Senior Dog Veterinary Certification
Senior dogs are a significant part of practice. Our certification gives you a practical, proven standard for senior and geriatric canine care, enabling you to communicate clearly with pet parents, plan proactively, and deliver confident, higher-value care.
RACE-approved CE. Two certification paths.
Built for real practice days.
Senior Dog Certification Stats:
757
Members have Enrolled in the Certification Program
13
Countries with Certified Veterinarians & Vet Professionals
418
Senior Dog Certified Veterinarians & Vet Professionals
40
US States with Certified Veterinarians & Vet Professionals
654
Certificates Awarded across
2 RACE-Approved CE Courses.
7
Canadian Provinces with Certified Veterinarians & Vet Professionals
Choose Your Role and Certification Path
Pick the option that matches your role. You’ll go to the detailed Level page next, then enroll from there.
For Veterinary
Support Staff
Built for support staff who want more confidence in senior visits and stronger client communication.
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7 hours of RACE-approved CE and Level 1 Certification
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Senior visit fundamentals that improve consistency across the team
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Communication and expectation-setting that support better plan follow-through
Price: $249 new • $149/year renewal
Level 1
For Veterinarians,
Technicians, and Specialists
Designed for doctors and credentialed technicians ready to elevate clinical expertise and build a gold-standard framework for senior care in practice.
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14.5 hours total of RACE-approved CE across Level 1 + Level 2
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Advanced senior medicine topics (anesthesia, pain, nutrition, dentistry, ophthalmology, CCD, end-of-life care)
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A clearer approach to diagnostics, planning, and continuity that supports higher-value care
Price: $349 new • $199/year renewal
Level 2
Training a full hospital team? Group rates are available.
Senior Dogs Are Not a Niche
Over half of dog-owning households have a dog age 7+, and over half of cat-owning households have a cat age 7+. Senior care is not occasional work. It is a core service line for modern practices.
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More chronic diseases and comorbidities
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More pain, mobility change, and cognitive decline
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More complex decisions that benefit from earlier planning and clearer communication
What You’ll Be Able to Do Differently
Certification is built for your real-world practice. It gives you a repeatable senior-care process that raises clinical quality, strengthens client conversations, and drives practice performance.
Clinical confidence
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A clearer senior visit flow and exam priorities
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Better diagnostic timing and recommendations
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Earlier, more consistent chronic pain management
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Stronger planning across anesthesia, nutrition, dentistry, ophthalmology, cognition, and end-of-life care
Better client communication
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Proactive conversations instead of rushed, last-minute decisions
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Care plans that are easier for pet parents to understand and accept
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Consistent messaging across the team from the room to checkout
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A structured senior-care pathway that supports higher-value services
Frequently Asked Questions About Senior Dog Certification
When does the certification become available?
The Level 1 and Level 2 Certification courses were both released in September 2024. New Members get access to the pre-recorded modules hosted online in the Senior Dog Vets Learning Center upon enrollment.
What does this CE cover?
Senior Dog Veterinary Certification has two levels currently, and we will be building on that each year for veterinarians and vet professionals. See Senior Dog CE Topics above.
Does this CE make a vet a senior dog specialist?
This veterinary certification is focused on enabling practitioners to become senior dog focused vets who have access and advanced training in the latest developments in Canine Geroscience and methods of caring for elderly canines.
Certification allows pet parents to find practitioners in their area that continue to focus a large portion of their training on geriatric canine medicine. Check out the Senior Dog Certified Directory. At this time, there is no such thing as a specialty in geriatric canine medicine and our certification does not make a specialty.
How often will I need to take CE to stay in the directory?
In order to earn Senior Dog Certification, veterinary professionals must successfully complete the Senior Dog Vets online certification courses. Veterinary certification will need to be renewed annually in order to stay Senior Dog Certified.
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How do I renew my Membership?
Veterinary certification will need to be renewed annually in order to stay Senior Dog Certified and be listed in the Directory. To uphold your certification, you must complete 4 additional hours of Senior Dog Vets-specific CE annually, and maintain an active membership via an annual renewal fee.
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When is my annual Membership renew fee due?
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Your renewal fee is due annually from the date you initially register and pay for Membership to the Senior Dog Certification Program.
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If you opted for early enrollment, your membership renewal will be due a year from when the Program launched on September 1st, 2024.
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Keep an eye out for reminder emails and instructions on how to pay your renewal fee.
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Who can become a Member?
The veterinary certification program is open to veterinarians, veterinary technicians and all levels of veterinary support staff members. As we continue to grow, we will be developing our CE courses to include learning paths specific for different roles in veterinary medicine.
Which option is best for me?
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Standard Membership - Includes 7 hours of Race-Approved CE, providing a great foundation for all support staff members in your practice – including receptionists and all levels of assistants.
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Advanced Membership - Includes 14.5 hours of Race-Approved CE, which is geared more towards doctors and technicians – including general practice veterinarians and specialists as well as credentialed technicians and assistants with comparable experience and role in your practice with patient care. However, any veterinary team members interested in learning more can enroll!
Is this CE appropriate for specialists?
Absolutely. Our founder, Lauren Adelman, DVM, DACVIM talks about how she learns so much from fellow specialists and vets in different areas of geriatric medicine by being a part of it. Listen here.
Is any of this CE relatable for cats?
Though there may be some crossovers for cats with aging, our CE is really focused on research behind canines at this time. As a different species, cats would benefit from their own track.
The doctors and staff at my practice are very interested! Are there group rates available for this?
Yes! If you're interested in multiple Senior Dog Certification Memberships for your team, check out the Group Enrollment Details or reach out to us at info@seniordogvets.com to set up a group rate for your practice!