Behavior Service Policies/Fee Schedule:

Welcome to Dr. Melese's Clinical Behavior Service. The following list details some of our office financial and medical polices. Please take a few moments to familiarize yourself with them so that we can serve you better. If you have any questions or constraints (for example if you have to leave by a certain time after our appointment, your budget only allows 2 hours of appointment time, etc.) regarding these or any of our policies or practices, please feel free to discuss them with us PRIOR TO YOUR APPOINTMENT!

Notes:
1. Appropriate family members (especially spouses) and pets should be present if possible and practical for exam room size. The room generally can hold 2-4 family members with 1-2 medium sized dogs. It would be helpful to know how many people will attend by the time the appointment starts so that we arrange for additional chairs beyond the 2 standard chairs provided.
2. Fast dogs for at least 12 hrs (24+ hrs. if not very food responsive at veterinary offices) unless otherwise advised. Cats only fast 12 hrs!
3. Bring BEST possible tidbits to try (human food ok); especially important if pet on special diet.
4. If pet has relevant important medical history (for example recent exam, laboratory results, treatments, etc.) or is on medications (also bring them with you, especially behavioral medications), have family vet. FAX or mail appropriate medical records to us at 858-259-0013 at least 24 hrs prior to appointment or bring them with you.
5. Please return forms so they arrive to our office at least 24-48 hrs prior to your appointment and plan to arrive 15 minutes early if at all possible. Either FAX, e-mail or post (most postmark at least 3-4 days prior to appointment so likely to arrive on time) to address below* and bring a copy (preferably originals) with you also.
6. Arrive on time. In most cases, you may lose some of your valuable appointment time you still have to pay for if you arrive late so plan for traffic, etc.
7. Please bring all halters, collars and other training aids (e.g. electronic collars, muzzles, etc.) you may already have (especially head halters such as the Gentle Leader if you have one) for the pet.

If you have any questions about fees, please inquire prior to the consultation. Exceptions to fees below MUST BE IN WRITING!

** Payment is due at time of appointment; no billing. You may pay with CASH or CHECK; at this time we do NOT accept credit or debit cards. Checks not honored by bank will also incur an additional fee and you also agree to pay for any costs associated with collecting the funds to pay for the services and products you have received including an additional billing fee if your account is not paid at the appointment and a bill must be generated.

** Since we schedule out a large portion of the doctor's schedule for your behavior appointment, we request immediate notification of any desire to reschedule or cancel a behavior consultation so that another client can make arrangements to have the appointment time. Please give us AT VERY LEAST 2-3 business days advanced notice of cancellation. If you do not show up for your appointment or cancel with less than 2 business days (M-F) notice, you may be charged up to the full consult fee.

** For their safety and that of others, we REQUIRE that all pets be on leashes or in pet carriers & properly restrained, especially if aggressive (basket muzzled or nylon muzzle and closely controlled on leash).

** Fees have been explained to me clearly and I realize that no exact representations are made or implied as to an exact fee total since hourly charges apply, each case is different and behavior products or training aids may be recommended, some of which we may have available for client purchase at the time of the visit.
To reiterate: Office call fees are charged $ 145 per hour (a 1.5 hr "mini" appointment for $250 may be available for those that only have budget for introductory or assessment-only visit); House call fees are $ 165 per hour ($400 minimum) plus $4 per minute one-way travel time charge (for example 20 minute travel time would be $80 travel charge). Consultations that must be scheduled with Dr. Melese after regular clinic office hours (M-Th 9:30-5) when available are charged additional hourly fees. For Guidelines only-not a quote: Initial Office calls usually average of 2.5-3 hours (some may even go over 3 hours) depending on species, problem, complexity and history, and the initial House calls averages about 3 hours. An in-office routine recheck appointment is $ 150 and is typically 45-55 minutes long about 1-2 months after initial visit. However, rechecks done many months after previous visit may need more time than a "standard" recheck in which case hourly fees would again apply. Recheck appointments are often critical to the successful resolution of most cases, but how many and how often is very dependent on the problem, the patient(s), and the individual clients. For clients that cannot come in person to a recheck (for example if out of San Diego county area) telephone appointments can be made for follow-up but these are not available to new patients since a "legal" doctor/owner/patient relationship must be established "in person" for veterinary practice in the state of California.

Please note that above fees assume the client has access to internet and e-mail since at this time internet access discount is built into the fee structure. If you do not have e-mail access and need material manually mailed there will be additional handling charges for $20 per visit as the behaviorists themselves will have to manually print and mail out all the follow-up material adding substantial professional time to the case follow-up for each appointment. In these cases no follow-up case summary updates may be sent (and handling fee not charged) if there were no substantial changes and no e-mail present.

Again, please ask us any questions you may have about current hourly fees when you call for an appointment and also if you have any questions about any of these policies PRIOR to the start of your appointment. We can attempt to take into account any special requirements (e.g. need to leave appointment by a certain time, need to keep initial appointment to a certain length to keep within your budget regardless of patient/case needs, etc.) ONLY IF we know them prior to the appointment, but once the clinician has already spent the time with you, it is too late to express any special budget needs. Thank you for taking the time to review this important information. We look forward to helping you with your pet's behavior problem.

Not sure that you can budget or come during regular office hours to see Dr. Melese, the board certified veterinary specialist?

Ask about seeing our other behaviorist Francine Crocker who offers after-hours appointments and can be seen for a reduced fee schedule. Although not a veterinarian, Francine is well trained in applied animal behavior, has externed with the doctor and sees cases under Dr. Melese's supervision.