The AASV Board of Directors met virtually on April 8th to conduct official business. The following are highlights from the meeting:

The Board welcomed newly elected Vice-President Bill Hollis.
The Board welcomed newly elected District Directors Megan Inskeep (District 4) and Chris Rademacher (District 6), who began their terms at the conclusion of the board meeting, and Christine Mainquist-Whigham who began her term immediately after election. The Board thanked outgoing District Directors Locke Karriker, Darryl Ragland, and Monte Fuhrman for their service.
The Board approved the Early Career Committee’s funding request of $6376.60 to hold an early career swine veterinarian conference in conjunction with the James D. McKean Swine Disease Conference in November 2021.
The Board approved funding of up to $10,000 to support Operation Main Street presentations in the remaining 18 US veterinary schools not reached during 2020-2021.
The Board approved the Student Recruitment Committee’s motion for $2500 to support the 2021-2022 series of Swine Medicine Talks: An AASV series for Veterinary Students.
The Board approved the PRRS Task Force’s request to survey AASV members and the broader swine industry regarding PRRS control and elimination.
The Board established a new award to recognize outstanding contributions from those employed in academia.
The Board approved name and mission revision requests for the Boar Stud Committee and the Human Health, Safety, and Well-being Committee.
The Board voted to approve the Influenza Committee’s motion to modify the AASV position on influenza A viruses.
The Board voted to approve the Pig Welfare Committee’s motion to modify the AASV position on castration of swine.
The Board voted to approve the Pig Welfare Committee’s motion to modify the AASV position on tail docking and teeth clipping of swine.
The Board voted to approve the Pig Welfare Committee’s motion to reaffirm the AASV position on pig welfare.
The Board voted to approve the Pig Welfare Committee’s motion to reaffirm the AASV position on sow housing.
The Board voted to approve the Committee on Transboundary and Emerging Diseases’ motion to reaffirm the AASV position on permanent identification of swine.
The Board voted to reaffirm the AASV position on swine health information technology.
The Board voted to approve the Committee on Transboundary and Emerging Diseases’ motion to establish the AASV position on the risk of foreign animal disease introduction through feed and feed ingredients.

Read all AASV position statements at aasv.org/aasv/positions. View each committee’s plan of work at aasv.org/aasv/committee. AASV members can read complete Board and Executive Committee meeting minutes at aasv.org/aasv/board.

Student Recruitment Committee volunteers host virtual booth at SAVMA Symposium

The AASV sponsored a booth at the 2021 virtual symposium of the Student American Veterinary Medical Association (SAVMA) March 13^th through 15^th. The AASV Student Recruitment Committee member volunteers Drs Corinne Bromfield, Jessica Seate, and Jenna Scott staffed the booth to answer questions and share AASV student membership benefits with the approximate 1700 SAVMA Symposium attendees. Most students who asked questions were curious if AASV student membership was beneficial to students unsure of their interest in swine. The answer was a resounding, “Yes!” They further explained that AASV student membership provides students resources and professional connections to explore their potential interest in swine. Additionally, swine medicine and production medicine skills are applicable to many other specialties and areas of veterinary medicine.

Committee on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion established by AASV Board of Directors

The AASV Board of Directors established a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee during their spring 2021 meeting. The proposed committee mission statement is:

Create a socially conscious organizational culture that removes barriers to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Make recommendations that result in a comprehensive effort to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion within the organization through actionable goals with defined timelines. Increase diversity, equity, and inclusion awareness through member education.

Interested in joining the committee? Contact Dr Abbey Canon, Director of Public Health and Communications, at canon@aasv.org.

Call for abstracts – Industrial Partners sessions

The American Association of Swine Veterinarians invites submissions for the Industrial Partners oral and poster sessions at the 53^rd AASV Annual Meeting. This is an opportunity for commercial companies to make brief presentations of a technical, educational nature to members of the AASV. The conference will be held February 26 through March 1, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The oral sessions consist of a series of 15-minute presentations scheduled from 1 to 5 pm on Sunday afternoon, February 27^th. A poster session takes place the same day. Poster authors will be required to be stationed with their poster from noon until 1 pm, and the posters will remain on display throughout the afternoon and the following day for viewing.

SUBMISSION PREREQUISITE: All companies submitting topics for presentation during the Industrial Partners sessions must register to participate in the AASV Technical Tables Exhibit before October 1^st.

Restricted program space necessitates a limit on the number of presentations per company. Companies that are a member of the Journal of Swine Health & Production Industry Support Council and sponsor the AASV e-Letter may submit three topics for oral presentation. Companies that are either a member of the JSHAP Industry Support Council or sponsor the AASV e-Letter may submit up to two topics. All other companies may submit one topic for oral presentation. In addition, every company may submit one topic for poster presentation, but the topic must not duplicate the oral presentation. All topics must represent information not previously presented at the AASV Annual Meeting or published in the meeting proceedings.

To participate, send the following information to aasv@aasv.org by October 1, 2021: 1) Company name 2) Presentation title 3) Brief description of the presentation content 4) Presenter name and contact details (mailing address, telephone number, and email address) 5) Whether the submission is intended for oral or poster presentation

Receipt of submissions will be confirmed by email. Presenters will be notified of their acceptance by October 15^th and must submit a paper by November 12^th for publication in the meeting proceedings. Failure to submit the paper in a timely manner will jeopardize the company’s future participation in these sessions.

The presenting author is required to register for and attend the meeting in person to make the presentation. Recorded or virtual presentations will not be accepted unless the meeting converts to an entirely virtual event.

Presenters may register for the meeting either as a Tech Table representative, or as an individual registrant (nonmember oral and poster presenters are eligible to register at the AASV regular member rate). AASV does not provide a speaking stipend or travel reimbursement to Industrial Partners presenters.

Swine Medicine Talks: An AASV video series for students

The Swine Medicine Talks are a 3-part swine medicine seminar series, hosted by the Iowa State University AASV student chapter and funded by the AASV Student Recruitment Committee since 2016. The free series is currently available by live audio/video stream to other veterinary schools across North America and to AASV members. The recordings of previous Swine Medicine Talks have been added to the AASV Video Library and are available for members to view at aasv.org/members/only/video/smecast. Recent topics have included economics of swine marketing, genetically engineered swine for disease resistance, and a recent graduate panel.

2022 Annual Meeting

The AASV is moving forward with plans to hold the 2022 AASV Annual Meeting on-site in Indianapolis on February 26 – March 1. Check aasv.org/annmtg for updated information and revisions.

Call for abstracts – Student Seminar

The American Association of Swine Veterinarians announces an opportunity for veterinary students to make a scientific presentation at the AASV Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Sunday, February 27, 2022. Interested students are invited to submit a one-page abstract of a research paper, clinical case study, or literature review for consideration. The submitting student must be a current (2021-2022) student member of the AASV at the time of submission and must not have graduated from veterinary school prior to February 27, 2022. Submissions are limited to 1 abstract per student.

Abstract submission

Microsoft Conference Management Toolkit will be used to receive and review student abstract submissions. Abstracts and supporting information must be submitted online at https://cmt3.research.microsoft.com/AASV2022. Submissions must be completed before 11:59 pm Central Daylight Time on Wednesday, September 15, 2021 (firm deadline). Late submissions will not be considered.

Students will receive an email confirmation of their submission. If they do not receive the confirmation email, they must contact Dr Andrew Bowman (bowman.214@osu.edu) by Friday, September 17, 2021 with supporting evidence that the submission was made in time; otherwise the abstract will not be considered for judging.

The abstracts will be reviewed by an unbiased, professional panel consisting of private practitioners, academicians, and industry veterinarians. Fifteen abstracts will be selected for oral presentation in the Student Seminar at the AASV Annual Meeting. Students will be notified of the review results by October 15, 2021, and those selected to participate will be expected to provide the complete paper or abstract, reformatted for publication in the conference proceedings, by November 12^th.

Student Seminar and Scholarships

As sponsor of the Student Seminar, Zoetis provides a total of $20,000 to fund awards and the top student presenter scholarship. The student presenter of each paper selected for ORAL presentation receives a $750 award when they make the presentation at the meeting. These students also compete for one of several scholarships awarded through the AASV Foundation. The oral presentations will be judged to determine the amount of the scholarship awarded. Zoetis funds a $5000 scholarship for the student whose paper, oral presentation, and supporting information are judged best overall. Elanco Animal Health provides $20,000 in additional funding, enabling the AASV Foundation to award scholarships of $2500 each for 2^nd through 5^th place, $1500 each for 6^th through 10^th place, and $500 each for 11^th through 15^th place.

Student Poster Session

Abstracts that are not selected for oral presentation in the Student Seminar will be considered for presentation in a poster session at the annual meeting. Zoetis, sponsor of the Student Poster Session, has joined with AASV to provide a $250 award for each student poster presenter at the meeting. Students selected to make a poster presentation will be expected to supply a brief paper, formatted for publication in the conference proceedings, by November 12^th. The guidelines for preparing posters for the display are available at aasv.org/annmtg/2022/posters.php.

Veterinary Student Poster Competition

The presenters of the top 15 poster abstracts compete for scholarship awards ranging from $200 to $500 in the Veterinary Student Poster Competition, sponsored by United Animal Health. See aasv.org/annmtg/2022/postercomp.htm for poster judging details.

In all cases, the student presenter is required to attend the meeting in person to make the presentation. Recorded or virtual presentations will not be accepted unless the meeting converts to an entirely virtual event.

Complete information for preparing and submitting abstracts is available at aasv.org/annmtg/2022/studentseminar.htm. The rules for submission should be followed carefully. For more information, contact the AASV office by phone, 515-465-5255, or email, aasv@aasv.org.

Call for abstracts – Research Topics session

Plans are underway for the 53^rd Annual Meeting of the American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV), to take place February 26 through March 1, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. As part of the meeting, there will be a session highlighting research projects related to swine health and production. Abstracts are now being accepted to be considered for presentation during the Research Topics session, which will be held Sunday, February 27.

Those interested in making a 15-minute oral presentation should submit a 1-page abstract on applied research related to swine health and production issues (virology, bacteriology, parasitology, environment, food safety, odor, welfare, etc) to aasv@aasv.org by August 16, 2021. Include the presenting author’s name, mailing address, phone number, and email address with each submission.

Abstracts not selected for oral presentation will be considered for poster presentation. All submitting authors will be notified of the selection results in September. Authors of abstracts selected for oral or poster presentation must provide a paper, formatted for publication in the conference proceedings, by November 12, 2021.

PLEASE NOTE: Participation in the Research Topics oral and poster session is at the presenter’s expense. No speaking stipend or travel expense reimbursement is paid by the AASV. The presenting author is required to register for and attend the meeting in person to make the presentation. Recorded or virtual presentations will not be accepted unless the meeting converts to an entirely virtual event. Nonmember participants may register at the AASV regular member rate. Qualifying full-time graduate students must join AASV to register at the graduate student member rate.

Highlights: Board of Directors 2021 spring meeting