STAAR CONFERENCE
April 30 - May 2, 2025
Conference Announcements
We are excited to announce that the next STAAR Conference will take place from April 30th to May 2nd, 2025. The new venue is the Hilton-Parsippany in New Jersey, which offers a wide range of amenities and spacious environment, making it the perfect new home for STAAR and its participants. The Hilton is located 30 minutes from Newark-Liberty International Airport. More information will be added shortly.
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2025 Workshop Wet Labs Include:
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Advanced Manual Therapies for the Canine Spine
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Shockwave for Tendinopathies, Myelopathies, and OA
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Conservative Management of IVDD
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Rehabbing Dogs with CCL and Patellar Instability
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Strain, Counterstrain
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Building Blocks for Canine Fitness
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Baseline Assessment for Sporting Dogs
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Mulligan for the Spine
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Advanced Manual Therapy for the Extremities
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The Role of Kinetic Lines in Myofascial Tension and Posture, and Treatment Ideas
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Laser Acupuncture to Maximize Patient Outcomes
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Next Level Neuro Rehab
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Practical Exercises for Thoracic Limb Injuries... and more
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2025 STAAR Instructors include:
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Laurie Edge-Hughes, PT, MAn St, CAFCI, CCRT
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Leslie Eide, DVM, CCRT
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Samantha Wong, DVM, CCRP, CVA
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Ria Acciani, MPT, CCRP, IADN cert
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Elena Saltis, BSc, NZPT, APA, CCRT
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Deb Torraca, DPT, CCRP, CCAT, CCMT
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Kara Amstutz, DVM, CCRT, CVA, CVPP, DACVSMR (in Partnership with the Canine Rehab Institute)
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Kirsty Oliver, Rehab Tech Practitioner, VTS, (in Partnership with NC State)... and more​
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If you would like us to contact you with updates, please make sure you are on our email list, which comes from Vital Vet, STAAR's parent company. If you're not yet subscribed, you can join our mailing list by clicking this link. Thank you for your interest in STAAR 2025, and we look forward to seeing you there.
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STAAR 2023
Thank you to all who attended STAAR 2023! It was our first event since 2019, and it felt like a long-overdue family reunion. Reconnecting with old friends and making new ones was truly special. We had over 200 attendees, including 104 veterinary professionals, 26 vendors, and 47 dog handlers with 78 dogs. The Conference featured 16 intensive, hands-on workshop labs led by 7 incredible instructors over the span of 4 days. It was wonderful to be back, and we hope all attendees enjoyed the experience as much as we did.
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View STAAR 2023 photos.
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No other conference provides more practical, hands-on experience than STAAR. STAAR participants include approximately 80 dogs that are brought in as volunteers for STAAR workshops. Practical experience on live animal patients is critical for learning skills related to rehabilitation and physical therapy.
You'll leave the Conference with the knowledge and techniques you can immediately and confidently apply to your animal patients.
"STAAR provides education one cannot find at national or specialist conferences because of its exemplary educational quality, integration of the many sub-professions involved in veterinary rehab, and the focus on specific, difficult topics. My interactions with a wide range of amazing peers and instructors from all walks of veterinary rehabilitation, sports fitness and conditioning, and physical therapy allowed me to share/gain invaluable information, refined my focus on key learning issues, and led me to explore new treatment regimens for my own patients."
Andrea L. Looney, DVM, DACVAA, DACVSMR, CCRP / Anesthesia and Pain Management Services
