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AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Monika McConkey who is a counselor in Minnesota providing mental health services with a focus on rural agricultural communities. McConkey grew up on a 5th generation farm in Minnesota. This podcast was developed by the AABP Mental Health and Well-Being Committee. If you are interested in the work of this committee, please consider joining to provide resources on this topic to AABP members. Find the committee page at this link.    McConkey discusses some of the unique challenges with mental health services in rural communities including access to care, access to a virtual mental health counselor, financial barriers, and the barrier of the stigma especially in small rural areas where anonymity is lacking. The AABP Mental Health and Well-Being Committee strives to remove the stigma associated with mental health by bringing the conversation to the forefront and providing resources to our members.   The ICR Change Ruler comes out of motivational interviewing techniques as a behavioral health tool to help clients make change happen and identify why change is not happening. ICR stands for importance, confidence and readiness. McConkey discusses how veterinarians can use this tool to help clients accept change based on veterinarian recommendations. McConkey reviews some of the reasons change is difficult for many people and how we can help them accept change.    McConkey reviews some questions that veterinarians can ask clients to help them through a change. This can include asking them what they are looking forward to, how they think change could work for them and what do they need to do to make change happen. Asking questions that target the disadvantages of not changing and maintaining the status quo is another method to encourage change based on your recommendations. McConkey also recommends prioritizing a list of stages and steps vs. overwhelming clients with many suggestions can result in small positive changes steps to help clients achieve a goal.   We close the podcast with a discussion about how veterinarians can apply the ICR Change Ruler to take steps to apply change to our own life. Identifying the change needed, understanding its importance, being confident you can be successful with change and being ready for the change can have a positive impact on our own mental and physical health. 

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Dr. Brian Warr, veterinarian with Telus Cattle Professional Services in the Animal Health Module based in Alberta, Canada. The discussion for today is the role of the veterinarian in overseeing and providing guidance for feedlot cattle in special needs pens.   Warr begins by describing the routine health care provided on feedlots to ensure that each individual animal is observed daily and interventions based on the treatment protocol provided by the veterinarian are administered. After an animal is treated, options may include moving back to the home pen or moving to a special needs pen.    Warr reviews the care that should be provided by the caregivers for each special needs pen. This can include the treatment or hospital pen, where animals are given daily treatments before returning to the home pen. The hospital pen may also include animals that need daily close observation or that may need separated from the home pen while recovering. Warr also provides some guidelines for managing the chronic pen and railer pen to ensure that welfare is not compromised for animals that may not be able to return to the home pen or achieve the finishing weight goal. He suggests moving these animals through the treatment area once a week to assess their condition and record a weight with a general goal of 1 pound of gain per day for 30 days before returning to the home pen.    Warr also cautions that veterinarians should be realistic when assessing the welfare needs of special needs animals. Veterinarians should provide humane euthanasia protocols and provide the oversight to ensure that animals that do not meet the guidelines for continuing in the feedlot are humanely euthanized. We also discuss some of the general needs for biocontainment of infectious diseases on feedlots and nutritional and pen requirements for special needs animals.    Watch Warr's presentation from the 2026 Recent Graduate conference by going to this link.    TAYLOR L, BOOKER C, JIM G, GUICHON, P. Epidemiological investigation of the buller steer syndrome (riding behaviour) in a western Canadian feedlot. Aus Vet J. 1997;75: 45-51. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-0813.1997.tb13830.x   Pollock CM, Campbell JR, Janzen ED, West K. Descriptive epidemiology of chronic disease of calves in a Western Canadian feedlot. Proceedings of the 33rd AABP Annual Conference. 2000. https://doi.org/10.21423/aabppro20005394   Sundman E, Millman S, Erickson S, Silva G, Thomson D, Johnson A, Schwartzkopf-Genswein K, Dewell R, Dewell G. Are there opportunities to strengthen animal welfare through improved management of feedlot chronic pens? Proceedings of the 56th AABP Annual Conference. 2023. https://doi.org/10.21423/aabppro20238907

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Dr. Jon Richardson, associate veterinarian overseeing the professional services team at CalfCare in Manchester, Ind. He graduated from Purdue University in 2021. His professional work is focused on dairy-sourced calves and providing services to these operations.   We start by discussing the differences between an audit and a calf progress evaluation program to improve client satisfaction and compliance with these services. Richardson walks through each part of his progress evaluation and what he provides to his clients. Steps of the evaluation can include housing, bedding, ventilation, weaning, flies, body condition scoring, feeding, water, sanitation, inventory and health records.   Each step of the progress evaluation can include the use of tools to make quantitative assessments as well as general observations that can assist the client and management team with improving calf health and performance. Richardson also discusses the importance of utilizing veterinary technicians for making the collection of data for the assessment to improve practice efficiency.    Richardson gave a presentation at the 2026 AABP Recent Grad Conference and the recording of this presentation is available on the AABP Online CE Portal. Gingrich discusses the AABP Guidelines for Credentialed Veterinary Technicians in Bovine Practice which are now open for member comment period through April 17.    References: A.R. Wolfe, P. Rezamand, B.C. Agustinho, D.E. Konetchy, A.H. Laarman, Effects of weaning strategies on health, hematology, and productivity in Holstein dairy calves, Journal of Dairy Science, Volume 106, Issue 10, 2023, https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-22738    Recommendations for Calf and Heifer Housing Dimensions for Holsteins Summary of design suggestions for planning calf and heifer housing systems for Holstein dairy cattle; a starting point for the design process.  

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich discusses upcoming CE events for 2026. The mission of AABP is to provide support, continuing education, and advocacy for current and future veterinary professionals and the cattle they serve. Our primary mission when the organization was founded in 1965 was to provide continuing education for cattle veterinarians and this remains our priority today. AABP also is involved with advocacy and supporting the initiatives of the AABP Foundation, but this does not take away from our CE mission. In 2025, we had 26 RACE-approved live and recorded CE events and we will have even more for our members in 2026!   All CE opportunities can be found on the Continuing Education menu of the AABP website. Currently there are nine webinars scheduled that are RACE-approved for 1 hour of CE. Webinars can be found here. Gingrich also discusses AABP seminars which are small group meetings with a specific CE topic. We have four seminars scheduled for 2026 outside of our conferences which can be found here. The seminars include: Dairy Replacement Heifer Calf Seminar Birth to Weaning – May 1-2, Ashland, Ohio Feedlot Medicine Seminar – June 12-13, Montezuma, Kan. Cow-Calf Consulting Seminar – July 8-10, Crossfield, Alberta, Canada Edwin Robertson Beginning ET Seminar – August 3-5, Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, Va.   Gingrich also announces two upcoming conferences. The first AABP Virtual Conference will be on Emerging and Evolving Diseases June 24-25 with 11 hours of CE available. The conference will be virtual and open to current AABP members. The 59th AABP Annual Conference will be in Minneapolis, Minn. August 27-29. The conference theme is “Developing Practices of Excellence” and will feature dairy-beef sessions, general sessions, clinical skills, practice management, research summaries, student case presentations, mixed animal, dairy, beef and student sessions. We will also offer six preconference seminars on August 25-26. New this year will be the opportunity for AABP members to purchase a virtual option to expand the conference to those who may be unable to attend in-person. Registration for both the virtual and annual conference will open the second week of April.   Gingrich also reminds listeners that all webinars and conference sessions are recorded and available as a free member benefit. CE certificates from recorded sessions are stored in the BCI CE portal and live CE certificates can be found by hovering over your name after logging in to the AABP website and selecting My CE Certificates from the drop-down menu.   If you are not an AABP member, we welcome you to join us to not only take advantage of these many CE opportunities, but also to support the advocacy efforts of AABP for all cattle veterinarians, veterinary technicians and veterinary students. Join us by going to this link.  

AABP District 1 Director Dr. Liz Brock is the guest host for this episode of the Have You Herd? podcast today. Guests for this episode are AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich, Dr. Earl Brady, owner of Cold Hollow Veterinary Services in Vermont, and Dr. Jennifer Kauf, owner of Legacy Livestock Veterinary Service in Pennsylvania. This episode of Have You Herd? is developed by the AABP Mental Health and Well-Being Committee.   Our guests provide tips they utilize for staying sane in the veterinary truck. We all recognize that busy bovine practitioners often face stressful situations every day that are unavoidable in many circumstances. Each guest discusses how stress and burnout has presented itself to us in practice and how we addressed it. We also discuss the strategies we employ to regularly keep up on our mental health.    It is also important for clients to understand the stresses and mental health challenges that their veterinarian may be experiencing. We talk about how to discuss this with clients, set boundaries while providing good services and care, and providing the space needed to not be a veterinarian during specific times.    If you are interested in this topic, please consider joining the AABP Mental Health and Well-being Committee. We also encourage members to join our every-other-Wednesday peer discussion group. The information to join this one-hour virtual discussion group to share and support each other is found here. 

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Dr. Christine Navarre, Extension Veterinarian at Louisiana State University Agricultural Center and Dr. D.L. Step, Senior Professional Services Veterinarian for Cattle and Boehringer Ingelheim. Parasite resistance is increasingly documented in U.S. beef herds and is influenced by product use and management decisions. In this episode, we explore what veterinarians are seeing in the field, how resistance develops and the role diagnostics, refugia, combination treatment and integrated herd and pasture management play in preserving long-term dewormer effectiveness.   Veterinarians play a key role in assisting producers in managing resistance to parasites through effective treatment and diagnostic programs. Some strategies that have historically been used contribute to parasite resistance. Veterinarians can ask key questions to clients to mitigate this resistance pressure and provide guidance on effectively using the products not only to minimize resistance patterns, but also to ensure that cattle health and productivity are not being negatively impacted by parasites.    For more information about sustainable parasite management options, visit this link.       

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by current AABP President-Elect Dr. Mark Hilton to talk about opportunities for beef cow-calf veterinarians to assist their clients with bull selection. Hilton emphasizes that the number one conversation starter for offering consultative services is to ask questions and listen to your clients.   The first question is to ask your clients what are their goals? Veterinarians can assist producers, but having the client outline their goals is a way for the veterinarian to develop the programs to achieve those goals. The next question to ask is “would you like help with that?” Your clients may not be aware of your expertise on a topic which can be delivered in an unbiased manner to help the producer achieve their goals.   When selecting a bull, the veterinarian should also help the producer identify disease risk. Asking the seller if you can discuss the herd with their veterinarian is a good way to identify any disease risks to the purchaser. The veterinarian can also ask specific questions about what they want to accomplish with their bull purchase. This can include identifying if the bull will be used in heifers or cows to identify where you want to rank calving ease of the bull. The bull should also optimize heterosis for the cow herd. Incorporating cross breeding has a potential value of $400 per cow due to increased longevity, increased pregnancy rate and increased weaning weights. The veterinarian should also evaluate if the herd is retaining heifers and ask how they market calves.   Hilton reviews the EPDs and selection indices that he ranks as important for bull selection. When looking at the calving ease differential EPD for bulls used in heifers, this trait is 9 times more accurate than actual birth weight of the bull, which can be influenced by other factors. It is also important to understand the breed differences in EPDs and to review EPDs and selection indices by breed.   Veterinarians can play a key role in working with their clients on achieving their goals and how bull selection plays a part in that process. Hilton also mentions the AABP Cow-Calf Consulting Seminar which will be held in Alberta, Canada July 8-10, 2026. Registration is open and limited to 12 attendees. Bull selection and genetics will be one component of this seminar which will provide practical information on the pillars of beef cow-calf consulting practice. For more information on this seminar and to register, go to this link. The seminar is also held during the Calgary Stampede Chuckwagon Races and is close to the world-renowned Banff National Park for entertainment options while you are in the area. 

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Dr. Bob Van Saun, professor and extension veterinarian at Penn State University. He is also a member of the AABP Nutrition Committee. If you are interested in beef or dairy nutrition, consider joining the committee by visiting this page.    This episode of Have You Herd? is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and the PYRAMID(R) Line of vaccines, a premier choice to protect calves from BRD. Get relentless protection at PyramidVaccines.com.   Van Saun begins by reviewing the important biologic role of copper for ruminants and why it is a critical mineral for ruminants. We also discuss some clinical diseases or conditions where a veterinarian may be triggered to look at a copper deficiency. This includes bleaching of the haircoat (achromotrichia), anemia, reproductive performance, growth, and disease consequences due to the role copper plays in innate and humoral immunity. Some of these syndromes may be clinically apparent, but a large portion may be subclinical, and the practitioner should evaluate the entirety of the mineral program to evaluate.    Van Saun discusses the interplay between copper and other minerals and how this interaction can affect copper metabolism. We also discuss general guidelines copper in ruminants and diagnostic procedures for evaluating copper metabolism in a herd.    Due to the impacts of copper on many production and disease issues in ruminants, veterinarians play a critical role in evaluating herds for copper deficiencies by performing a diagnostic work-up and evaluating potential interventions.    

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich discusses colostrum management programs with Dr. Lisa Gamsjäger, Assistant Professor at North Carolina State University.    This episode of Have You Herd? is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and the PYRAMID(R) line of vaccines, a premier choice to protect calves from BRD. Get relentless protection at PyramidVaccines.com.   According to research studies, approximately 30% of beef calves have failure of passive transfer and are below 10 g/L of IgG. These calves are 8x more likely to have a disease and 19x more likely to experience mortality. There may be some fundamental differences in colostrum for beef calves, and management strategies between the two production systems are vastly different which can present unique challenges for beef producers. Veterinarians are in a unique position to provide consultation to their beef clients to be prepared to intervene with assistance and/or providing a colostrum replacement product.   We discuss a study that examined various feeding protocols of colostrum replacer and its impacts on passive transfer, morbidity, mortality and average daily gains. We also discuss areas for future research on beef calf colostrum management and replacement products. Veterinarians should prepare their clients for the upcoming calving season to ensure that calves receive appropriate passive transfer of immunity by proactively discussing these strategies.   References: Gamsjäger L, Haines DM, Pajor EA, Lévy M, Windeyer MC. Impact of volume, immunoglobulin G concentration, and feeding method of colostrum product on neonatal nursing behavior and transfer of passive immunity in beef calves. Animal 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.animal.2021.100345   Mitman SL, Jenkins H, Chamorro MF, Mzyk DA, Foster DM, Gamsjäger L. Impact of 3 colostrum replacement strategies on immunoglobulin G absorption efficiency, passive immunity, health, and growth in beef calves. J Am Vet Med Assoc. July 2025. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.25.03.0139   Gamsjäger L, Haines DM, Pajor EA, Lévy M, Campbell J, Windeyer MC. Total and pathogen-specific serum Immunoglobulin G concentrations in neonatal beef calves, Part 1: Risk factors. Prev Vet Med. November 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2023.106026   Gamsjäger L, Haines DM, Pajor EA, Lévy M, Campbell J, Windeyer MC. Total and pathogen-specific serum Immunoglobulin G concentrations in neonatal beef calves, Part 2: Associations with health and growth. Prev Vet Med. November 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2023.105993                

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich discusses how veterinarians can get involved with semen selection strategies for their clients. Guests for this episode include Dr. Julie Adamchick, post-doctoral candidate at Cornell University and AABP liaison to the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST), Dr. Daryl Nydam, Professor of Dairy Production and Health Management at Cornell University and incoming AABP Vice-President, and Dr. Michael Capel, Perry Veterinary Clinic and Past-President of AABP.   This episode of Have You Herd? is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and the PYRAMID(R) line of vaccines, a premier choice to protect calves from BRD. Get relentless protection at PyramidVaccines.com.   Advances in youngstock management and reproduction programs has provided an opportunity for dairy producers to utilize gender-selected semen to maintain the correct number of replacement heifers while taking advantage of the increased revenue from the sale of beef-on-dairy calves. Producers should develop a strategy with their dairy clients to plan three years in advance for the number of replacement heifers the herd will require. The veterinarian can play a role in not only assisting with implementation of these programs, but also monitoring reproductive performance and semen selection strategy monitoring to ensure success. The value that is added from maximizing beef-on-dairy calves produced can be equivalent to $2-$3 per cwt of milk. Our guests also provide tips for avoiding pitfalls and what to discuss with clients during the implementation and monitoring phase of this program.    Cornell University has developed a tool to assist veterinarians in consulting with clients on use of gender-selected and beef semen in their herds. You can find Semen Solver 2.0 at this link.    If you have feedback about the tool, please contact Dr. Julie Adamchick at [email protected].     

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Emily Krekelberg, an educator for farm safety within the University of Minnesota extension services. This episode was developed by the AABP Mental Health and Well-Being Committee.   This episode of Have You Herd? is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and the PYRAMID(R) line of vaccines, a premier choice to protect calves from BRD. Get relentless protection at PyramidVaccines.com.   Krekelberg defines ambiguous loss as a loss that is unclear or lacks closure. Some loss, such as death, is defined both physically (the person is no longer with us) and psychologically (we understand that the person is gone). With ambiguous loss there is an incongruence between physical and psychological loss. Krekelberg provides some examples of ambiguous loss from our everyday lives.   Krekelberg discusses how ambiguous loss might look in a person and offers suggestions for how we can recognize this in our friends, family and clients. Ambiguous loss can be challenging to overcome because we do not know what we are experiencing and grief complicates this process. She also provides some suggestions for coping with ambiguous loss including understanding that conflicting feelings are normal, finding meaning and identifying the loss and discovering hope.   If you are an AABP member interested in this and other mental health topics, consider joining the AABP Mental Health and Well-Being Committee by going to this page.    Resources: The Myth of Closure by Pauline Boss.    University of Minnesota Extension and type ambiguous loss in the search bar.   The Moos Room podcast or find on your favorite podcast platform.  

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by AABP President-Elect Dr. Mark Hilton. Hilton provides some guidance on making obstetrics easier, especially for recently graduated veterinarians. The technique is called the Utrecht technique. This technique and being successful at dystocia calls is not dependent on the veterinarian’s size and with practice, Hilton says that all veterinarians can become successful obstetricians with practice and proper technique.   Hilton informs his clients that a cow in labor should make progress every hour, and if not making progress in that time frame, they should call the veterinarian for assistance. The key points for the Utrecht technique include: 1.      Be sure that calf is in a normal presentation. Correct if needed while the cow is standing. If you need to manipulate, use an epidural and administer 10 cc of epinephrine IM to relax the uterus.  2.      Manually dilate the birth canal. Put both gloved and lubed arms in the vagina, clasp your hands and push your arms laterally to dilate the vagina. You can also ask the producer or caregiver to help you dilate the cow to allow you to rest.  3.      Put chains on the legs and apply traction. If you can get the carpi past the vulva, or you can feel room around the calf, Hilton says he makes the decision to pull vaginally versus a C-section. 4.      Cast the cow and lay her in lateral recumbency. 5.      Use a calf puller with traction, but only apply traction when the cow pushes and rest when the calf’s shoulders are through the pelvis. The cow will rotate the calf while you are resting, or if not, you can rotate the calf so the pelvis of the calf is turned to go through the largest part of the dam’s pelvis. If the calf is being delivered in posterior presentation, Hilton continues to use traction to quickly deliver the calf after the pelvis is through to prevent the calf from suffocating during delivery.    For more information:   Midwest Beef Cattle Consultants, LLC. https://www.mwbeefcattle.com/educational-material    An easier way to deliver calves, Mark Hilton, AABP Annual Conference Proceedings, 2020. https://doi.org/10.21423/aabppro20208085  

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Dr. Adam Lock, professor of dairy nutrition in the Department of Animal Sciences at Michigan State University. This podcast is brought to you by the AABP Nutrition Committee.   Soybeans and soybean meal products are an important source of protein and fat for dairy cow diets. Soybeans are typically 38-42% crude protein and 15-20% fat. The fat in conventional soybeans is 50-55% linoleic acid. Linoleic acid is a polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) which can suppress milk fat production if fed at high levels. Roasting soybeans is common on dairy farms to increase the amount of bypass protein (RUP).    High oleic fat soybeans have more recently been fed as a soybean source in dairy cattle diets. The primary advantage of these soybeans are that they have the same percentage of fat (20%) but the fatty acid profile is 75-80% oleic acid. Oleic acid does not directly suppress milk fat production since it is a monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA). This allows us to safely feed a higher energy diet to cows. Lock suggests that we can target high producing or early lactation cows with these soybeans to provide more energy. These beans can result in higher production, higher milk fat and may have positive effects on health and immunity.    Lock provides some general guidelines for incorporating high oleic acid soybeans in dairy cattle diets. They can be included at 8-12% of diet dry matter for roasted ground beans. Cows do not need a step-up period to incorporate these into the diet and an expected response should be seen in 7-10 days. Diets should be reformulated to account for this added fat and Lock states that many times other fat sources are removed, but some palm fats can be utilized with these beans for a better fat profile. Other protein sources, such as blood meal, can be adjusted.    Effects of increasing dietary inclusion of high oleic acid soybeans on milk production of high-producing dairy cows A.M. Bales, A.L. Lock Journal of Dairy Science, Volume 107, Issue 10, 2024, Pages 7867-7878, ISSN 0022-0302, https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2024-2478   Effects of raw and roasted high oleic soybeans on milk production of high-producing dairy cows A.M. Bales, A.L. Lock Journal of Dairy Science, Volume 107, Issue 12, 2024, Pages 10869-10881, ISSN 0022-0302, https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2024-25092    

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Dr. Bob Van Saun, professor and extension veterinarian at Penn State University. He is also a member of the AABP Nutrition Committee. If you are interested in beef or dairy nutrition, consider joining the committee by visiting this page.    Van Saun starts by reviewing why mineral and vitamin transfer are important beyond their biological role in fetal development and reminds us that milk does not have a significant quantity of trace elements and some vitamins. It is important to provide a diet that is adequate in vitamins and minerals to the dam to ensure the developing fetus is not deficient and that the newborn calf is very dependent on what we feed the dam.   Van Saun reviews how minerals and vitamins are regulated in the body and what we know about the placental transfer of minerals and vitamins to the fetus during gestation. He offers suggestions for practicing veterinarians for evaluating the nutritional status of dams. He suggests starting by evaluating the ration that has been formulated to ensure it is consistent with recommendations from NASEUM 2021 (dairy) and NASEM 2016 (beef). The veterinarians can then submit biologic samples for vitamin and mineral analysis which can be done via liver biopsy or blood testing as well as when each test is applicable. In addition, liver samples from stillborn fetuses can be submitted to develop a database for clients mineral and vitamin programs and to determine if stillbirths are due to deficiencies.    Links: Hostetler CE, Kincaid RL, Mirando MA. The role of essential trace elements in embryonic and fetal development in livestock. Vet J. 2003;166(2):125-39. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1090-0233(02)00310-6. PMID: 12902178    National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) 2021. Nutrient Requirements of Dairy Cattle: Eighth Revised Edition. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25806   National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cattle: Eighth Revised Edition. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/19014

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich reviews AABP activities for 2025 and provides an update on plans for activities for members in 2026.   The AABP dues year has changed from a mid-year dues renewal to a calendar year dues year. If you have not renewed your dues for the 2026 dues year, please go to this link to renew your dues. AABP is funded by members and our major source of revenue is member dues and conference registration fees.    AABP has three silos of activity for members which include continuing education, support of the AABP Foundation and advocacy. Gingrich discusses each silo and what AABP does for members in each one. In 2025, there were 26 RACE-approved CE events both live and recorded for our members which is greatly expanded from one annual conference per year.    In 2026, we will offer even more continuing education with webinars, podcasts and publications but also the Recent Graduate and Annual conferences as well as seminars. Four seminars are planned for 2026 including the Edwin Robertson ET seminar August 3-5 at Virginia Tech; Feedlot Management seminar at Hy-Plains Feedyard in Montezuma, Kan. June 12-13; Advanced Beef Production Medicine seminar at Veterinary Agri-Health Services in Alberta, Canada July 8-10; and Dairy Youngstock Seminar in Ashland, Ohio May 1-2.    AABP will also have our first virtual conference in 2026. The theme of the virtual conference will be Emerging and Evolving Diseases and providing topics on the dairy cow highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak, New World Screwworm, tuberculosis, foot-and-mouth disease, and lumpy skin disease. We will also have presentations on biosecurity for dairy farms in relation to these diseases. This conference will be live sessions over two afternoons. Registration will open in the first quarter of 2026.    Gingrich also discusses the activities of the AABP Foundation which provides externship grants, education grants, scholarships and research grants. We encourage you to support the AABP Foundation to continue these initiatives. In 2025, the AABP Foundation provides $115,000 in externship/education grants, $343,000 in scholarships and $65,000 in research grants. Donate to the AABP Foundation at this link. To view the research projects supported by the AABP Foundation, go to this page and view the published research from these projects here.     AABP also is involved in advocacy for all cattle veterinarians. This activity continues to expand and AABP provides advocacy to protect the VCPR, protect the scope of licensure, maintain access to xylazine and controlled drugs, and input on management of diseases of consequence for cattle veterinarians.   The AABP Board of Directors thanks all of our members for their membership dues, attendance at our CE events, and your work as cattle and mixed animal veterinarians in rural communities. Best wishes to all of our members for a happy and prosperous 2026!