Dr Speer

Dr. Brian Speer is owner and director of The Medical Center for Birds in Oakley, California. Dr. Speer is Past President of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, and a consultant for the Veterinary Information Network (VIN). He is certified in avian practice through the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners and through the European College of Zoological Medicine in the avian specialty. Dr. Speer is the 2003 recipient of the T.J. Lafeber Avian Practitioner of the Year award, Speaker of the Year for the North American Veterinary Conference (2006), AAV President’s award (2008) and Educator of the Year for the Western Veterinary Conference (2015 and 2023).

He is co-author of The Large Macaws (1995),  Birds for Dummies (1999), editor of Current Veterinary Therapy in Avian Medicine and Surgery (2015), Birds for Dummies second edition (2021), and co-editor of Current Veterinary Therapy in Avian Medicine and Surgery (in press) – anticipated publication February 2025. 

Dr Beichner

Bio coming soon!

Dr Baden

Rachel Baden, DVM, DABVP (Avian Practice), is a Bay Area native. She received her undergraduate degree from Reed College in 2013 and her veterinary degree in 2017 from the University of California, Davis. Rachel spent two years in internship programs after graduation for additional training before joining the Medical Center for Birds as an associate in 2019. She completed her residency in 2022, and passed her exams to become a board-certified avian specialist later that year. She is an active contributor to the scientific literature and has published several papers, and enjoys speaking at conferences and mentoring vet students and interns. Currently she serves on the Student Committee of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, and is co-chief of service here at MCFB.

Rachel has a flock of galahs at home, and while she is partial to all cockatoos, she is delighted to work with any bird that comes in the door. She is interested in many aspects of bird medicine and enjoys working at a practice that allows her to indulge all of them.

Dr Conradson

Dr. Dylan Conradson came to Oakley from New Mexico which he still calls home. He received a dual degree from the University of New Mexico in Biology and English and studied veterinary medicine at Washington State University receiving a DVM in 2022. Dr. Conradson has a background in ecology and wildlife epidemiology having been a field technician studying small mammals throughout the Southwest and later working in molecular diagnostics in fellowship with the San Diego Zoo Center for Conservation Research. During veterinary school he was involved in epidemiological research on Elk Hoof Disease, an emerging pathogen of elk now found in Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and Northern California. Prior to accepting an internship at the Medical Center for Birds, he worked for Santa Fe Animal Shelter as a staff veterinarian. However, birds have emerged as a singular focus and love. 

Dylan can be found playing folk music at farmer’s markets around East Bay, or ski mountaineering in the Eastern Sierra during the Winter and Spring. He is also found reliably on running trails around Mt. Diablo. Mostly he carouses with his personal flock at home, two African Greys and a Red Lored Amazon.