Veterinary Behavioral Medicine

Our Behavioral Medicine Department is currently not accepting new patients at this time. 

Due to an increasing caseload, our dedicated team is working diligently to improve availability and provide the highest quality care to our existing patients. We understand the importance of timely access to behavioral health services, and we are actively working to expand our capacity to better serve our community. Please be sure to follow us for regular updates on when we will resume accepting new patients. We will keep you informed about our progress and any changes in our availability.

We remain committed to delivering exceptional care to our patients, and we appreciate your understanding and patience during this time.

If you have a patient in need of urgent behavioral medicine services please visit https://www.dacvb.org/search/custom.asp?id=4709 for a list of available behavioral medicine clinicians.

The behavioral medicine service provides assistance to owners of companion animals with behavioral issues including, but not limited to, human-directed aggression, animal-directed aggression, inappropriate elimination, separation anxiety, fears, phobias, compulsive behaviors, and cognitive dysfunction. Pets can develop a range of behavior problems that can be concerning, upsetting, scary and inconvenient for you and can affect your bond with your beloved pet. Often these behaviors are a sign that your pet does not perceive the world as a safe place or does not understand how to appropriately communicate with their environment or the people and animals in that environment. Behavior problems can indicate that your pet has a medical problem or that their welfare may be poor. It is important to address all of the aspects of behavior problems, including any medical components, therefore, the behavioral medicine service offers comprehensive appointments to allow you to get your pet evaluated medically and behaviorally to best understand their problem behaviors. We welcome the opportunity to meet you and your pet, help you better understand your pet’s behavior and improve your life together.

Please note that behavioral advice cannot be given via email before your appointment; a doctor-patient relationship must be established first.

How do I refill my pet's medications? 

Behavior medications can only be approved by our Behaviorist, Dr. Shana Gilbert-Gregory, and are typically processed by our Behavior Team. Please request your medications with at least 3 days notice by filling out our Behavior Medication Request Form: https://mlahvet.com/beh-med/

If you are concerned that your pet is experiencing severe side-effects from prescribed behavioral medications, please see instructions below for what to do in an emergency.

How do I schedule an appointment with the behavior service?  

All behavior appointments are scheduled through our hospital's internal scheduling team; to request an appointment please fill out a form:

EXISTING CLIENT BEHAVIORAL MEDICINE DOGS & CATS

What if I need additional support?  

Managing our pets who suffer from fears, phobias and aggressive behaviors can be whelming, upsetting, and scary, but you don’t have to do it alone. While our Behavior Program is designed to address your pet’s emotional and mental well-being, we understand that yours is just as important.

The goal of our Behavior Family Support Groups, led by our grief counselor Jenny M, is to allow families going through similar journeys to connect, foster a sense of community and provide emotional support to each other.

Each week will have a different Behavioral topic, and we encourage families to RSVP to a session that your pet’s diagnosis is most relatable to, or that is currently most impactful in your life.

Discussions are led by Jenny Matthews M.A.

Open to families who have pets who are currently under the care of Dr. Shana Gilbert-Gregory

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

Need help deciding whether your pet needs behavioral medicine treatment vs. training?

CLICK HERE to read Dr. Gilbert-Gregory's Blog

Dr. Shana Gilbert-Gregory
Behavioral Medicine Clinician
FULL BIO

REFERRING VETERINARIANS

CLICK HERE to contact

CLIENTS WITH NON-URGENT QUESTIONS

CLICK HERE to contact

MEDICATION REFILL REQUEST

CLICK HERE to submit