NAVC and Michelson Found Animals Foundation Chart New Course in Animal Health

Global veterinary industry leader NAVC and leading animal welfare organization, Michelson Found Animals Foundation (MFA), announced this week the formation of a partnership that brings together all aspects of the global $300+ billion animal health and pet care ecosystem to define the future of animal health and wellbeing into the next decade and beyond.

At the center of the partnership is Compass, an annual global conference where industry leaders, visionaries, investors and inventors convene to collaborate and explore future opportunities and key impact areas across the entire global animal health and pet care landscape. The event will bring together industry leaders and mavericks from inside and outside the animal health and pet care universe, exchanging ideas and gaining inspiration from across the full global spectrum of innovation and opportunity.

The first Compass event takes place April 10-11, 2025 at the Gaylord National Harbor. Members of the media are invited to attend for free.

“Our relationship with animals continues to expand and converge in every aspect of our lives,” said NAVC CEO Gene O’Neill. “They are at the center of an exciting socio-economic shift requiring bold, new ideas and a unified global approach to how we support their place in our lives today and in the future. Compass provides the platform for industry leaders from around the world to engage in novel, forward-looking dialogue with those across the entire animal health and pet care ecosystem. We will also invite visionaries outside of our industry to participate and serve as catalysts for new ideas and solutions we cannot even imagine today, to chart a rewarding and healthy future for animals and their relationship with people. No forum like this exists today, and we believe its impact will be game-changing.”

Compass will focus on evolving consumer needs and demands, navigating future retail and supply chain trends and developments, the evolving position of the veterinary industry, regulatory and legislative opportunities, future technology and investment projections. It uniquely brings together leaders from these areas of the animal health and pet care industries as well as other industries that similarly focus on technology, investment, supply chain, research and societal issues.

“As two leading industry bodies, MFA and NAVC bring the leadership of the conversation about the future of the animal health and pet care sector directly into the hands of the industry itself,” said MFA CEO Brett Yates. “The leaders in our industry need a place to come together, and Compass will be that platform. The place where we convene to outline and discover future investment opportunities, advance technological development, collaborate on solving the issues ahead of us and improve the lives of animals around the world long into the future.”

The first Compass event will focus on numerous critical topics across the animal health ecosystem including:

• Investing and Entrepreneurship: exploring how investment strategies have evolved and identifying new models and trends for investors and entrepreneurs.
• Technology and Development: taking a deep dive into the pathway for AI in animal health and pet care in the next decade, for animals and suppliers, answering the question of what will be the “next AI” between now and 2035; preventative health management and translating human-wearables to animal based applications for health monitoring.
• Market Dynamics and Consumer Behavior (Supply Chain & Retail): navigating the Vision of 2035 – research scenarios offering a look into key industry trends across the next 10 years; pharmaceutical advancements and non-surgical solutions for pet health; supplements; game-changing nutrition and novel ingredients; eCommerce; manufacturing dynamics and maximizing future opportunities.
• Regulatory Policy and Legislative Development: initiating legislator discussions on unlocking future potential. Many advances in legislation are needed to facilitate a healthier society for humans and their pets. This will include regulatory bodies and their role in maximizing opportunities around animal wellbeing.
• Pet Healthcare Professionals and Medical Innovations: exploring comparisons and divergences between pet health systems and human health systems (medical, dental, vision); insurance; at-home diagnostic tools; pharmaceutical advancements and non-surgical solutions for pet health; the role of nutrition, breed science and exercise in pet health horizons.
• Infrastructure and Environmental Design: new approaches to shelters, veterinary clinics, consumer homes and pet-friendly urban planning to ensure they are future ready.
• Industry Advocacy and Nonprofit Perspectives: addressing social issues affecting pets and their owners (e.g., homelessness, domestic violence); ethical considerations regarding pets as property vs. sentient beings; the role of non-profits vs. governmental support in animal welfare; and diversity, equity and inclusion in animal welfare spaces.

This unique meeting will bring together investor groups, veterinary groups and professionals, retailers and suppliers, contract manufacturers, pharmaceutical leaders, legislators and policymakers, nutrition and ingredient suppliers, philanthropic organizations, researchers, industry associations and many other groups across the animal health and pet care sector.

Compass event space is limited. Click here to request an invitation and more information.