Mel Vincent is the Practice Manager of Bird Vet Melbourne as well as an avian behaviourist.
When she isn't seeing behavioural clients, she is usually still working at the clinic doing other veterinary (nursing or managerial) duties. This means that she is available full-time for consultations at the Burwood Clinic. There is a button in the footer below that will take you to an online booking platform, should you wish to book online for a behavioural consult at Burwood.
Mel is also available (by prior arrangement) to see clients at Melbourne Bird Veterinary Clinic in Scoresby. If you require an appointment at the Scoresby clinic, online bookings are not available, you will need to make the appointment by phone in order to confirm appointment availability.
There are several advantages to seeing a behaviourist in a veterinary clinic:
- When you bring your bird to an unfamiliar environment, you (their human), are what is most familiar to the bird. As a result, you are usually treated with a certain level of extra trust by the bird and often take some amount of that newfound trust home with you. Coming to the less familiar environment of the clinic can help with this.
- There is often a medical component to behaviour. It can be extremely handy to have avian vets on hand for input and (when needed) to provide treatment.
- Behavioural consultations are for the most part, fun and happy experiences. For example, most birds love receiving treats while training! Having a positive behavioural experience at the vet, can make a medical visit significantly less scary. Anything you can do to help prevent stress for you bird in a medical emergency, will help your bird in a time of crisis.
- Birds tend to have a better attention span in an unfamiliar/non-home environment. They're not able to fly off to a well-known hidey hole, so are more likely to participate in the activity you want them to.
- We have a range of equipment, from toys, to stands, to unexpected options for reinforcement that you are unlikely to have in your home environment, allowing for a more flexible approach to your bird's training needs.
- If nothing else, it's an excuse to go shopping! There are always goodies, toys and food that you can buy at the vet. Some of these products can not be found anywhere else.
