The BVZS Annual Conference 2023
Registration is now closed for this year's conference, we look forward to seeing you there!
3rd – 5th November
What to expect
The BVZS Annual Conference is the largest event we host during the year. This year we are thrilled to welcome delegates from the 3rd to the 5th of November. The conference boasts a wide and diverse range of presentations covering zoo, wildlife and exotic species (NTCAs), suitable for vets, nurses and students.
We are excited this year to also be able to offer round table discussions and masterclasses covering a variety of interesting topics, as well as scientific posters and sponsor stands. This year, on Friday evening, we are thrilled to once again offer our very popular student mentor mixer, which this year, will run alongside our new nursing mixer, designed to offer exotic species nurses the opportunity to meet with other like minded individuals. Our AGM as well as our Gala dinner and after dinner entertainment will once again be held on Saturday, with the prize for the best scientific paper, as well as other prizes being awarded on Sunday.
Our provisional 2023 programme can be found here.
PowerPoint Presentation Guidelines can be found here.
Biography and Abstract Guidelines can be found here.
Poster Presenter Guidelines can be found here.
Some of our speakers
Aimee Drane
Lecturer in Cardiovascular and Exercise Physiology
Andrew Rich
EBVS European Specialist & RCVS Recognised Specialist in Veterinary Pathology
Asha Stone
Surrey University Veterinary Student
Clarissa Wu
Exotic and Wildlife Vet
Dr M Fiddes
BVSc DZooMed MRCVS. RCVS Recognised Specialist in Zoo & Wildlife
Dr Neil Forbes
Dip ECZM (avian) FRCVS
Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen
Research Fellow at WildCRU, University of Oxford
Dr. Michelle O’Brien
VetMed CertZooMed DipECZM(ZHM) MRCVS
Ellen Schöner
PhD MVSc
Harriet Woodhall
BVM&S CertAVP(ZooMed) MRCVS
Helen Inzani
Avian and Exotic Veterinary Intern
John Chitty
BVetMed CertZooMed CBiol MRSB MRCVS
Heather Coupe
Zoo Veterinary Officer
Josie Nott
Exotic Species Nurse
Amelia Hubbard
Clinical Educator in Veterinary Nursing
Katie Whalley
RVN SQP NCert(surg) Dip VNZS APVN (Zoo)
Lauren Valentine
Zoo and Wildlife Veterinary Nurse
Luke O'Connor
ECZM Veterinary Resident in Zoological Health Management, Zoological Society of London
Martin Whitehead
Zoo and Exotics Vet
Matthew Shackleton
BSc (Hons) MScVetPhys PGCert PTLLS MIRVAP(VP)
Matthew Siddle
RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Zoological Medicine
Michaela Betts
Exotic Animal Clinician
Naomi Johns
Centre Manager for West of England Falconry
Richard Saunders
Staff Veterinarian, Bristol Zoo project, Vet Advisor, RWAF
Romain Pizzi
Zoo and Exotic Species Vet
Sinan Julian Keleş
MRCVS
Sonya Miles
RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Zoological Medicine
Steve Trim
Founder and Chief Scientific Officer at Venomtech Ltd
Tawny Kershaw
Registered Veterinary Nurse and Master's Graduate in Endangered Species Recovery and Conservation
Dr Agata Witkowska BVM BVS MRCVS
Exotic Animal Clinician
Dr Fieke Molenaar, MSc GPCertExAP DZooMed (mammalian), MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon
Rhiannon Bolton
Cofounder, Biobank Lead and Conservation Scientist at Nature’s SAFE
Benjamin Kennedy
Exotic and Invertebrate Vet
Emily Gower
Veterinary Student
Liam Reid BVMS CertAVP(ZM) MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon, Scottish SPCA
Jessica May Hornby
ECZM Resident in Herpetology
Sarah Brown
Exotic Species Vet
Sinan Julian Keleş, MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon
Yanick Van De Weyer
Pathology trainee, University of Liverpool
Gala Dinner information
Saturday 4th November, Conference Aston
We have done our best to find out about the providence and welfare of the meat and fish served at the conference and have seen certification that:
- The beef and lamb are from Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board standard herds/flocks
- All meat (including chicken) is processed to Red Tractor standards (including stunning)
- Fish conforms to to MSC Chain of Custody Standards
- Fish is processed to RSPCA Standards”
How to get here
By rail
The Aston University campus, in Birmingham city centre, is just a ten minute walk from New Street, Snow Hill and Moor Street train stations, with a number of routes to the majority of UK destinations. The stations are all within a 10-15 minute walk, or a five minute taxi ride.
By car
Follow the postcode. This will direct you to Aston University campus. Car Parking is available on the Aston University Campus and must be pre-booked and paid for online, prior to arrival. Delegate parking will be at Car Park 12 (on campus). Information can be found at: www.conferenceaston.co.uk/carparking. Car Parking bookings are managed by First Parking on behalf of Conference Aston. On completion of your online booking, you will receive a confirmation email with a map and access instructions. Please check your spam or junk folders if you do not receive this after booking. If our car park is full or out of order, pay and display parking is available at the ‘Millennium Point Car Park’, 5 minutes walk away. See Conference Aston website for further information.
Birmingham now has a clean air zone and charges might apply to your vehicle. Check www.brumbreathes.co.uk
By air
The Aston University campus is a mere 9 miles from Birmingham Airport, where you can catch a 30 minute taxi ride directly to the campus or jump on a 9 minute direct train from Birmingham International Station into New Street Station, where the campus is a quick 10 minute walk away.
Conference Aston Hotel, Birmingham, B4 7ET
Get directions
Where to stay
Hotels available in the vicinity are:
Conference Aston has a hotel on site that can be booked through their website. We have secured a limited amount of rooms at a discounted rate of £98 inc VAT/night for a single room with breakfast, £112 inc VAT/night for a twin room with breakfast and £132 inc VAT for an executive double or twin room. These are available when booking online using the Promo Code BVZS23. This promotion expires on 21st of September 2023 and is subject to availability so book early to avoid disappointment, by clicking here.
Other hotels available in the vicinity are:
· Clayton Hotel Birmingham – 10% of best available rates for BVZS delegates, just let the reception team know that you are attending the BVZS conference (15 min walk from Conference Aston).
· Holiday Inn Express Birmingham Snowhill (15min walk from Conference Aston).
· Hotel Campanile Birmingham- Aston (15min walk from Conference Aston).
· Premier Inn Birmingham City- Aston hotel (10 min walk from Conference Aston).
Thank you to our sponsors for their ongoing support
Join the BVZS
Become a member today
Memberships available for vets, nurses and students.
Safety information for Delegates
- Guest entrance and departure:All guests are asked to enter and depart via the allocated entrance and exit doors at the front of the venue. Please sanitise your hands, on arrival, using the stations in the reception area.
- Toilet facilities:Suggested toilet facilities are recommended near your meeting rooms, please discuss with your event organiser. Guests are asked to consider social distancing around these areas as appropriate. We recommend delegates take toilet breaks throughout the event rather than waiting for break times, to reduce queuing. If you are staying overnight, you may wish to use your bedroom toilet facility where possible.
- Social Distancing:Whilst no longer a legal requirement, we do recommend that all guests allow appropriate distancing within the venue, particularly in public areas such as reception, moving through corridors, using public lounge, bar and restaurant areas, and where space may be limited such as public bathrooms.
- Face coverings in public areas: The wearing of face coverings in public areas is now a matter of personal choice, but we do still recommend that face masks are worn in enclosed or crowded spaces, such as lifts, stairwells and corridors.
- Personal Hygiene during your stay: Guests are requested to wash their hands, or use sanitizer when a sink is not available in line with government guidelines especially when using the restroom, sneezing, touching the face, blowing the nose, and smoking, eating, and drinking. WHO guidance on handwashing is provided in public handwashing facilities and good practise is to ensure hands are washed or sanitised hourly.
- Luggage arrangements:All guests are required to keep their luggage with them post-check out where possible; the hotel can offer a luggage room area on a first come, first served basis and is subject to availability. The luggage room is available only for residents of the Conference Aston Hotel. Day delegates should keep any luggage with them.
- Bedrooms: If you are staying overnight, your bedroom may be allocated from your meeting room where you event host will issue your room key, or alternatively via the hotel reception. Your event host will confirm your specific arrangements in advance.
- What to do if you develop symptoms at the venue:If you feel unwell at any point, you should alert your event organiser immediately and they will provide your information regarding the arrangements to the venue duty manager.
- At all times during your stay at Conference Aston, we expect all guests, delegates and organisers to take responsibility for their own safety and the safety of others through adopting social distancing measures, face coverings, personal health and hygiene, and other precautions as necessary. These should be followed throughout all areas of the hotel and conference venue to help prevent the spread of coronavirus and support in maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for all.
Refund Policy
Regarding BVZS Conference 2022, please see the details regarding our refund policy, below:
- 100% refunded if cancelling up to a month before the event (by 00:00 Tuesday 4th October)
- 50% refunded if cancelling up to a week prior to the event (by 00:00 28th October)
- 0% if cancelling after 00:00 on Friday 28th October