Melissa Bain, DVM, DACVB, MS, Assistant Professor of Clinical Animal Behavior
Dr. Bain is board-certified in veterinary behavior and is the Chief of
Service of the
Clinical Animal Behavior Service. She received her DVM from the
University of Illinois in 1994. She then worked in a small animal exclusive veterinary practice
in the Chicago suburbs for 1? years, as well as a mixed animal veterinary practice in
rural Wisconsin for 2? years. After that she entered into the Clinical Veterinary Behavior
Residency Program at the University of California - Davis in 1998, and became
board-certified in 2001. In 2007 she received a master's degree in advanced clinical research from
the University of California, School of Medicine. She is the immediate past-president of
the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, and current president-elect of
the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists. Her responsibilities include student and
resident education, clinical case management, and research. Her areas of research focus
have been clinical domestic animal behavior problems and human-animal bond issues,
including research on dog-parks and the effects of different training methods on the behavior
of dogs. When not working, she enjoys spending time with her husband, son and 4-legged
family members.
.
Jeannine Berger, DVM, DACVB
Berger is board-certified in veterinary behavior with special interest in equine behavior. She received her DVM from Switzerland in 1991. She then worked at the University of Zurich, School of Veterinary Medicine in Switzerland, enrolled in a residency in Large Animal Reproduction and worked in the ambulatory field service and small animal practice until coming to the US in 1998. She entered into the Clinical Veterinary Behavior Residency at the University of California - Davis in 2005 and became board-certified in 2006. Her current areas of research are equine behavior, such as cribbing behavior, weaning stress in foals and neotony in Equids. She is conducting a research project on neuropathic pain in headshaking horses with Dr. John Madigan and Dr. Monica Aleman. She enjoys teaching students, residents, veterinarians and horse owners, as well as seeing clinical cases. Most of all she enjoys spending time with her 3 horses, 2 dogs and 3 cats.
Rachel Malamed, DVM, Resident
Dr. Malamed was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. She graduated in
2005 from the
Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph in Canada. She
then worked in
private practice, during which time she also assisted in training dogs
for a Toronto based
dog training company (Who's Walking Who). Malamed gained her experience
in the behavior
field largely while working with ACVB diplomates and attending advanced
courses and
seminars in clinical animal behavior. In 2007 she completed a rotating
internship at the
Animal Specialty Group, Inc. in Los Angeles. Malamed's interests
include
neuromolecular mechanisms of learning and behavior and compulsive and
separation related
disorders.
Meredith Stepita, DVM Resident
Dr. Meredith Stepita was born in Washington D.C. and grew up in
Maryland. She earned her
Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Vermont in 2002. Her
interest in animal
behavior was sparked during an internship with a positive reinforcement
dog trainer while
at UVM. Meredith graduated from the University of Tennessee, College of
Veterinary
Medicine in 2006. She then completed a small animal rotating internship
in Tucson,
Arizona. After her internship Meredith worked for 1 year as a small
animal relief
veterinarian in the Phoenix area before coming to UC Davis. She gained
experience in
behavior by working with ACVB diplomates, attending behavior
conferences, and implementing
a puppy socialization class. Meredith's interests include the
human-animal bond, canine
and feline aggression, and animal welfare.
