Your pet will feel right at home.

Head Veterinarian MVDr, MRCVS, PGCertSAM, BSAVA

Milan is our head vet at Herne Bay, with 30 years in small-animal practice. His work has taken him from charity clinics in Micronesia to busy practices in Hong Kong, Dallas, London and Prague, and more than two dozen around Auckland.

Friendly and approachable, he sees caring for your pet as a shared effort between you and the clinical team. His interests cover every part of small-animal medicine, with care tailored to each patient whatever their age. He holds a postgraduate degree in the field from the University of Nottingham, and particularly enjoys soft tissue surgery and dentistry.

The environment is close to Milan's heart. He once won a conservation case against the Montenegrin government in the EU courts. Away from the clinic, you'll find him in the Tuateawa hills volunteering to protect native forest, or chasing snapper in Mercury Bay. (He’s being modest here: he does more catching than chasing ;)

Head Veterinary Nurse

Amie is our Head Veterinary Nurse, and she believes good local veterinary care is built on trust, patience and community. Alongside her clinical work she lectures at Unitec, where she has taught and mentored many of New Zealand's veterinary nurses. That teaching background sets a high standard for nursing at Ferdy's.

Her organisational skills keep our daily routines running smoothly, giving patients a calm, settled environment where they feel safe. Amie takes the time to get to know our Herne Bay families and their pets by name, and to make sure every animal gets steady, gentle care. Outside work, she has two dogs, Freddie and Audrey, and a chicken named Henrietta.

Senior Veterinarian BVSc

Joelle is our Senior Veterinarian, and has worked in small animal practice since graduating from Massey University in 2003. She values the human animal bond and making a difference in the lives of pets and their owners. In her free time you will find her hanging out with her dog Susie, or doing one of her many creative hobbies, which include; making and teaching ceramics; creating garments for World of WearableArt; and, most recently, learning glass-blowing. (Joelle is into into.)

Joelle officially starts at Ferdy’s in October and we can’t wait to welcome her and Susie to the team.

Chief of Cuddles

Freddy is our Australian import, promoted to Chief of Cuddles on the strength of his contribution to staff morale. Friendly with absolutely everyone, he has plenty to say and rarely stops saying it. Treats are non-negotiable, and he will remind you of this.

Veterinary Nurse

Alison is a graduate veterinary nurse who is calm, organised and at home in a busy clinic. She has hands-on experience in surgical nursing, hospital care, diagnostics, dentistry and triage, and she's good with owners, keeping them calm when they're worried about their pet. She is currently completing a Bachelor of Veterinary Nursing part-time, building on her training at Unitec.

Before veterinary nursing, Alison worked in finance, learning and development, and customer service, which gives her strong organisational and problem-solving skills. She cares about patient welfare and about keeping standards high through good teamwork and clear communication. Outside work, you'll find her doing yoga, walking in nature, or reading a good book.

Head of Accounts

Henrietta, resident chicken, runs Accounts with the same care she puts into everything else. Nothing gets past her — she checks the detail twice and pecks holes in anything that doesn't add up.

Client Concierge

Olivia brings over ten years of experience in client relations, reception, and administration, with a genuine passion for creating a welcoming and supportive experience for every client who visits Ferdy's Vet. She understands that visiting the vet can sometimes be stressful, so she always offers a friendly smile, a listening ear, and a helping hand to make each visit as comfortable as possible.

Working in the veterinary industry is more than just a career for Olivia. She has been a passionate advocate for animals throughout her life and feels incredibly grateful to work in a role where she can support both pets and the people who love them. Growing up in a whānau of animal lovers and sharing her home with her own beloved cats has given her a deep appreciation for the special bond between people and their animals.

Olivia’s interests outside of work include unwinding with a good book or a true crime documentary, working out at the gym, or spending quality time with friends and family.

Quality Control & Compliance

Audrey lives with Freddy but keeps her distance from the noise. She heads up Compliance & Quality Control, a role she takes seriously and communicates mostly through pointed looks. The rest of the team is always trying to win her approval. Audrey may give it (or not) in her own good time.

Director, Operations / Head of Paperwork

Ciaran looks after the business side of Ferdy's, from operations, brand, finance, front-of-house and client experience. He oversees our client concierge team, and the work he leads lets our clinical team focus on your pet.

His career has been spent making products and services easier to use for the people they're built for. Over 20 years he has led and consulted for large organisations across New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Ireland and the US, working closely with demanding clients.

That work is grounded in human-centred design, the practice of making things simpler and easier, which he studied at master's level at University College London. It's not a way of working the veterinary world often sees, and it shapes how Ferdy's runs: plain language, no jargon, and a clinic that's easy to deal with. Ciaran co-founded Ferdy's, and outside work he likes to spend time picking things up and putting things down in the gym, absorbed in a good book or out and about in nature.

Legal

Dexter, our black cat, oversees Legal. He reviews every document by sitting on it first, and won't be rushed to a verdict. Once he's decided, that's final.