AVMA Convention round-up: House of Delegates okays policy to discourage canine devocalization
Keynote speaker Mariana Atencio encourages veterinarians, teams to show up authentically
The American Veterinary Medical Association reported on July 16 that the AVMA House of Delegates adopted a handful of revised animal welfare policies, including one on canine devocalization that supersedes the previous policy. Delegates also approved a new policy on canine hybrids and referred two other policies back to the AVMA Board of Directors.
AVMA’s Malinda Larkin reported that the policy on canine devocalization now states that the AVMA "strongly discourages" the procedure. The revisions redirect the policy's emphasis from the rare and marginal conditions under which devocalization may be justified, to the need for AVMA to discourage convenience devocalization as a nontherapeutic procedure that not only has no benefits to dogs but also negatively impacts their welfare.
Delegates also approved revised policies on:
- Docking of lambs' tails
- Tail docking of cattle, and
- Physical restraint of animals.
Regarding the tail docking of lambs', language was revised to strengthen AVMA's opposition to excessively short tail docking and to clarify that appropriate pain control should be used whenever lambs' tails are docked.
Revisions to the policy on tail docking of cattle clarify that the procedure may cause chronic pain and that appropriate pain control should be used. Dr. Hunter Lang, delegate for the American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP), said his association strongly supports the policy as it goes well with the AABP's position on this topic.
Learn more about these and other policies under consideration. The AVMA also provided details on a new policy on canine hybrids that emphasizes that providing care for a canine hybrid may be considered an illegal act. In areas that do permit canine hybrids, veterinarians may be required to verify legal ownership, according to background materials.
What is authenticity? Keynote speaker shares her insights
Larkin also provided an overview from the keynote speech on July 15 from Mariana Atencio, a bilingual journalist and motivational storyteller.
Authenticity can seem like an abstract concept, but it is present in every moment of our lives, in big and small decisions we make every day. Authenticity is knowing who you are, what your values and vulnerabilities are, and not being afraid to show them.
Larkin posed the question: So why do we love authentic people, but we find it so hard to be authentic ourselves?
Atencio said we admire authenticity in people because they are not afraid and don’t pay attention to what other people think.
Often people do what she described as "covering," hiding the aspects of their personality or identity that they don't believe are compatible with success. These can be preconceived notions about things such as mental health issues, personality quirks or physically appearing different in any way from others.
"We cover what we are ashamed of. The ironic thing about covering is that you cover to belong, when covering erodes that sense of belonging," Atencio said.
Taking that risk and being unafraid of being who you are is worth it, she says, not only personally but also for the profession.
"In this day and age, for the future of the AVMA, the more real the better. We don't need you to be role models, we need you to be real models," Atencio said. "The invitation is to be vulnerable. To examine what are these ideas I have that a successful veterinary professional should look or sound like."
Read more and watch a video clip from the talk in the AVMA’s summary of the session.
Comments
Related Articles
Copyright © 2025 - All Rights Reserved
ISSN 2768-198X
List
Add
Please enter a comment