Melissa joined VCA in 2016 and is currently the hospital manager for both VCA Appalachian and VCA Dahlonega. She is an Elite Fear Free Certified Professional and a Cat Friendly Advocate.  Her passion is creating a friendly, stress-free environment for all patients and educating pet owners about the importance of not only their pet's physical health, but also their emotional health. She loves to schedule "happy" visits with patients to help acclimate them to the hospital. These visits include lots of treats, pets, and belly rubs.

When not at work, Melissa enjoys watching baseball (Go Braves!), volunteering, gardening, visiting museums and other historical sites with her husband, and watching The Office – which is where her cat, Creed, got his name.

She has four dogs, Thor, Mitzy Chewbarka, Forest, and Ousier Boudreaux , as well as five cats, Wellington, Bruce, Creed Catton, Peep, and Mars. She plans to get goats as soon as she can talk her husband into it. She's been attempting to talk him into getting goats for the last five years, so she is sure he will relent soon.

She says that working at VCA has given her not only the opportunity to help many, many pets, but also the ability to help and build relationships with their owners, community organizations, and her own, amazing staff.