Special Events
What is “Pawsitive Dentistry”?
Pawsitive Dentistry is the philosophy that when we learn together utilizing Pawsitive methods and industry-leading expert instructors, our attendees accomplish amazing things and elevate (no pun intended) the level of care their patients receive.
Our two-day event for veterinarians (veterinary students are welcome too) and our one-day veterinary technician/assistant course should challenge you in ways that will grow your confidence while performing dental procedures and inspire you to better educate the public on why dental care is essential to the quality of life for all animals.
Ease and efficiency of work are among our objectives. Veterinary medicine is controlled chaos at best; let’s make dentistry our Zen place!
What to Expect
The Pawsitive Dentistry Team
Our instructors are accomplished and versed in working with veterinary teams in truly impactful and helpful ways. The knowledge you will receive is useful and practical. Our team has experienced many of the challenges you are going through in your practice firsthand, and we listen to your concerns and help you strategize solutions that uniquely fit your needs and your teams. Below are the biographies of our team.
What You Will Learn
Veterinarians
· Identification of dental conditions that require treatment
· Dental radiology interpretation
· Regional nerve blocks
· Instrumentation for oral surgery and extractions
· Surgical practice of routine and complex extractions
· Ergonomics for dentistry
· Ask the expert and more!
Technicians
· Four hours of hands-on, full-mouth dental radiology positioning on dogs and cats
· One-hour hands-on instrument sharpening lab
· Lectures on the C.O.R.E. dental procedure, feline dental conditions, and regional nerve blocks
***Course outlines and agendas are detailed below***
Workstations at Enova
You will be welcomed into a space meant for learning. Enova’s dental training facility is equipped with individual workspaces, so each doctor will have a dental delivery unit to utilize while working on dental skills without disruption. Each workstation is equipped with comfortable seating. You will have a set of Enova loupes and light to use, encouraging ergonomic postures and the ability to visualize those tiny roots! During our hands-on oral surgery and pain management labs, each DVM will have a canine and feline specimen.
Radiographs
Techs and assistants, you will spend four hours learning a simplified method to perform dental radiology on canine and feline specimens. Doctors, during your oral surgery practice, you will have a Pawsitive Dentistry technician instructor available to obtain any dental radiographs.
Instrumentation
Having all of the best instruments is essential to dentistry, so we will provide you with a new oral surgery pack that you can take back to your practice. Those instruments in your hospital can immediately allow you to apply your new skills to patients seamlessly. Veterinary technicians or assistants get to take home a complete Pawsitive Dental pack, which has all of the instruments you need to do the oral examination, charting, subgingival, and supragingival cleaning.
Is it Worth it?
Well YES! We like to think the value of our program far exceeds the cost; however, we want you to think so, too. Please let us know if you have specific goals or requests during the training. Our team of instructors intends to leave you wanting more; that is a compliment. Your goals for learning veterinary dentistry are our goals, too!
Lunch
Enova Illumination will be providing lunch each day. Please let us know if you have any specific dietary requests in your registration form. Coffee and snacks will be provided in the morning and afternoon.
Proceedings
Each registered attendee will receive a downloadable copy of the event proceedings.
Continuing Education Credits
Our programs are approved for RACE credits. 16 credit hours for DVMs and 8 hours for Veterinary Technicians.
Need a hotel?
Enova Illumination has arranged a hotel block at the Double Tree Hilton in St. Louis Park for all who need it at $169 a night.
This hotel is just a few miles from Enova Illumination and has many restaurants within walking distance for dinners.
Refund policy
We know that sometimes plans get interrupted or changed. We want to accommodate those changes; refunds will be honored until June 15th. After June 15th, any registered attendee can find someone to take your place at the event. However, refunds after June 15th are not allowed. Please ensure you can attend on July 19th and 20th before your purchase unless you already have someone who would love to swap out with you if you cannot attend.
There are more goodies and fun things to come, but we will keep them under wraps for now.
Benita and the team at Pawsitive Dental Education and Enova Illumination are excited to see you in July at Pawsitive Dentistry at Enova!
Questions
Contact Pawsitive Dental Education here if you have any questions. We are happy to help!
Technician One-Day Track (Friday or Saturday)
Pawsitive Dentistry Instructors
Dr. Brenda L. Mulherin graduated from Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She entered private practice for a few years before returning to Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine. In 2014, she entered and completed a Dentistry and Oral Surgery Residency with the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In 2015, she became a Diplomate of the American Veterinary Dental College.
Dr. Mulherin is a full Clinical Professor at Iowa State University, where she teaches small animal dentistry to veterinary students. She is also the author of a textbook entitled “Veterinary Oral Diagnostic Imaging,” published by Wiley in 2023.
Dr. Susan Crowder practices advanced veterinary dentistry at her hospital, Companion Animal Dentistry of Kansas City, and three other amazing veterinary dentists. She graduated from Kansas State in 1998 and spent ten years in practice before specializing in dentistry. Her passion for dentistry runs deep, as her husband, Dr. Ric Crowder, is a human dentist, and her daughter Kayla is finishing dental school and will follow in her father’s footsteps. Throughout her career in veterinary medicine, she has served the profession in many capacities. She serves on the Executive Board of Directors for the American Veterinary Dental College and the Foundation for Veterinary Dentistry. Susan received the Peter Emily Service Award from the AVDC for her years as an officer and website designer for the AVDC. When she is not saving teeth and teaching veterinary professionals about dentistry, she enjoys time with her three children, Kayla, Brennan, and Madeline, snow skiing and scrapbooking, and anxiously awaits her first grandchild!
Benita Altier is a Licensed Veterinary Technician and a Veterinary Technician Specialist in Dentistry. She began her career in veterinary technology in 1988 and has worked in small animal general medicine, ophthalmology, equine and llama neonatal care, canine reproduction, and dental specialty.
Benita is the current President of the Academy of Veterinary Dental Technicians, Member at Large for the Arizona Veterinary Technician Association, and former Secretary for the Washington State Association of Veterinary Technicians. She has co-authored two textbooks on veterinary dentistry for technicians and published several articles in professional journals. Through her business, Pawsitive Dental Education LLC, she has provided professional dental instruction and consultation to veterinary hospitals and conferences across the US, Canada, and China since 2008. She is very passionate about giving back to the profession and helping veterinary technicians grow their careers in ways they never thought possible.
Laurel Bird, CVT, VTS(Dentistry), graduated from the Medical Institute of MN and is a certified veterinary technician in MN and WI. She discovered her passion for dentistry early in her career while working in private practice. She spent over 20 years in private practice, earned her Veterinary Technician Specialist in Dentistry, and taught for five years in a vet tech program. Laurel works at the Animal Emergency & Referral Center of MN in their Dentistry & Oral Surgery Service, speaks at national conferences, and authored a chapter on dental radiology in Small Animal Dental Procedures for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses. She loves helping veterinary staff and owners alike learn dentistry but especially loves teaching dental radiology, dental charting, and the oral exam and helping with endodontic procedures.