The West Gippsland Veterinary Clinic has been servicing the Gippsland area for almost 20 years.

Opened in 1989 by local vets Bruce Robertson and Joe Brady many locals will fondly remember the clinic as Robertson & Brady veterinary clinic.
In September 2005 the clinic changed its name to West Gippsland Veterinary Clinic, to reflect its commitment to the wider Gippsland area, and to recognise Dr Joe Brady, Dr Grant Nielsen and Dr Benton Smith joining together as owners.

The West Gippsland Veterinary Clinic has 5 Veterinary surgeons, which ensures that all types of animals and services can be offered to our clients. The Vets are supported by 3 Veterinary nurses, and 5 admin staff to ensure that the clinic runs smoothly.

We hope that the following photos and short biography's will help you recognise our staff next time you visit.

Dr Joe Brady - Veterinary Surgeon B.V.Sc.

Dr Joe Brady started Robertson & Brady Veterinary Clinic back in 1989 with fellow vet Bruce Robertson.

He could never have imagined that within 15 years the clinic would have grown to the size it has.

 

 

 

 

Dr Grant Nielsen - Veterinary Surgeon B.V.Sc. (Hons), M.A.C.V.Sc. (Nutrition)

Grant grew up on a beef and sheep property near Guyra in northern New South Wales, which is  he is still actively involved in the running of. After graduating with honours in Veterinary Science from Sydney University in 1994 he commenced working at West Gippsland Veterinary Centre. Since then Grant has gained extensive experience in  all aspects of mixed practice.

Grant has developed a strong interest in ruminant nutrition and in 2001 became a member of the Australian College of Veterinary Surgeons in ruminant nutrition. Others areas of interest include bovine surgery, reproduction and mastitis. Grant has gained extensive experience in ultrasound and manual pregnancy testing in cattle. He is export accredited for cattle and is a trained countdown adviser for mastitis investigations.

Grant lives in Warragul with his wife Sophie and their two boys Jeremy and Sam. He enjoys keeping fit and does the occasional triathlon.

 

Dr Benton Smith - Veterinary Surgeon B.V.Sc. M.A.C.V.Sc. (Surgery)

I graduated from the University of Queensland in 1996. After 2 years of practice in sunny     Queensland, I ventured south of the border to Victoria. After stints at Leongatha and Moe, along with three working holidays to the United Kingdom, I joined West Gippsland  Veterinary Centre. 

In 2002 I undertook a 12 month Small Animal Surgery Internship at the Animal Surgery Centre during which I attained my membership to the Small Animal Surgery Chapter at Australian College of Veterinary Scientists.

I am AQIS accredited for the export of both large and small animals and in 2006 I achieved my accreditation for the PennHIP program for the prevention of canine hip dysplasia.  I am also an AACV accredited pregnancy tester for cattle. The majority of my work is with dogs and cats however I will venture on farm to back up the large animal vets when required.  I live in Warragul with my wife Stephanie and son Noah, our 2 dogs Jess & Indianna and our 2 cats Skaife and Doodley.

 

Dr Megan Thomas - Veterinary Surgeon B.V.Sc. (Hons)

Meg graduated from the University of Melbourne in 2000 and first joined the practice in January 2001. She was with the clinic for 3 years working as both a large and small animal vet.

In 2004 Meg spent a year traveling around Australia and working as a locum in predominantly small animal practices in various parts of the country. Then in 2005 she worked in a small animal practice in Birmingham, England, before traveling through Europe for 3 months. After her 2 years of travel, Meg returned to Warragul to rejoin the practice once again as a mixed vet.

Meg’s interests lie in small animal medicine and over the last 6 months she has been working predominantly in the clinic with the small animals. In 2003 she completed a distance education course in Dermatology through the University of Sydney and hopes to further her study in small animal internal medicine. In her spare tiem, Meg plays netball and goes to the gym. She enjoys reading and scuba diving. She would like to travel more but having just bought a house in Warragul, this might not happen for a while.

Dr Becky Donaldson - Veterinary Surgeon BVet Med (Hons)

I obtained my degree in Veterinary Medicine with honours in July 2006 from the Royal Veterinary College, University of London, UK.  Having studied hard for 5 years, I decided to take a few months off before spending 6 weeks calving and calf rearing on a dairy herd in Cheshire (UK).

On completing my degree, my partner, Stuart, and I decided we would like to spend some years working in Australia.  Having completed a month placement as a final year student in Timboon, SW Victoria, I was happy that veterinary work is very similar to home and so we decided to move to Australia in October 2006.

I have been working as a vet with West Gippsland Veterinary Centre since February 2007 and am thoroughly enjoying settling into Australian life and living and working in Warragul.

My veterinary interests lie in cattle medicine and surgery though, as yet, I have no specialist interest and am keen to maintain exposure to true mixed animal practice.

Outside of work, I love sport, playing hockey through the winter and hoping to complete a few triathlons this summer.  Both Stuart and I enjoy the outdoors including walking and, in winter, skiing and snow boarding.  Music is another of my hobbies and I recently joined the West Gippsland Chorale.

Sally Ablett - Veterinary Nurse.

Sally joined the Robertson & Brady Veterinary Clinic in 1998. She works at the clinic, assisting in surgery and the treatment of the small animals at the clinic.

Sally has completed a number of nutrition courses during her time at the clinic, and currently runs the Pets Diet Club for those animals in our lives that are a bit on the "plump" side.

 

 

 

Naomi Carreck - Veterinary Nurse.

Naomi joined the team at WGVC in early 2005 and has gained her Qualification in Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing. Naomi's main passions are small animal surgery as the surgical procedures that can be done to save an animals life are great to watch and be part of.

Naomi says working at WGVC is a great experience as every day is different with different cases and challenges.

In her spare time, Naomi is kept occupied tending to her animals. She has quite a menagerie from silky chickens to miniature horses, and not forgetting Buddy, a VERY spoilt boxer who who thinks he is human!

Naomi also has a young Son, who is already an animal lover like his Mum.

Naomi lives with her partner Paul and son Blake on a small acreage in the peaceful Gippsland region and says she wouldn't even move if she one Tattslotto.

 

Stephanie Smith - Veterinary Nurse.

Stephanie joined West Gippsland Vet Centre in 2004 to develop and run our puppy preschool classes. Not long after, she began working as the clinic bookkeeper. She handed over the reins of Puppy Pre-school to Felicity & Sally after having her son but continues her job as the clinic paper-pusher.

Before joining WGVC Stephanie gained over 10 years of Vet nursing experience, which included two stints working overseas.

She currently lives in Warragul with her husband Benton and their son Noah. They have 2 dogs, Jess and Indianna and 2 cats, Skaife & Doodley.

 

Jenny Throup - Reception/Administration

Jenny joined WGVC in March 2000. She started working just 2 days a week doing some Vet Nursing and reception duties, but now works full time and spends all of her time in reception.

Jenny enjoys meeting our patients and their owners and likes being able to give as much help as she can to our other clients.

Jenny grew up on the family dairy farm at Jindivick, helping in all areas over the years. Now living in Trafalgar with her 2 youngest children, her 2 older boys live with their families, close by in Berwick. She has 2 grandchildren, Grace and Will.

Jenny has 3 cats, Dags, Billy and Oscar (all adopted from work) and a dog named Ash. She enjoys watching most sports, is passionate about the AFL and follows St.Kilda. She played tennis and netball for many years.

Jenny has seen many changes in her time with WGVC. She enjoys working in our new clinic, which is fresh and modern and looks forward to a future of giving the best service she can to our clients.

 

Felicity Hill - Veterinary Nurse.

Felicity Joined West Gippsland Veterinary Centre in 2004 as a kennel hand working Saturday mornings. She later began helping out on school holidays and during busy periods and now works one day a week as a vet nurse, although can always be found at the clinic completing odd jobs for the vets.  Felicity runs the weekly puppy pre-school classes alternatively with Sally, offering routine advice regarding puppy health and socialisation. 

Felicity has a love of all animals with a keen interest in cattle medicine, surgery and nutrition.  She is currently completing her final year of a Bachelor of Animal Science and Management at Melbourne University and hopes to transfer to Veterinary Science in the near future. 

Felicity lives locally in Labertouche on her families’ property with a myriad of animals – all of which have names and are a part of the family.  Her favourite is her cattle dog, Dusty.  Felicity recently became engaged to Jason and is planning to wed in early 2009.

Chloe Wallace - Student Veterinary Nurse.

Chloe joined the West Gippsland Veterinary Clinic in 2006. She works at the clinic part time whilst completes her studies as a Veterinary Nurse.