Purina Institute Announces 2025 Webinar Series on Pet Nutrition Conversations for Veterinary Professionals

"Creating Collaborative Care Through Nutrition Conversations" to share practical advice for engaging clients in nutrition conversations for common pet health conditions.

ST. LOUIS, April 28, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A working knowledge of canine and feline nutrition and a willingness to engage in conversations about pet nutrition with clients can benefit both veterinary patients and clinics. To empower veterinary health care teams in their pet nutrition discussions, the Purina Institute is continuing to host the "Creating Collaborative Care Through Nutrition Conversations" webinar series, now in its fourth year, with four sessions occurring 15 May, 17 July, 11 September and 4 December 2025.

Research shows that veterinarians are pet owners' most trusted source for nutrition advice.¹ In addition, 78% of surveyed pet owners rated nutrition expertise as an "important" or "extremely important" factor in their satisfaction with their veterinary clinic.

"Even though veterinarians clearly play a critical role for their clients, only 1 in 5 surveyed veterinary professionals say they proactively offer nutrition advice during most client visits," said Dr. Natalia Wagemans, global head of the Purina Institute. "This suggests that many veterinarians may not realize how important nutrition is to their clients, and they are missing critical opportunities to counsel clients about their pet's diet."

To help address the gap highlighted by the research, the Purina Institute launched "Creating Collaborative Care Through Nutrition Conversations" webinars in 2021. Now an annual series, the webinars deliver practical advice on how veterinary health care teams can engage clients in nutrition conversations as part of medical, nutritional and behavioral management of common cat and dog health conditions. The 60-minute webinars scheduled for 2025 include:

• 15 May 2025 — Don't Forget the Diet: Incorporating Diet Into Daily Dermatology Case Management with Diane Delmain, DVM, DABVP Feline Practice, and Jackie Parr, BScH, DVM, MSc, DACVIM (Nutrition).
• 17 July 2025 — Comprehensive Management of Feline Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD): Part 2 with Jessica Quimby, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (SAIM), and Lindsey E. Bullen, DVM, DACVIM (Nutrition).
• 11 September 2025 — Implementing a Successful Weight Loss Program with Maryanne Murphy, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition), and Tamberlyn Moyers, LVMT, VTS (Nutrition).
• 4 December 2025 — Nourishing Bonds: How to Prevent and Address Food Aversions in Pets with Julie A. Churchill, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition), and Sandra Lyn, PhD.

"The Collaborative Care webinars are a unique collection that differ from traditional didactic programs," said Dr. Andrew Sparkes, an independent veterinary consultant and series moderator. "During each webinar, two veterinary specialists or pet care experts discuss a specific health-related topic, typically based around one or two clinical cases. Speakers provide an overview of medical and nutritional case management and share how veterinary health care teams can connect, communicate and collaborate with pet owners or carers, especially about nutrition."

Each webinar is approved for one hour of continuing education credit by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards' Registry of Approved Continuing Education (RACE).

Interested veterinary professionals can view full details and register for the webinars by visiting the series' website or purinainstitute.com/events.

¹Forward Group. (2023, June). Nutrition recommendations study: Veterinarians/technicians & pet owners [unpublished market research]. Purina Institute, Nestlé Purina PetCare Global Resources, Inc. 

About Purina Institute
The Purina Institute is dedicated to transforming nutrition science into actionable information that veterinary professionals can put into practice to benefit their patients. Through the Institute's extensive online resources, publications and scientific programs, veterinarians and team members can arm themselves with the unbiased, science-based information they need to help pets live longer, better lives.