Kathleen Cooney has been practicing advanced end-of-life care since 2006.  She is well-known for her work in companion animal euthanasia and has authored two books on the subject. Dr. Cooney has collaborated in euthanasia training for the AVMA, AAHA, IAAHPC, HABRI, the Fear Free program, and is Founder and Director of Education for the Companion Animal Euthanasia Training Academy (CAETA). The core certificate program is Dr. Cooney's design and is based around the The 14 Essential Components of Companion Animal Euthanasia. She is a strong advocate for best practices in all aspects of end-of-life care and speaks nationally and internationally on such topics.  Dr. Cooney is also the founder of Cooney Animal Hospice Consulting and past President of the International Association for Animal Hospice and Palliative Care (IAAHPC) and remains active in their organization, including design of their Animal Hospice and Palliative Care Certification Program, launched in 2016. In 2019, she received training to become a Certified Compassion Fatigue Provider.

Freddie is Head of the Anaesthesia and Analgesia Service. He graduated from Padova, Italy, and trained as a veterinary anaesthetist in the UK. He achieved European Specialist  status in Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia in 2003. Anaesthesia, perioperative care, and analgesia have been his main interests since he was a veterinary student. He is particularly interested in the physiology and pharmacology of anaesthetics, sedative and cardiovascular drugs. After working as an Anaesthesia Lecturer in Padova he took up a post as a Clinical Anaesthetist in the UK and then spent 3 years working on a research project based at the University Division of Anaesthetics at Addenbrookes Hospital, This led to a PhD and he continues to collaborate in this project. He joined DWR in 2008 and has built an Anaesthesia Service to support the other Specialist disciplines. Freddie has developed clinical and research projects, many of which have resulted in peer reviewed publications. He contributes actively to continuing education in the UK and overseas; and is author of a handbook of small animal anaesthesia. Freddie has served as an officer of the European College of Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia for many years and is currently its President.

Dr. Shea Cox is a global leader and subject matter expert in veterinary hospice and palliative care. With a focus on technology, innovation and education, her efforts are changing the end-of-life landscape in veterinary medicine, and as a Telehealth advocate, she is working to change the laws around how veterinarians can use Telemedicine to care for their patients at end of life.

In addition to launching the first hospice and palliative care service integrated within a specialty hospital setting in 2012, she was the first to launch a nationwide Telehealth platform dedicated to quality of life and end-of-life support in 2017.

In 2020, PetHospice was acquired by BluePearl Specialty + Emergency Pet Hospitals, a Mars Petcare company. Dr. Cox and her team will lead the expansion of hospice, palliative care and end-of-life services nationwide.

Other professional endeavors include:

• Worked as a Registered Nurse in home health and hospice care for nearly a decade
• International lecturer
• Developed a 100-hr program to certify veterinarians and technicians in hospice and palliative care
• Authored 12 textbook chapters relating to hospice care
• Served as a hospice consultant (VIN) to over 65,000 veterinarians worldwide
• Co-authored the American Animal Hospital Association End of Life Guidelines
• Co-authored the AAHA/AVMA Telehealth Guidelines for Small Animal Practice
• Past President of the International Association for Animal Hospice and Palliative Care

Giorgia della Rocca is Associate Professor of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology at the Department of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Perugia. Since 2007 she has focused her interest in the field of pain therapy in animals, with particular reference to the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the establishment of pain syndromes and the related therapeutic approaches in both acute and chronic pain.
She is the founding member and the Scientific Director of CeRiDA (Centro di Ricerca sul Dolore Animale – Research Center on Animal Pain), established in 2009 at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (now Department of Veterinary Medicine) of the University of Perugia, Italy. In this position, she is responsible for: 1) promoting and coordinating research activities, mainly aimed at recognition of pain (identification and improvement of diagnostic tools) and treatment of various pain conditions (evaluation of kinetic profiles, efficacy and safety of analgesic drugs) in different animal species of veterinary interest; 2) organizing training events within the Degree Course in Veterinary Medicine (for students) and post-graduate courses (for doctors and veterinary technicians), both concerning various aspects related to animal pain.
She is the founder and coordinator of ALGOVET (Gruppo di Studio di Algologia Veterinaria - Veterinary Algology Study Group), established in 2014 within SCIVAC (Società Culturale Italiana Veterinari Animali da Compagnia) with the aim of organizing and carrying out post-graduate training events for vets on animal pain.
She is a member of the IVAPM (International Academy of Veterinary Pain Management) of which, in the four-year period 2011-2014, she served on the Board of Directors.
Speaker in numerous post-graduate courses, she is author and/or co-author of over 100 scientific publications published in Italian and foreign scientific journals or presented at National and International conferences and of 3 textbooks.

Dr. Grubb’s research interests include cardiovascular and respiratory physiology and the effects on anesthetic drugs on the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. Dr. Grubb is also very active in the relief of animal pain through the development of new analgesic drugs and through the education of colleagues, students and pet owners regarding treatment options for animals.

Prof Marconato obtained her degree in Veterinary Medicine (School of Veterinary Medicine, Milan) in 1999 cum laude, and is a Diplomate of ECVIM-CA (Oncology) since 2008.
In 2000-2003 she trained in medical oncology at the Veterinary Oncology Service and Research Center (West Chester) and at the Veterinary Oncology Services’ Radiation Center, Chalfont, PA, USA.
In 2009-2011 she worked as co-head of medical oncology at the Animal Oncology and Imaging Center, Hünenberg (Switzerland), before returing to Italy as head of medical oncology at the Centro Oncologico Veterinario from 2011 to 2019.
In 2011 she became President of the Italian Veterinary Oncology Society (SIONCOV). Since 2014 she is the Chair of Worgroup 2 (Therapy) of the European Network of Canine Lymphoma.
She is Program Director & Resident Supervisor of Residency Training in Oncology at the University of Bologna since 2018.
She is currently Associate Professor at the Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Italy, heading the Oncology Service.
Her primary field of research interest is canine lymphoma.