture presented at Fetch Coastal.

Why technicians should know employment law: Andrea Pace, CVT, VTS (ECC), training mentor for the emergency department at Mount Laurel Animal Hospital in New Jersey, sat down with dvm360 during the conference to discuss the importance of technicians understanding basic contract and employment law.