Hill's Global Symposium 2025

Iveta Becvarova, DVM, MS, is a Diplomate ACVIM (Nutrition). She is Director of Global Academic and Professional Affairs at Hill’s Pet Nutrition, USA and she is an Adjunct Faculty member in the Dept. of Clinical Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State Univ. Past positions include Director of Academic Affairs at Hill’s Pet Nutrition Europe and Clinical Instructor and Clinical Assistant Professor – Veterinary Nutrition at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine (VMCVM). Dr. Becvarova completed her Master of Science degree in Biomedical and Veterinary Sciences and Nutrition Residency program at the VMCVM and earned her DVM degree from the University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Czech Republic. She is a past president of the board of the ACVN, and a member of the American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition (AAVN). Dr. Becvarova conducted studies in obesity, body composition and oxidative stress.

Dr Petra Černá is an ACVIM diplomate in small animal internal medicine. She graduated from the University of Veterinary Sciences in the Czech Republic in 2018 where she also obtained her PhD in 2023. After completing two internships in the UK, she completed her Small Animal Internal Medicine Residency at Colorado State University, USA, in 2023 Dr Černá was awarded the RCVS Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice in Feline Medicine and also gained Membership in the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists in the Medicine of Cats. She was also awarded the ISFM Advanced Certificate in Feline Behaviour with Distinction.
Dr Černá has particular interest in feline medicine and is currently a PhD candidate at Colorado State University in Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP).

Dr Julie Churchill is Professor at the University of Minnesota CVM and a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine-Nutrition. She completed two residencies and her PhD at the University of Michigan (internal medicine and clinical nutrition) before taking a faculty position there. She is passionate about all aspects of small animal nutrition including the role of addressing changes in nutritional needs of patients throughout life during health and disease. Dr Churchill serves on the boards of Pet Nutrition Alliance and the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention.

Dr. Nicole Ehrhart is the director of the Columbine Health Systems Center for Healthy Aging at Colorado State University, where she leads an interdisciplinary research effort to identify basic and translational mechanisms that promote healthy ageing. Dr Ehrhart holds the Ross M. Wilkins M.D. Limb Preservation Foundation University Chair in Musculoskeletal Oncology and Biology.
She is a board-certified veterinary surgeon (Diplomate ACVS; ACVS Founding Fellow in Surgical Oncology), a professor of surgical oncology in the Dept. of Clinical Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and a research faculty member at Colorado State University’s Flint Animal Cancer Center. In her research lab, the Laboratory of Comparative Musculoskeletal Oncology and Traumatology, Ehrhart conducts translational ageing, limb preservation, tissue engineering, and sarcoma research, as well as bone and muscle regenerative medicine, to benefit both human and canine patients. Ehrhart holds joint faculty positions in the School of Biomedical Engineering, the Cell and Molecular Biology program, the Gates Regenerative Medicine Center at the University of Colorado, and The University of Colorado Cancer Center. In addition to her research, she has held several leadership positions in national and international organizations, such as the American College of Veterinary Surgeons, Veterinary Society for Surgical Oncology (President), Veterinary Orthopedic Society (President) and Chair of the 2014 World Veterinary Orthopaedic Congress Committee.

Dr Rosanne Jepson is Professor of Small Animal Internal Medicine and Nephrology at the Royal Veterinary College, where she divides her time between clinical research and clinical duties. Her current research areas include the pathogenesis of feline chronic kidney disease, bacteriuria and urinary tract infections whilst in her clinical work she has interest in all aspects of canine and feline nephrology, urology and systemic hypertension. Dr Jepson is a founding member of the American College of Veterinary Nephrology and Urology. She is co-lead of the RVC renal replacement programme and has expertise in minimally invasive urological procedures.

Dr Duncan Lascelles is the Dr J. McNeely and Lynne K. DuBose Distinguished Professor of Musculoskeletal Health, and Professor of Translational Pain Research. Since his PhD training at Bristol, UK, he has devoted his professional career to improving our ability to recognise and treat pain in animals. His research program (Translational Research in Pain [TRiP]) develops methods to measure pain associated with spontaneous disease in animals and seeks to understand the underlying neurobiology. Leveraging these measurement techniques in proof of concept studies, his work improves our understanding of how to control pain in companion animals and facilitates analgesic development in human medicine and discovery of relevant pain-signaling mechanisms. He has a particular interest in the measurement of movement in relation to pain, the role of neurotrophins and neurotrophic factors, and the effect of pain on the progression of cancer.

Dr Nathan LeBrasseur holds the Noaber Foundation Professorship in Aging Research and has appointments in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and the Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering at Mayo Clinic. Dr LeBrasseur is the Director of the Robert and Arlene Kogod Center on Aging and the Co-Director of the Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research at Mayo Clinic. He is the recent chair of the NIH Cellular Mechanisms in Aging and Development Study Section. Dr LeBrasseur’s research team conducts translational “bench-to-bedside” research on strategies to improve physical function, metabolism and resilience in the face of ageing and disease. His latest work has centered on cellular senescence, a fundamental mechanism of ageing, and interventions to counter this process to extend healthspan. He is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America.

Dr Heidi Lobprise is a Veterinary Dental Specialist at Cibolo Creek Veterinary Hospital. She is the author/co-author of three dental texts, including the Small Animal Senior Care – Clinical Companion to Five Minute Veterinary Consult. She has also written and lectured about senior health care and serves on the Grey Muzzle Advisory Board and the Senior Pet Advocates Task Force.

Allison McGrath is a Scientist at Hill’s Pet Nutrition and plays a crucial role in executing clinical studies to help support claims substantiation for Hill’s products. Her research has focused on how nutrition can impact pet health and well-being. She has a specific interest in the relationship between nutrition and behaviour in cats and dogs, and is focused on cognition, ageing and the microbiome.

Dr Brennan McKenzie has been in small animal general practice for almost 25 years. He is a member and past president of the Evidence-based Veterinary Medicine Association, author of the SkeptVet Blog, and currently Director of Veterinary Medicine at Loyal, a biotechnology company developing prescription medications to extend healthy lifespan in dogs.

Dr Erin Miscioscia is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Service Chief of the Integrative and Mobility Medicine Service at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. She earned her DVM from Cornell University, completed a residency in Integrative Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation and is board certified in Canine Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation. She is also certified in veterinary acupuncture and hyperbaric veterinary medicine. Her research interests include nutraceutical efficacy, pain management, sports medicine and rehabilitation, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy. She serves as Chair of the ACVSMR Credentialing and Residency Committee and is a founding member of the Pain Innovations Research Laboratory at UF.

Dr Becky Mullis is a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist in the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. She received her BS in Animal Science from the University of Maryland and her DVM from the University of Tennessee. After graduation, she completed a 1-year rotating internship and worked as an emergency veterinarian for a few years. She then returned to the University of Tennessee where she completed a residency in clinical nutrition. Dr Mullis is currently the Corporate Veterinary Affairs Senior Manager with Hill’s Pet Nutrition.

Vicky received her technician degree from Los Angeles Pierce College. She served in private practice for many years in California, and then 20 years ago began a career with Hill’s Pet Nutrition, where she is a Scientific Communications Senior Specialist in the US Professional Veterinary Affairs department. She currently focuses on developing and educating on nutrition and technician strategy.

In 2007, Vicky completed a Bachelor of Science and in 2008 completed a Masters, both in Business Administration. Vicky obtained her Veterinary Technician Specialty (VTS) in nutrition in June 2013. She is involved with many technician associations and is a past president of NAVTA. Vicky speaks nationally and internationally and is a published author.

Dr Natasha Olby is a Professor of Neurology/Neurosurgery at North Carolina State University, after completing her veterinary degree and PhD at Cambridge University in the UK. She is co-editor of the BSAVA Manual of Canine and Feline Neurology. She runs the Canine Neuro-Aging Program and is the Director of the Center for Healthy Aging at NCSU. Her research uses clinical cases to generate translational data.

Dr Chris Pachel is a board-certified veterinary behaviourist and is the owner and lead clinician at the Animal Behavior Clinic in Portland, Oregon. Dr Pachel serves on the Editorial Advisory Board for dvm360 and is a Vice President of Veterinary Behavior for Instinct Dog Behavior and Training and co-owner of Instinct Portland. Dr Pachel hosts Doc Talks, a monthly webinar series that explores veterinary behaviour cases in depth with veterinarians, trainers and animal caregivers. He is also a co-founder of LIMA Beings, an online community of people who seek to apply the power of communication and learning principles to our interactions with others, shaping behavior in compassionate and effective ways.

Dr Lisa Restine has dedicated many hours to lecturing veterinarians on both a national and international level as well as being a co-editor of the 6th edition of a veterinary feline textbook. Dr Restine has been part of the Hill’s team as the Feline Professional Veterinary Affairs Manager where she continues to work with veterinary healthcare team members and pet parents on a global scale to educate and improve upon the health and well-being of cats.

Sheilah Robertson (BVMS (Hons), PhD, DACVAA, DECVAA, DACAW, DECAWBM (WSEL), CVA, MRCVS.) is a graduate from the University of Glasgow with specialized training in anesthesia and pain management. She is board certified in anesthesia and in animal welfare by the respective American and European Colleges and holds a certificate in small animal acupuncture. Her research interests have focused on the recognition of pain in cats and feline specific pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of opioids. She is the senior medical director of Lap of Love Veterinary Hospice, a large network of veterinarians dedicated to end-of-life care. Dr Robertson is also a courtesy Professor in the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.

Dr Angela Rollins completed her DVM, PhD and residency training at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine. She has been a faculty member of the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for over 10 years and teaches courses in veterinary nutrition and physiology and participates in the clinical nutrition service.
Dr Rollins is President of the American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition and a former President of the American College of Veterinary Nutrition. Her research interests include obesity physiology, prevention, and treatment.

Dr Katie Tolbert completed her veterinary degree and small animal internship at the University of Georgia. She then completed a small animal internal medicine residency and PhD in Comparative Biomedical Sciences at North Carolina State University. Before coming to Texas A&M University as a Clinical Associate Professor, she was on faculty at the University of Tennessee, College of Veterinary Medicine and consulted for the TAMU Gastrointestinal Laboratory. Her clinical research program is focused on small animal gastroenterology with a specific interest in the investigation of the efficacy of gastroprotectants and the rationale for their use in the treatment of acid-related disorders, organ failure, neoplasia, and inflammatory diseases in companion animals. Her basic science research program is dedicated to characterising the pathogenic mechanisms and exploring novel therapies for feline GI infections.