Our Veterinarians
Scott Stahl, DVM, DABVP-Avian
DIRECTOR
Dr. Stahl graduated from the University of Richmond with a bachelor’s degree in biology in 1985. He went on to earn his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 1989. He became board certified in avian practice through the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (ABVP) in 1996. In addition to working as a clinical veterinarian in practice, Dr. Stahl is currently an adjunct professor of avian and exotic animal medicine at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine.
Stahl Exotic Animal Veterinary Services (SEAVS) was founded by Dr. Stahl in Vienna, VA, in 2003. He had always felt that birds and exotic animals deserved the same quality medicine readily available to more traditional pets, such as dogs and cats. His vision was to establish one of the largest avian and exotic exclusive veterinary specialty practices in the world. In 2009, Dr. Stahl moved SEAVS to a new, state-of-the-art, 5000 square foot facility in Fairfax City, Virginia, to accommodate the growth of the practice and the demand for exotic animal veterinary care in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Since its inception, SEAVS has grown from just two doctors and a handful of other staff members, to a six doctor practice employing around twenty five technicians, assistants, and receptionists.
Dr. Stahl has personally trained 200(and counting) veterinary students during his three decades of practice. SEAVS has continued this tradition, and its doctors and staff help in the training of both national and international students and veterinarians with a passion for avian and exotic animal medicine. SEAVS has been approved by the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (ABVP) as a training facility for the avian residency curriculum. The clinic also runs a competitive year-long internship program for licensed veterinarians looking to practice and expand their experience and training in avian and exotic medicine.
As an active academic contributor to the field, Dr. Stahl has written over 150 scientific and popular papers and articles, as well as chapters in various textbooks. In 2019, he co-authored Mader’s Reptile and Amphibian Medicine and Surgery, 3rd edition. He is a renowned lecturer who frequently speaks at both national and international conferences and events. His professional areas of interest and research include endoscopy, endoscopic surgical techniques, ultrasound, and reproductive medicine and surgery.
Dr. Stahl resides in Northern Virginia with his wife and two daughters. His family and the clinic keep him quite busy, but in his free time he enjoys competitive cycling, breeding lizards and snakes, and playing the ukulele.
Emily Nielsen, DVM
LEAD VETERINARIAN
Dr. Emily Nielsen completed her undergraduate degree summa cum laude in biology with a minor in chemistry at the University of North Texas in 2012. She then graduated cum laude from Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 2016, after which she joined SEAVS in order to pursue a veterinary internship in exotic animal medicine. She completed the internship in 2017 and became an Associate Veterinarian at SEAVS.
Dr. Nielsen was born in Canada, but spent the majority of her childhood in Australia prior to her move to the United States in 2006 to attend college. She has had an interest in exotic animals since before she can remember, and was an avid breeder of lovebirds and rainbow lorikeets in Australia.
She now enjoys working with all exotics, but has a special interest in reptile reproduction, having recently had her research paper in ball python reproductive cycles published in the Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery. Dr. Nielsen is looking forward to eventually completing board certification in exotic companion mammal practice.
Outside of the clinic, Dr. Nielsen is an avid outdoorsperson and enjoys running, hiking, snowboarding, waterskiing, and competitive horseback riding in dressage. Other hobbies include breeding and selling ball pythons, singing and painting. She lives with her husband, Adam, her 2 children, three dogs, guinea pigs, tarantulas, goats, chickens, turkeys, ducks, a horse, 2 tortoises and a collection of snakes.
Lauren Duthie-Brown, BVSc
ASSOCIATE VETERINARIAN
Dr. Lauren Duthie-Brown graduated top of her class from the University of Queensland(Australia). From there she worked as an Associate Veterinarian in a busy avian and exotic animal clinic in Adelaide, Australia. Dr. Duthie-Brown next undertook a veterinary internship at the Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo in Fort Wayne, Indiana before moving to Northern Virginia to undertake an internship at SEAVS. Upon completion of her SEAVS internship, Dr. Duthie-Brown moved to an Associate Veterinarian position.
Dr. Duthie-Brown is a Michigan native, who grew up dreaming of being a vet. Life took her to Australia in 2007 and she pursued other goals and aspirations. However, veterinary medicine was always at the back of her mind, and she went back to school to complete her veterinary degree. Since then, Dr. Duthie-Brown has worked extensively with native Australian species, exotic/zoologic companion animals, and a range of zoologic species. She enjoys the variation in cases and problem-solving that comes in exotic animal medicine, and she aims to develop good working relationships with her clients and patients.
In her free-time, Dr. Duthie-Brown enjoys hiking and exploring Northern Virginia with her husband, Josh, and spending time with Their Princess Parrot, Alex and Zebra Finch, Beep.
Currie Carothers, DVM
Dr. Carothers graduated with honors from Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine in 2019, following receiving her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Rhodes College in Memphis Tennessee in 2015. She joined the SEAVS team for a one-year intensive internship in exotic animal medicine, which she completed in June 2020. In July 2022, Dr. Carothers completed a two-year residency in avian practice through the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (ABVP) here at SEAVS.
Dr. Carothers has loved all wild, weird, and wonderful animals for as long as she can remember and spent her time in Memphis volunteering in several departments of the Memphis Zoo, including their herpetarium. While in veterinary school, she discovered her passion for avian species through working for The Wildlife Hospital of Louisiana as a Raptor Rehabilitation Co-Chair. She also served as the Wildlife, Avian, Zoological, and Exotic Animal Medicine Club as their Vice President, Secretary, and Reptile Representative and as the President of the LSU chapter of the Student Chapter of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine for two years.
When not at the clinic, she prefers to spend her time outdoors, whether that’s hiking, trail running, kayaking, or simply wandering around an arts and crafts market or exploring her new city. Her favorite hobby is birdwatching. She also enjoys reading, practicing yoga, and spending time with her cat, Zuzu and her parrot, Zucchini.
ASSOCIATE VETERINARIAN
Michael Bignall, BVetMed
ASSOCIATE VETERINARIAN
Dr. Bignall grew up in Colorado, enamored with the local wildlife. He spent many of his teenage weekends volunteering with the local raptor rehabilitation rescue and wolf sanctuary.
After obtaining a Bachelors of Environmental Health from Colorado State University, he then attended the Royal Veterinary College of London. After graduating in 2016, he spent the next several years practicing small animal and exotic medicine in both the UK
and the US as a general practitioner.
In 2021, wanting to further his passion for avian medicine, Dr. Bignall undertook a specialty internship at an exotics only practice, before then making his way to Virginia in 2022 to become Dr. Stahl’s avian resident. After concluding the residency, he accepted
a position as an associate veterinarian here at SEAVS and is working hard to complete the requirements to become board certified in avian medicine.
In addition to raptors, which will always hold a special place in his heart, Dr. Bignall particularly enjoys working with corvids, psittacines, and turtles. Michael’s passions lie in traveling, trying new foods, and gaming. As a way to combine his love of travel and veterinary medicine, Dr. Bignall has a long-term goal to work with animals on every continent. Antarctica will likely prove difficult, but he’s up to 3 out of the other 6 so far.
Brooke Noah, DVM
Dr. Brooke Noah is originally from North Carolina. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a BS in Biology and then attended Lincoln Memorial University College of Veterinary Medicine. Following her time in undergrad, she worked full time at a small non-profit wildlife rehabilitation center in coastal NC.
During veterinary school, she served on the board for the Zoo, Exotic, Wildlife and Aquatics Club as the adoption coordinator for their exotics rescue program. Dr. Noah also worked on and presented research on pinkeye in cattle.
Dr Noah joined the SEAVS team in 2024 for the SEAVS exotic animal veterinary internship. Then in 2025, she accepted the SEAVS ABVP Avian Residency. She will be completing the residency in 2027 and then will be eligible to take the board exams to become Boarded in Avian Medicine!
Outside of the clinic, Dr. Noah enjoys birdwatching, hiking, cooking and trying new restaurants. She is excited to explore all that Northern Virginia has to offer with her partner, Stephen, and their lab-mix Tuvu and conure Kiwi!
ABVP AVIAN RESIDENT VETERINARIAN
Brad Fountain, DVM
ASSOCIATE VETERINARIAN
Dr Fountain completed his undergrad at San Francisco University with a major in Biology(Zoology). He worked for a couple of years as an exotic animal veterinary technician in California and then in Colorado before attending the University of Minnesota, College of Veterinary Medicine. After graduating, Dr. Fountain moved to Utah where he completed a veterinary internship at a busy exotic animal practice.
He joined the SEAVS team in 2023 as an ABVP Avian Resident and completed the residency in 2025. Dr Fountain then accepted a position as one of our associate veterinarians. He is currently working on credentialing for the ABVP avian board exams.
Dr. Fountain shares his home with his dog, Jango, his pet rat “Ratical” and his Mystery Snail “Gary”. He enjoys cold weather, hiking, knitting and baking in his spare time.
Emily Schleinkofer, DVM
Dr. Emily comes from her home state of Indiana where her summers spent working at the local zoo. This inspired a passion for veterinary medicine of exotic species!
She received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from St. George’s University on the beautiful island of Grenada. During her time in veterinary school, she spent her weekends becoming a PADI certified Dive Master which instilled a deep fascination for aquatic species and aspirations to become an aquatic veterinarian.
She joined SEAVS in 2024 and completed their exotic animal veterinary internship in 2025. She then accepted a position as an associate veterinarian.
Dr. Emily is joined on her adventure to Virginia by her sugar glider, Mew and her cat, Cheddar Cheese.
ASSOCIATE VETERINARIAN
MaryElla Cohn, DVM
EXOTIC ANIMAL VETERINARY INTERN
Dr. Cohn joined the SEAVS team as one of two exotic animal medicine intern veterinarians in July 2025. She has a bachelors in Environmental Science from Rhodes College and studied veterinary medicine at Louisiana State University (geaux tigers!). While earning her undergraduate degree, she participated in D3 athletics, Memphis Zoo amphibian research, and performed field research in Namibia. She has a fierce love for wildlife and avian medicine, so becoming a member of the LSU Raptor Rehabilitation team was a no brainer while in veterinary school.
Dr. Cohn was thrilled to begin her veterinary career with the SEAVS team and looks forward to starting her first year as an ABVP resident veterinarian in the summer of 2026.
She is passionate about client education and forming close relationships with each pet owner to ensure they feel included in their pet’s veterinary care. In a field with far less research than dog/cat medicine, Dr. Cohn has an interest in improving pain management and anesthesia of exotic animals to provide the best possible medicine to the smallest of patients.
Dr. Cohn spends her free time with family and friends, sweating at Cardinal Crossfit, or reading a good book with her two cats. She has an irresistible soft spot for surrendered animals, so her current “misfit zoo” consists of a bearded dragon, hognose snake, hedgehog, and a red-eyed tree frog. Additionally, Dr. Cohn co-authors monthly posts on the Association of Avian Veterinarians Amazing Aspects of Aviculture blog to educate new and experienced aviculturists on our feathered friends!
Sara Cooney, DVM
Dr. Sara Cooney grew up in South Florida, where she developed a passion for all the exotic wildlife the area had to offer: wading birds, lizards, snakes, and even those that dwell below the surface of the ocean. This prompted her to obtain an undergraduate degree in Zoology (with a minor in Flute Performance) from the University of Florida, where she graduated Cum Laude in 2016. Her career in veterinary medicine began as a college student in shelter medicine, providing care to lost, found, relinquished, and seized dogs and cats in Gainesville, Florida. Then, she followed her passion for wildlife by pursuing an undergraduate internship in wildlife medicine in Weymouth, MA, caring for orphaned and injured animals of all shapes and sizes.
Dr. Cooney attended Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Grafton, MA . There, she specialized her career path towards exotic animal medicine and performed research on Aquatic Bird Bornavirus in Canada Geese. After graduating veterinary school in 2024, she pursued a Rotating Internship in Small Animal Medicine and Surgery in Middletown, CT to further develop her knowledge across multiple veterinary specialties towards the care of dogs, cats, and exotic animals alike. Dr. Cooney then joined SEAVS in 2025 as an exotic animal veterinary intern.
She and her fiancée are always kept on their toes with their two rescue Indian Ringneck parakeets, Kenyan Sand Boa, Crested Gecko, and a Clubbed-Tail Iguana. In her free time, Dr. Cooney enjoys birding, hiking, crafting cosplay for conventions, and, of course, spending quality time with her human, feathered, and scaled family.
EXOTIC ANIMAL VETERINARY INTERN