SWVS 2026 is heading to San Antonio, Texas, for four days of veterinary CE, hands-on sessions, and opportunities to connect with fellow veterinary professionals.
The Southwest Veterinary Symposium is scheduled for September 17 to 20 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, with sessions covering everything from orthopedic gait analysis and dental extraction labs to exotic animal medicine.
Planning to attend?
Here’s a look at what’s on the agenda and where to go in San Antonio after the day’s sessions wrap up.
Inside SWVS 2026: Dates, Venue, and What to Expect
Venue & Location
SWVS 2026 will be held at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, 900 E. Market Street, San Antonio, TX 78205. The venue is roughly 8 miles from San Antonio International Airport.
Continuing Opportunities
The SWVS CE schedule offers more than 400 RACE-approved CE hours across 12 specialized veterinary tracks. The educational sessions are designed around the “Big CE, Small Meeting Feel” concept, giving attendees more opportunities to interact with speakers and take part in discussions.
Exhibit Hall Hours
The exhibit hall will feature more than 250 exhibitors, making it a major regional trade show floor for the fall conference season.
The exhibit hall will be open during the following hours:
• Thursday, September 17: 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
• Friday, September 18: 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM
• Saturday, September 19: 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM
Registration Hours
Registration opens at:
• Thursday, September 17: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
• Friday, September 18: 7:00 AM – 5:00 PM
• Saturday, September 19: 7:00 AM – 4:30 PM
• Sunday, September 20: 7:00 AM – 10:00 AM
Practices sending four or more attendees can receive a 20% discount on full conference registrations. For larger veterinary teams, this could be worth checking before early bird pricing ends. Attendees and exhibitors can sign up for SWVS 2026 through the official registration page.
Where to Stay
Several official event hotels are located within a few blocks of the convention center. Each hotel is within walking distance of the convention center and the San Antonio Riverwalk.
• Marriott Riverwalk Hotel (HQ): 899 East Market Street, across the street from HBGCC
• Marriott Rivercenter Hotel: 101 Bowie Street, 2 blocks from HBGCC
• Grand Hyatt: 600 East Market Street, adjacent to the HBGCC
• Hilton Palacio del Rio: 200 South Alamo Street, across the street from HBGCC
• Historic Menger Hotel: 204 Alamo Plaza, 3 blocks from HBGCC
• La Quinta Inn & Suites Riverwalk: 303 Blum Street, 3 blocks from HBGCC
SWVS 2026: A Preview of the Educational Program
The Southwest Veterinary Symposium 2026 covers a wide mix of topics that connect directly with the procedures veterinary teams handle in practice.
• Orthopedics gets plenty of attention, with sessions covering osteoarthritis examination, gait analysis, radiographic interpretation, and joint injection techniques. For teams considering orthopedic instruments, the topics offer useful context around the procedures they perform.
• Dental teams have a full day of hands-on training focused on extraction techniques. The schedule includes morning and afternoon lab sessions covering practical extraction skills, making it a natural fit for teams working with dental instruments.
• General practice and technician teams can choose from practical sessions covering triage, emergency cases, blood gas interpretation, and anesthesia preparation. The mix spans everyday cases as well as situations that call for quick decision-making and hands-on skills.
• Toxicology and internal medicine feature across several sessions, with topics covering CNS depressant toxins, tremorgenic toxins, blood toxins, and opioid use. These sessions give attendees a look at a range of cases that can come through general and emergency practices.
• The symposium also covers several specialty areas, including ferret health, avian medicine, canine polyuria and polydipsia workups, and newer treatment options for feline diabetes. It gives veterinary teams the chance to explore topics beyond their usual caseload.
With such a broad schedule, veterinary teams can choose sessions based on the cases they see most often and use those priorities when reviewing their clinical equipment and instrument needs.
Meet GerVetUSA at SWVS Exhibition 2026
GerVetUSA will be exhibiting at Booth 202 throughout SWVS 2026, with a product lineup built around the sessions above. You can expect a hands-on look at small animal, dental, orthopedic, and general veterinary surgical instruments, along with packs and kits that can be customized to match how your practice actually works, from tray configuration down to individual instrument swaps.
Dr. Robert Weedon Spay Pack
This spay pack by GerVetUSA is named after expert veterinary professional Dr. Robert Weedon. The set is designed for high-volume spay and neuter procedures, bringing 10 essential surgical instruments together for convenient, efficient use. All the instruments in Dr. Robert Weedon's Spay Pack are sterilizable for repeated use and manufactured for durability and precision in veterinary surgical settings.
Advanced Orthopedic Surgery Pack
The Advanced Orthopedic Surgery Pack is a 32-tool set designed to support veterinary orthopedic procedures involving bones, muscles, hips, shoulders, limbs, and legs. The pack includes essential veterinary orthopedic instruments. The surgical tools of the Advanced Orthopedic Surgery Pack are autoclavable, corrosion resistant, ergonomically designed, and built with high tensile strength for repeated use in orthopedic surgery.
GLux Luxating 4 1/2" Extra Small Color Coated Set of 6
The GLux Luxating 4 1/2" Extra Small Color Coated Set of 6 brings six precision luxating instruments together in one versatile dental set, with tip sizes ranging from 1.5 mm to 6 mm. Designed for controlled tooth luxation and extraction, each instrument features an extra small German stainless steel tip and an ergonomic color-coated handle for quick size identification and comfortable handling. The 4 1/2" length offers a practical balance of reach and maneuverability, while the range of tip sizes gives veterinary professionals options for different extraction needs.
GerVetUSA Micro Avian Kit Titanium
The Micro Avian Kit Titanium by GerVetUSA includes three tools especially designed for delicate procedures involving exotic and lab animals such as birds, snakes, mice, rabbits, and fish. The kit includes a titanium needle holder, fine ring-tip microtissue forceps, and double-action micro scissors. Each instrument features a fine design suited to precise surgical work.
Small Bone Fracture Locking Plates Titanium 2.4mm Screws Kit
This is a veterinary orthopedic kit designed for small bone fracture repair, featuring titanium locking plates and compatible 2.4mm screws for stable fixation. Designed for small animal orthopedic procedures, the kit provides a practical implant system for managing delicate fracture cases, with titanium components selected for strength and biocompatibility.
GerVetUSA Feline Dental Extraction Kit with New Mini Handle
The GerVetUSA’s Feline Dental Extraction Kit with New Mini Handle is a set of 13 instruments designed for feline dental extractions and other delicate oral procedures. It brings together precision dental instruments with fine tips and mini handles, giving veterinarians greater control when working in the smaller feline oral cavity. The kit is suited for tooth extractions, root fragment removal, periodontal procedures, and soft tissue manipulation, with a practical selection of instruments designed for precision and comfortable handling.
Exotic Animal Surgery Kit
Designed for the finer demands of exotic animal surgery, the Exotic Animal Surgery Kit by GerVetUSA includes compact surgical instruments suited to reptiles and rodents such as rats, rabbits, and snakes. Its smaller scale makes it a practical choice for microsurgical, dental, and ophthalmic procedures where precision and maneuverability matter. The 10-instrument set features German-forged, precision-crafted instruments with a delicate design, offering reusable performance for exotic animal practices.
Esophageal Epiglottis Metzenbaum Scissors 30" 75cm Long
The Esophageal Epiglottis Metzenbaum Scissors feature a 30-inch (75 cm) length that gives equine surgeons extended reach when working around deeper structures during cardiothoracic procedures. The long, malleable design supports dissection and tissue manipulation through the esophageal area.
What Sets GerVetUSA Surgical Instruments Apart?
When you choose surgical instruments for your practice, the manufacturer behind them matters. GerVetUSA designs and manufactures its surgical instruments in house, giving the team greater control over the craftsmanship, quality, and finishing of each instrument. Keeping these processes within the company also allows for closer attention to fit, finish, and durability through repeated sterilization cycles.
Why Should You Buy From Us?
Because
We Not Only Sell But Also Manufacture Our Surgical Instruments
That distinction gives veterinary teams a direct connection to the people behind the instruments they use. It also supports custom pack options, allowing practices to select instruments that fit the procedures they perform most often.
Conclusion
SWVS 2026 gives veterinary professionals more than educational sessions. The expo floor offers a chance to explore products, compare solutions, speak directly with industry teams, and find tools that fit the procedures and needs of your practice. It is also a good opportunity to turn ideas from the sessions into practical solutions you can take back to your team.
If you are attending SWVS 2026, visit GerVetUSA Booth 202 to explore surgical instruments and custom pack options in person. After a session on osteoarthritis, dental extractions, emergency stabilization, or another area of practice, you can stop by the booth to see instruments related to those procedures and discuss options with the GerVetUSA.Inc team.
The team will be at Booth 202 throughout the conference, giving you plenty of opportunities to see the instruments up close, ask questions, and talk about customization options based on your practice needs.
