Dr. Kris Kruse-Elliott earned her BS and DVM from Oregon State University followed by a year in mixed animal practice in Seattle. She completed an anesthesia residency at North Carolina State University and is board certified by the American College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia. Following her residency, Dr. Kruse stayed at NCSU as a NIH postdoctoral fellow and received a PhD in pulmonary physiology before moving to the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she spent 15 years as tenured faculty and served as Section Head for the Anesthesia service.  While at UW, she was active in both clinical and basic science research in anesthesia and physiology and has continued clinical research activities collaborating with The Marine Mammal Center in northern California.  In 2006 she returned to the west coast to serve as the Medical Director and Anesthesiologist for AnimalScan (formerly Iams Pet Imaging). Dr. Kruse joined SAGE Veterinary Centers in 2018 as their first anesthesiologist, starting their anesthesia specialty service and building it into a robust service with 5 board-certified anesthesiologists.  She continues to support anesthesia of complex cases and training in anesthesia and analgesia for through a combination of on-site anesthesia support and teleconsulting.

Dr. Valerie Fadok has been intimately involved in veterinary dermatology for over 40 years.  Her desire is to make dermatology less frustrating and more rewarding for veterinarians, pet owners, and pets.  She received her DVM from Washington State University in 1978, after which she did an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at the West Los Angeles Veterinary Medical Group.  A residency in veterinary dermatology followed at the University of  Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, and Dr. Fadok became board-certified veterinary dermatology in 1982.  She earned a PhD in Experimental Pathology at the Unversity of Colorado Health Sciences center in 1991; her thesis centered around programmed cell death and control of inflammation.  Dr. Fadok has worked on faculty at University of Tennessee, the University of Florida, Texas A & M University, and National Jewish Health.  Prior to joining Zoetis in 2016, she worked in private specialty practices in Denver, Colorado, and Houston, Texas.  Dr. Fadok retired from Zoetis as a field specialist in January 2023.  She has provided support to Nextmune for veterinarians about allergy testing, immunotherapy, and disease management. She currently works for the Veterinary Information Network (VIN) to provide case consults and to develop educational materials; she also helps with cases at Zoetis Dx.   Dr. Fadok has lectured internationally, nationally, and locally on subjects relating to veterinary skin disease, immunology, and inflammation.   Awards include the ACVD Award for Excellence (2010) and the Frank Kral Award (2018).  She curently serves on the Board of Directors for the Westie Foundation of American and the Human Animal Bond Association.

Kara Burns is a licensed veterinary technician with a master’s degree in physiology and a master’s degree in counseling psychology.  She began her career in human medicine working as an emergency psychologist and as a poison specialist dealing with human and animal poisonings.

Kara is the Founder and Past President of the Academy of Veterinary Nutrition Technicians. She teaches nutrition courses around the world. Kara is an independent nutritional and well-being consultant and is the Editor in Chief of Today’s Veterinary Nurse.

She is a member of many national, international, and state associations and holds positions on many boards in the profession: NAVTA Past President; Chair-Elect of the EveryCat Health Foundation (formerly Winn Feline Foundation); Society of Veterinary Medical Ethics Board; and the first technician to be President of the Pet Nutrition Alliance, to name a few.

She has authored ~200 articles, textbooks, and textbook chapters and is an internationally invited speaker, focusing on topics of nutrition, leadership, communication, and technician utilization. Kara and her wife Dr. Ellen Lowery developed the Pet Nutrition Coach Certification Courses course through NAVC. Kara also co-authored veterinary microbiome course certification through NAVC with Robin Saar and Brandon Burch.

Ms. Burns was recently named the Bridge Club 2024 Industry ICON Award recipient – the first veterinary technician to be recognized as The Bridge Club ICON. She was also recognized by Today’s Veterinary Business Article Nine Lives – Plus 3, as a feline-focused woman charting the course for extraordinary veterinary care. Ms. Burns has been featured on the cover of the Veterinary Technician Journal and the NAVTA Journal and most recently has been featured in PetVet Magazine.  She was named the North American Veterinary Conference Technician Speaker of the Year in 2013, 2016, and in 2021. She was granted an honorary VTS (Internal Medicine) in 2011. She was also granted an honorary VTS (Dentistry) in 2012.  She was the Inaugural 2010 NAVTA Veterinary Technician of the Year. Kara was the 2011 Dr. Franklin Loew Lecturer and the 2024 Dr. Roger L. Lukens Lecturer.