Animal Welfare Professionals

Updated 3/10/25 at 12:39 PM - Recording now available!

Please note: All views expressed on these calls are not necessarily endorsed by Maddie’s Fund.

We hope to see you on the next Community Conversation on Monday, 3/10/25 at 11am PT for "Physical Therapy Insights on Injury Minimization in Animal Care" with the Tina Esbenshade, PT, DPT. 

Animal care professionals are exposed to a variety of occupational hazards due to the physical demands and unpredictable nature of their work. This presentation aims to address the importance of injury minimization in veterinary practices and animal sheltering, with a focus on improving ergonomics, and injury prevention and recovery from a physical therapy standpoint. We will explore common musculoskeletal injuries encountered by animal care staff and outline an approach to reducing the risk of injury. We will also discuss the role of physical therapy in the rehabilitation process and the importance of early intervention. By prioritizing injury prevention through physical activity and ergonomic modifications, veterinary practices and animal welfare organizations can reduce the risk of injury leading to better care for animals.

Maddie's Fund will also be announcing the February grant giveaway winners! 

Register for Community Conversations hosted via Zoom: https://maddies.fund/CommunityConvoRegistration2024

Make sure you are using the latest version of Zoom when you join us!

If you are unable to make it live on Monday, this thread will be updated with the recording and resources so you can watch and share whenever you'd like.  After you watch the recording on-demand or attend the call live, be sure to complete this new March 2025 entry form to enter to win up to a $5,000 grant: https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-mar25-giveaway.htm 

#EducationandTraining

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Maddie's Pet Forum Admin
Maddie's Fund
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Thanks to the 162+ people and paws who joined us on today's Community Conversations call! The recording is now available to watch on-demand. Below you'll find a recap of today's call and the resources shared. 

Call Recap

Welcome from hosts

• • @Christina Lee, Founder and Principal of StellaFirma Strategies
  • Dr. @Raye Taylor, CEO/CMO, Taylor Veterinary Services; Vice President, Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine
    
    

• Question of the Day: Have you or a member of your direct team ever suffered from an injury resulting from repeated movements?
  • "Not repeated movements, no. I've had lots and lots of others. I come from steel and glass." -  Bob Amic
  • "I have thrown out my back from moving bags of food" - Julianne Carmona
  • "Yes... our groomers!" - Mary Flores
  • "I think everyone on the team has some kind of carpal tunnel or shoulder or knee issue." - Kristen Petrie
  • "Yes, with a falling accident" - Pat Bellis
  • "What an appropriate topic for me... I tweaked my back this morning tucking in a couch cover of all things." - Mary Flores
  • "Our Board President and Founder needed a shoulder replacement, and they believe the repetitive motions involved with cleaning cat condos had a big hand to play in it." - Megan Scoullar 
  • "Working as a cashier I got an overuse injury pulling items across the scanner. I tore the cartiledge off the ulna bone in my elbow. I also partially tore the tendons in the elbow as well. I am still healing and its been almost a year." - April Cannizzaro
  • "Carpal tunnel syndrome" - T' Fisher
  • "In recovering from a TTO surgery on my knee. " - Amanda Gray
  • "I am just about out of cartilage in my right knee, too, and was told I need a partial replacement.  Had a C5-C6 neck fusion almost 25 years ago!" - Patricia Burg
  • "Tore labral cartilage when my 17-pound cat lunged from my arms, and I tried to catch him." - Lisa Hammond
  • "Lower back from lifting the kennel drain grate repetitively and not lifting correctly." - Tiffany Roland
  • "At 64, my issue has been scooping 6 litter boxes twice a day. Killer on the lower back." - Donna Miller
    
    
• Maddie's Fund Grant Announcements - March 2025 Monthly Drawing Winners
  • Community Conversations Winner of $5,000
    • @Jo Lunsford, Kay Turpin Animal Rescue Fund, Lebanon, KY
  • Maddie's Pet Forum Winner of $3,000
    • @Mary Garcia, Spring Branch Rescue, Richmond, TX
  • Maddie's Fund 30th Anniversary Cuddly $1000 Prize Pack Giveaway
    • @Elaine Edington, Grant Coordinator at Genesee County Animal Control, Flint, MI

• National Updates
  • Maddie's Insights: Helping the Helpers webcast - Thursday mar 13 at noon PT Register Today: https://maddies.fund/MIwebcastsRegister 
  • Doors Wide Open monthly mini-webcast series is all about access to pet care!
    Find out more and register: https://forum.maddiesfund.org/opendoorwebcasts
  • My Dog is My Home virtual conference happening this month! March 25-27th - all online and great speaker line up. Dr. Kwane Stewart and Lori Weise of Downtown Dog Rescue are keynote speakers.
    Registration here https://www.mydogismyhome.org/2025-conference
    Discount Code: MaddiesForum ((the price with the discount is $75 discounted from $140)
  • Kristin Petrie with Community Cats Podcast:
    • Return-to-Home Certification Workshop on Wednesday from 2:00-3:30 PM ET. In this workshop we will discuss simple, actionable ways that we can support owners of lost cats, be a resource to those who find cats, and increase the rate at which cats in our shelters are reunited with grateful families. You can learn more and register here: https://www.communitycatspodcast.com/events/return-to-home-certification-workshop-mar-2025/
    • We also have Trapper's Tips & Tricks Certification Workshop coming up on Saturday from 2:00-4:00 PM ET which is an advanced training workshop for TNR trappers. It fun and super helpful! You can get details and register here - https://www.communitycatspodcast.com/events/trappers-tips-and-tricks-presented-by-neighborhood-cats-march-2025/
  • Hello from Canada!!!  Please join us in Ottawa in November for our new One Health/One Welfare conference.  You can find more information here: https://reg.eventmobi.com/OneHealthOneWelfare 
    And.....the Call for Speakers is now open for that conference, so please consider submitting an abstract here: https://sessionize.com/2025-onehealthonewelfare-conference
  • 2025 Summit for Animals, being held in Montreal, Quebec April 27th through the 29, 2025 is 90% sold out!!!  If you were planning to register, you need to do it ASAP to ensure we see you.  18–30-year-olds currently have the ability to get a 25% discount on registration!  Scroll down on the registration page for the coupon code! https://reg.eventmobi.com/summitforanimals
  • Maddie's Fund Monthly Giveaways!  Enter here for a chance to win CA$H: 
    Open to all who are watching live or on-demand! Be sure to enter each week you attend!
     https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-mar25-giveaway.htm
  • Maddie's Pet Forum Monthly Giveaway: Maddie's Fund® is giving away a $3,000 grant each month to one lucky Maddie's® Pet Forum member. You'll automatically be entered to win each month when you start a new discussion, reply to a new post. More info:  https://maddies.fund/mpfmonthlygiveaway

  • In celebration of Maddie's Fund 30th anniversary, Maddie's Fund and Cuddly have partnered to provide $1,000 in prizes monthly, for engaging on a special anniversary-related post on Maddie's Pet Forum. 

    You'll also be entered to win the usual $3,000 monthly grant giveaway by participating. We're so excited to celebrate Maddie's Fund 30th anniversary with Cuddly and all of you. You can find each month's discussion thread when they're available here: https://forum.maddiesfund.org/30yearsgiveaway

• Presentation: Physical Therapy Insights on Injury Minimization in Animal Care 
  • • Guest Speaker:
      • Dr. @Tina Esbenshade, PT, DPT, Monument Physical Therapy and Wellness
    • Key Takeaways:
      • Improving ergonomics in the workplace can help reduce the risk of injury
      • Postural awareness may be beneficial for animal care tasks
      • Physical exercise plays a role in reducing the risk of work-related musculoskeletal injuries
      •  Lifestyle changes, psychosocial factors, access to multidisciplinary resources, and expectations of recovery are all modifiable factors which may improve return-to-work outcomes 
        
        

• Highlights from the Chat
  • "This is a great topic!! Thank You!" - Nora Luckett
  • "Not me sitting like that guy right now...." - Jory Jolivet
  • "Are you aware of any literature where pulling forces associated with dog walking have been measured?" - Chris Smith
  • "Chris, can you clarify - do you mean where pulling forces have been associated with injury? or just measured for data collection?" - Christina Lee
  • "More for data collection. My use would be as part of a physical job demand analysis and when determining accommodations for a GRTW." - Chris Smith
  • "I love my standup desk! In the admin/grant space, sitting is a hazard." - Lisa Pearce
  • "I totally was like...ope whats my posture, better straighten up!" - Raye Taylor
  • "Who in the audience is suddenly acutely aware of their posture footwear!?!🙋🏽‍♀️" - Raye Taylor
  • "Is there suggestion with a live object that moves?" - Christina Veloz
  • "In some states you need a referral, other states you can just find a PT and go" - Keeley Forrestel
  • "Congratulations on adding Jack to your family." - Sharon Fletcher
  • "I love you, Jack!" - Jory Jolivet
  • "Awww, hi Jack!! <3" - Michelle Pease
  • "What to take for pain if not anti-inflammatories?" - Lisa Hammond
  • "I take a muscle relaxer for my back hitches." -  Donna Miller
  • "Excellent Information!" - Debra DeVries
  • "Thank you for this great topic! Adding it to my self-care list!" - Lisa Pearce
  • "Thank you! What a great presentation!" - Irene Chansawang
  • "Thank you for speaking, and for adopting Jack from BARCS :)" - Michelle Pease
  • "Thank you so much!!" - Mary Flores

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Sheila Kouhkan
Senior Education Specialist
Maddie's Fund
CA
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Attachment(s)

Physical Therapy Insights on Injury Minimization in Anima...pptx   20.86 MB 1 version