Dr. Ellie Clow-Nutile grew up in West Linn, Oregon, a suburb near Portland, with a brother and sister who are twins and among her best friends. Her dad and brother are mechanical engineers and her mom and sister both work as surgical techs/assistants in the human medicine world - Ellie is the odd one out who decided she liked horses and wanted to be a vet from a very early age. During high school, she was a groom on the PNW Hunter Jumper Circuit, then an exercise rider and groom for a polo player all through her undergraduate years. Ellie doesn't have the opportunity to ride much these days, but would like to own a horse, some day, and get back into jumping. 

Ellie earned her BA in Biochemistry at Eastern Oregon University and her DVM at Oregon State University. During her fourth year of veterinary school, she did an externship at Steinbeck Peninsula Equine Clinics and was impressed not only by the team’s knowledge, but also by everyone's helpful and kind attitude. She felt it was exactly the kind of environment and mentorship she was looking for during her first year as a vet. She chose SPEC Menlo Park for her Internship particularly because of the excellent ambulatory experience she is getting — she loves being out on the road. Ellie is passionate about equine medicine and, knowing there is a need for more good general equine practitioners, appreciates the variety of experience she is getting at SPEC. She would like to become proficient in sports medicine and also hopes to become certified in chiropractic and acupuncture. 

Ellie and her husband Enzo have a Catahoula/heeler/mutt named Copper, a tuxedo cat named Monty, and a rosy boa snake named Vicious who Ellie's had since she was 7.