For the past year, the Behavioral Management Consortium of the National Primate Research Centers (NPRCs) has been hosting a quarterly webinar series to enhance the behavioral welfare of nonhuman primates living in research settings. The series features well-qualified speakers discussing a wide variety of topics including social housing and the management of social behavior, environmental enrichment and associated behavioral change, animal training techniques to enhance welfare, behavioral monitoring methods, and defining animal welfare. The Behavioral Management Consortium is very pleased to collaborate with the Association of Primate Veterinarians to invite all members of APV to attend these hour-long webinar presentations. APV members will receive an email notification a few weeks prior to each webinar, and can individually log in to the webinars as desired. Web conference information for joining each session will be distributed 2-days prior to the webinar. If there are multiple participants at your location, please consider reserving a conference room and participate as a group to limit the number of webinar connections.

Our next webinar will be offered on Wednesday, May 15, 2019 at 2:00 EDT, specifically for APV members. Dr. Allison Heagerty of the Oregon National Primate Research Center will speak on “Alopecia in Captive Monkeys: Potential Causes and Treatments."

Speaker: Allison Heagerty, PhD, Social Housing Coordinator, Behavioral Services Unit at the Oregon National Primate Research Center

Title: Alopecia in Captive Monkeys: Potential Causes and Treatments

When: Wednesday May 15, 2019 from 2:00 – 3:00 EST

Description: Alopecia is a common condition among captive non-human primates. Although there has been progress in correlating hair loss to both endogenous and exogenous variables, in the vast majority of cases alopecia has not been definitively attributed to one single cause. In this webinar I will discuss potential welfare implications of alopecia in rhesus macaques, as well as methods for quantifying hair loss. I will then describe various environmental, demographic, and physiological factors that are correlated with hair loss. Finally, I will highlight some potential methods that may help to ameliorate alopecia. This talk will be appropriate for anyone working with nonhuman primates, who are interested in knowing about the current understanding of alopecia in the field of animal welfare.

For more information on the NPRC Behavioral Management Consortium, please click here.

The 42nd meeting of the American Society of Primatologists will take place at the Pyle Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison from August 21-24, 2019. The meeting will feature presentations on the ecology, behavior, anatomy, welfare, physiology, neuroscience, genetics, and conservation of captive and wild primates.

ASP is a RACE accredited organization, so you can earn continuing education credits at this meeting.  We have applied for 10.0 credit hours for the conference (maximum of 8.5 can be earned by an individual due to simultaneous sessions), and another 6.5 credit hours for the pre-conference workshop.

ASP’s Primate Care Committee is offering a pre-conference workshop on Identifying and Treating Abnormal Behaviors in Nonhuman Primates. The workshop will be the afternoon of August 20 and the morning of August 21. For more information see https://asp.org/meetings/preconfworkshop.cfm

Keynote talks include:

• Stephen Nash
  A Working Life in Science and Art: Primates, Turtles, Comic Books and the Sense of Wonder
• Marilyn Norconk
  Fielding change in Primatology
• Dorothy Fragaszy
  DIY Primatology: Building Careers
• Karen Strier
  Primates and Conservation in the Time of Yellow Fever

The Symposium Submission Deadline is March 1, 2019, while the Abstract Submission Deadline is March 31, 2019.

Additional details are available here, including hotel and transportation information, registration details, and host city highlights and attractions.

The Association of Primate Veterinarians 46th Annual Workshop will be held October 9-12, 2019 preceding the AALAS National Meeting at the Onmi Interlocken Resort, 500 Interlocken Blvd, Broomfield, CO 80021.

Registration/Housing and will open in summer 2019, while case report submission and travel grant submission will open in winter 2019. Check back often for more updates.

Click here to view the Americans for Medical Progress (AMP) new video called "Love, Care, Progress: Inside a Nonhuman Research Facility."

Americans for Medical Progress is dedicated to protecting your investment in biomedical research. They focus on public outreach that builds understanding and appreciation for necessary and humane animal research. They also provide vital news, information and analysis to biomedical research stakeholders to ensure they have the resources they need to deflect campaigns that threaten the future of medical progress.

LabRoots, Inc. is pleased to announce the 8th annual, two-day international, Laboratory Animal Science (LAS) Virtual Conference which will take place on February 13th and 14th, 2019. This is the premier online-only conference focused on preclinical in-vivo phase of drug development.

This year’s theme is Bridging Preclinical with Clinical with the following tracks:

Digitization, Digitalization & Digital Transformation:

Digital transformation has affected the clinical phase of the drug development journey by improving efficiencies, patient engagement and allowing for utilization of computational and other technologies. This track will address topics such as data collection, flow, storage and analytics and digital transformation case studies in clinical phase and the potential for digital transformation in preclinical phase. Preclinical in vivo phase is in initial stages of engaging with digitization and digitalization, which presents opportunities for learning from clinical colleagues how to implement these technologies.

Non-Traditional In Vivo & In Vitro Models:

This track will address the clinical relevance and translational challenges in drug development with in vivo large animal models (dogs, pigs, cats) and in vitro organ on the chip models as potential solutions. Sessions will address the possibilities and challenges of performing preclinical trials with dogs and cats, discuss the need for more clinically relevant preclinical in vivo and in vitro models, and current reality and capabilities of organ on the chip technologies.

Laboratory Animal Sciences 2019 will bring together scientists from basics sciences to bioinformatics, clinicians veterinary technicians, veterinarians, technical support staff and compliance personnel from around the world to learn about recent advances and challenges within preclinical phases of drug development.

Don't miss the opportunity to participate in this groundbreaking conference, which is absolutely free to all participants. Enjoy our Leaderboard, where you can move around the entire event, earning points for a chance to win one of LabRoots most popular t-shirts.

To register, click here.

Join us for the first APV webinar: "Establishing and Managing a Behavioral Management Program for Nonhuman Primates." Steven J Schapiro, PhD, will discuss behavioral management programs, providing numerous examples of socialization, environmental enrichment, and positive reinforcement training. The webinar will take place on  Wednesday, January 30, 2019 at 12:00 pm Central Time. APV members can register by visiting the webinar page. You must be logged in to access this content. This program 102-35255  is approved by the AAVSB RACE to offer a total of 1.00 CE Credit to any veterinarian and/or veterinary technician in the subject matter category of Medical.

The sophisticated behavioral, social, and cognitive capabilities of nonhuman primates (NHPs) necessitate the provision of functionally appropriate captive environments (FACEs) for members of these genera that are living and working in research settings. While functional simulations of some aspects of the natural environment are relatively easy to provide in captivity, other aspects are considerably more difficult to functionally simulate, especially in situations where the number of subjects, the amount of personnel time, and/or the availability of space and resources are limited. This can be particularly problematic for smaller NHP programs, where access to behavioral management expertise may also be limited. This webinar will attempt to accomplish four major goals: 1) provide an extremely brief introduction to the importance of behavioral management; 2) provide insights into the effective organization (of personnel, space, and resources) of a behavioral management program; 3) provide guidance for prioritizing behavioral management initiatives; and 4) highlight obstacles and strategies that affect the integration of behavioral management practices with husbandry, veterinary, and research protocols. Examples addressing all four goals derived from our successful behavioral management program at MD Anderson’s Keeling Center and from our annual Primate Behavioral Management Conference will be presented.

Dr. Schapiro is Associate Professor of Comparative Medicine, Department of Comparative Medicine, Michale E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, in Bastrop, TX, as well as Honorary Professor, Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Copenhagen in Copenhagen, Denmark. Dr. Schapiro has a broad background in primatology, with specific training and expertise in the management, behavior, and cognition of chimpanzees, baboons, rhesus and cynomolgus macaques, owl monkeys, and squirrel monkeys. Dr. Schapiro has taught many workshops across the US and the world on behavioral management of captive nonhuman primates.

The EPV-IDMIT "NHP in Infectious Disease Research" conference will take place December 6-7 in Paris France.

Our partial list includes top speakers on infectious diseases in NHP :

• Anne-Sophie BEIGNON - CNRS - Adaptive response to vaccine
• Catherine Chapon - Université Paris Sud & CEA - In vivo imagin
• Roger Le Grand - CEA division of immuno-virolog
• Saverio Capuano - Wisconsin National Primate Research Center - Treatment of NHP with infectious disease
• JoAnne Flynn - University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine - Tuberculosi
• Raphael Ho Stong Fang- IDMIT - Treatment of NHP in infectious diseases researc
• Jeremy Smedley - Oregon National Primate Center- NHP with infectious disease
• Christiane Stahl-Hennig - DPZ - pox models
• Ellen Preussing - Lightwings - conflicts in scientific environmen
• Neil Berry - NIBSC UK -Zik
• Metz-Rensing Kerstin - DPZ Germany - Patholog
• Luke Kime - Intuitive Biosciences - Wisconsin - USA - tb testing in NH
• Sherrie Jean - Yerkes National Primate Research Center - USA - Working with NHP in High Containmen
• Rajeev K Dhawan - Charles river- USA - tb testing in NH
• Sree Kanthaswamy - Arizona State University- USA - Rhesus Macaques Genomic
• Monika Burns - MIT Cambridge- USA - generation of transgenic marmosets
• Julia Hilliard - Viral Immunology Center Georgia USA - NHP viruses

Scientific Program – Call for presentations

We offer 2 presentations options:

1.- Frontal presentation: where the speaker has to attend the meeting personally .

2.- Presentation via Skype: where speaker can present from any place in the world.

If you are interested in participating in the scientific program, contact Moshe Bushmitz.

For more information on the conference, click here.

The National Primate Research Centers are working to discover causes, preventions, treatments, and cures to improve human and animal health worldwide. Learn more about the NPRCs at @nprcnews and their new website at www.nprc.org.

When: August 8th, 2018 8:00 am - 5:00 pm

Where: Southwest National Primate Research Center, 8715 W. Military Dr., San Antonio, TX 78227

Cost:

• $75 for those registered for the ASP 2018 conference

• $100 for those not registered for the ASP 2018 conference

This workshop includes a full day of instruction, discussion, and presentations covering the processes of positive reinforcement training (PRT) used to teach primates to cooperate with veterinary care procedures. Technical and programmatic elements necessary to facilitate completion of these behaviors are covered in the workshop and include: PRT tools and techniques (targets, use of reinforcers, desensitization), specific behavioral objectives (shifting and separation, conscious blood collection, injections, acupuncture, laser therapy, physical therapy, administration of other medications), and management of specific conditions (diabetes, osteoarthritis, stroke rehabilitation). Programmatic elements will touch upon broad aspects of program development, and more specific features such as the role of the veterinarians and managers, transitioning behaviors among staff, and maintenance of behavioral consistency.

Target Audience: This workshop is designed for those working with primates in zoo, sanctuary and research environments including animal care managers, curators, behavior management specialists, caregivers, keepers, veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and research personnel. We are in the process of requesting Registry of Approved Continuing Education (RACE) credits for veterinarians attending the workshop.

Instructors are Jaine Perlman, Manager of the Behavior Management Unit at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Margaret Whittaker, Consultant, Creative Animal Behavior Solutions. These instructors each have more than 18 years of experience with training nonhuman primates and managing PRT programs in research, zoo and sanctuary environments. Additionally, invited speakers from all three types of facilities will present information about their veterinary care training programs.

Accommodations: Workshop participants are welcome to stay at the ASP conference hotel. See this link for ASP conference rates. Please click on the following link to make hotel reservations: https://aws.passkey.com/go/ASPConference2018

Boxed lunch will be provided.

Transportation to and from the hotel to SNPRC is not included. UBER and LYFT are available from the ASP conference hotel and cost is approximately $25-$35 per trip.

Registration: Registration will be open through the ASP website. Please register by July 6, 2018. Attendance will be limited, so please apply soon.

If you have questions about attending the workshop, please contact Jaine Perlman.

Each year the APV Education Committee awards three trainee Travel Grant Awards to residents or graduate students as a way to defer the cost of travel to the annual workshop. The Travel Grant Award trainees will introduce themselves to their APV colleagues by presenting an oral case report, clinical investigation, or research project at the annual workshop. The submission deadline is July 1, 2018. For more information and to apply, please click here.