BVMS MRCVS
Dr. Pippa Elliott, BVMS, MRCVS, is a veterinarian with nearly 30 years of experience in companion animal practice. Dr. Elliott earned her Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery from the University of Glasgow. She was also designated a Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. Married with 2 grown-up kids, Dr. Elliott has a naughty Puggle named Poggle, 3 cats and a bearded dragon.
Exercise-induced collapse can cause weakness and loss of coordination during intense activity in susceptible Labradors. Learn emergency actions, DNM1 test limits, diagnostic workup, activity management, and breeding context.
German Shepherd hip dysplasia affects the rear limbs, while elbow disease more often causes front-limb lameness. Learn risk, early signs, screening limits, diagnosis, treatment, and home support.
Wobbler syndrome is an important cause of gait change in Dobermans, but breed and wobbling alone do not diagnose it. Learn the signs, differentials, imaging choices, treatment, and prognosis.
IVDD can affect French Bulldogs at a relatively young age, but breed alone does not diagnose spinal pain. Learn early signs, emergency thresholds, imaging limits, treatment choices, safer handling, and recurrence monitoring.
IVDD is common in Dachshunds, but breed alone cannot diagnose a back problem. Learn the first signs, emergency thresholds, testing limits, treatment choices, prognosis, and safer daily handling.
IVDD surgery cost includes more than the operation. Learn how imaging, hospitalization, region, complications, home nursing, and rehabilitation shape the total and recovery plan.
IVDD treatment in dogs may involve conservative care or surgery. Learn how neurologic findings guide the choice, what recovery requires, and which changes demand emergency reassessment.
Wobbler syndrome can cause an unsteady gait, weakness, and neck pain. Learn which changes need urgent care and how specialists evaluate treatment and prognosis.
Compare Embark, Wisdom Panel, and DNA My Dog through the features that matter: ancestry evidence, health-screening scope, report usefulness, price, and support after results arrive.
Learn what a dog DNA health report can establish, how to interpret clear, carrier, and at-risk results, and which questions to bring to your veterinarian after an Embark screening.
A vet explains easily digestible dog food in plain terms: how cooking method, protein source, fat level, fiber, and ingredient count make a meal gentle on the gut, and where gently cooked fresh food fits.
A vet explains how to use fresh dog food for underweight dogs: check body condition, rule out illness first, then add calories in 10 percent weekly steps with weigh-ins for safe, steady weight gain.
A vet explains how to tell if a dog food is right for your dog, with an 8-sign checklist covering stool, appetite, coat, skin, energy, and body condition, plus the red flags that mean calling your vet.
This Get Real feeding guide shows how to check your dog's portion with the published kcal per pack and daily calories, as a full meal or topper, plus how to split meals, thaw packs, and switch foods.
Get Real dog food cost depends on your dog's size and whether you feed it as a full meal or topper. See packs-per-day math from the published kcal per pack, then check current pricing in the Chewy cart.
Learn how to thaw frozen dog food safely in the fridge or in cold water, how long each pack size takes, how long thawed food keeps, when you can refreeze, and which shortcuts to skip.
A vet explains what dog poop should look like on fresh food: firm, chocolate brown, and often smaller. Learn which color and texture changes are normal during a switch and which mean calling the vet.
A vet explains what to give a dog with an upset stomach: water, small bland meals of chicken and rice for 2 to 3 days, a day-by-day plan back to normal food, and the signs that mean calling the vet.
Fresh dog food for weight loss works when portions match a vet-set calorie target. See a worked example, the calories per Get Real pack, and how to track your dog's progress safely.
How much topper to add to dog food: keep non-complete toppers under 10 percent of daily calories, let a complete and balanced topper take a larger share, and cut kibble by the same calories.
A vet's line-by-line guide to the dog food label: naming rules, ingredient order, guaranteed analysis with dry matter math, the AAFCO statement, and a real fresh food example.
All life stages dog food meets AAFCO's growth and adult maintenance profiles. Learn the exact label wording, the large-breed puppy check, and how to adjust portions for seniors.
Is chicken good for dogs? Plain cooked chicken is a lean, digestible protein for most dogs. A vet explains when to choose chicken, how long a chicken and rice bland diet should last, and what to feed with a chicken allergy.
Can dogs eat turkey? Plain cooked turkey is safe for most dogs. A vet's part-by-part guide to bones, skin, giblets, deli meat, and raw turkey, with portions by size and how turkey works as an everyday protein.
Learn how to assess nighttime diarrhea, care for a stable dog overnight, recognize signs needing prompt help, and build a useful record when the pattern keeps returning.
Understand why diarrhea can follow boarding, what to check when your dog gets home, which details to request from the facility, and how testing and gut support fit into recovery.
Stud tail is an overactive gland at the base of a cat's tail that leaves greasy, waxy fur and blackheads. Learn which cats get it, when it needs a vet, which treatments work, and the cleaning routine that keeps it away.
Eosinophilic granuloma complex is a group of three allergic lesions in cats: rodent ulcers, eosinophilic plaques, and linear granulomas. Learn where each appears, what triggers them, and how a vet diagnoses and treats them.
Miliary dermatitis is many tiny crusted bumps in a cat's fur, often along the back, neck, and tail base. Learn the usual triggers, starting with fleas, how a vet finds the cause, and what treatment and home care involve.
A perineal hernia is a weak spot in the muscles beside a dog's anus that lets tissue, and sometimes the bladder, bulge out. Learn the signs, which dogs get it, when it is an emergency, and how surgery and recovery work.
Cheyletiella is a contagious surface mite that causes walking dandruff, the moving white flakes along a dog's back. This guide covers the signs, how it spreads, how a vet confirms it, treating every pet in the home, and the risk to people.
A perianal adenoma is a slow-growing, usually benign lump in the hormone-sensitive glands around a dog's anus, most often in older intact males. This guide covers the signs, the vet workup, neutering and surgery, recovery, and the outlook.
Perianal fistulas are painful draining tracts in the skin around a dog's anus, seen most in German Shepherds. This guide covers the symptoms, how vets diagnose and treat the disease, what home care involves, and the long-term outlook.
Stud tail is an overactive oil gland on the top of a dog's tail that leaves a greasy, thinning patch near the base. This guide covers the signs, which dogs get it, how vets treat it, and when a sore or swollen tail base needs a visit.
A hygroma is a soft, fluid-filled swelling that forms over a bony pressure point, most often the elbow of a large dog. This guide covers why it happens, how a vet confirms it, home padding, and the signs that mean drainage or surgery.
A lick granuloma is a firm, hairless sore a dog creates by licking one spot on a leg over and over. Learn why it starts, what a vet tests and treats, and how barriers and enrichment help break the lick cycle for good.
A hot, painful swelling beside your dog's anus is usually an infected anal sac that has become an abscess, and it needs a vet today. Learn what rupture means, how vets treat it, and how to help your dog heal at home.
Skin yeast in dogs is almost always a sign of something underneath, usually allergies. Learn where it shows up, how vets confirm it, what the medicated baths and prescriptions do, and how to keep it from coming back.
Some home steps can calm an itchy dog while you sort out the cause, and some popular remedies make skin worse. Here is what is safe to try tonight, what to skip, and the signs that mean the itch needs a vet instead.
Sarcoptic mange is a burrowing mite infestation that makes dogs frantically itchy and spreads easily to other dogs. Learn the early signs, how vets confirm and treat it, how to clean the house, and what it means for people.
Demodectic mange happens when the Demodex mites that live in every dog's hair follicles overgrow, most often in puppies. This guide explains the localized and generalized forms, how vets confirm and treat it, and how long recovery takes.
A dog that keeps licking his butt usually has full or irritated anal glands, itchy skin from fleas or allergies, or worms. This guide explains each cause, the warning signs that need a vet today, and what helps at home.
Brief licking after peeing is normal grooming, but a dog licking their private area constantly may have a urinary tract infection, skin infection, or irritation. This guide covers causes in male and female dogs and signs that need a vet.
Excessive licking in dogs usually points to itchy skin, pain, nausea, or stress rather than a bad habit. This guide helps you read where and when your dog licks, spot the signs that need a vet, and break the cycle safely at home.
Most small bumps on a dog's skin come from flea bites, allergies, or infected hair follicles, while firm bumps under the fur are often cysts or warts. This guide sorts bumps by their signs and flags the ones that need a vet today.
Understand how veterinarians assess food for pancreatitis, what current JFFD Digestive Care information establishes, and how to organize portions, approved treats, and follow-up feeding instructions.
The stages of arthritis in dogs describe how far osteoarthritis has progressed. Learn how veterinarians grade it from at-risk to severe, what changes in care at each stage, and what to track at home between rechecks.
How is arthritis diagnosed in dogs? Learn what to bring to the appointment, how the physical examination works, and when X-rays, blood tests, or joint-fluid tests may help explain your dog's joint pain.
Vet-reviewed guide to the best dog car seat cover for your seat and your dog: waterproof bench covers, convertible hammocks, and cargo liners compared. How to fit trucks and SUVs, and keep the seat belts usable.
Vet-reviewed guide to the best dog car hammock for your car and dog: full, half, and hard-bottom hammocks compared on fit and fabric. Why a hammock keeps the footwell blocked but never replaces a harness tether.