Tag Archives: DC

Scott Stahl, DVM, ABVP-Avian

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

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 fiancé, Adam, her 2 children, three dogs, goats, chickens a horse, 2 tortoises and a collection of snakes.

Currie Carothers, DVM

Dr. Currie Carothers

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 bearded dragon, Rosie.

Dr Carothers has a passion for all exotic companion animals with a special interest in avian species. She dreams of achieving board certification in Avian Practice and looks forward to a rewarding career of caring for exotic companion animals and the people who love them.

Dr. Lauren Duthie-Brown, BVSc

Dr. Duthie-Brown
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 transitioned into 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 greyhound, Harry; Princess Parrot, Alex and
Zebra Finch, Beep.

Nina Katzenstein, DVM

Picture of Dr. Katzenstein coming soon…,

Dr. Katzenstein was born and raised in St. Louis, MO, and received her bachelor’s degree in biology from New York University. She graduated from Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2021 then completed a one-year small animal rotating internship at the Regional Veterinary Referral Center in Springfield, VA. She joined SEAVS in the summer of 2022 to pursue a one-year exotic animal internship.

Dr. Katzenstein has always been interested in exotic animals and her first pet was a desert kingsnake, Arizona, whom she received for her eighth birthday. While living in New York, she worked with the New York City chapter of the House Rabbit Society fostering special-needs rabbits.

In her spare time, Dr. Katzenstein enjoys running, hiking, sewing, baking, traveling, and reading. She lives in DC with her black and tan coonhound, two black cats, Netherland dwarf rabbit, Hermann’s tortoise, and saltwater aquarium.