VERGI To The Rescue

07/04/2024

🌞Heat Stroke🌞

Summer is here, and it is SO HOT! If we are hot, imagine how hot our dogs are when they have to go outside in a fur coat?

Dogs exchange heat by panting, meaning they use panting as their main method of cooling down. They don't sweat like we do and that means they cannot use the benefit of a breeze to feel that slight cooldown that we feel as the breeze hits the sweat forming on our bodies.

In this heat, we have to consider the temperature of the surface we ask our dogs to walk or run on, the outside temperature and the humidity. The more humid it is, the harder it is for your dog to use panting to cool down.

When your dog cannot cool down, their core temperature rises to dangerous and sometimes life-threatening levels.

We see a variety of medical emergencies in our hospital, and heat stroke has got to be one of the worst because it is preventable.

Your dog cannot tell you that he or she is too hot, or that they want to go home to the AC. You may notice them slowing down, or simply stopping. This is your sign that they are already too hot. Their tongue and their gums will first become very red, their eyes may get bloodshot, their ears may be too red. Their panting will become more rapid, they may stumble. They might seek shade, appear anxious, drooling will likely begin and their heart rate will rise.

If your dog is not cooled off immediately, their gums and tongue will become pale/blue/grey, they may vomit or have diarrhea, they will become uncoordinated, seizures are possible, and they may likely collapse. Your dog's organs are now cooking. His or her core temperature is dangerously high and their only hope is emergency treatment at a hospital.

Have you ever seen a dog that has had a heat stroke? If you have not, we hope you never do.

You may offer your dog cool water, a cool space and cool water over their body but do not apply ice to a dog that is experiencing heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

The best thing you can do to keep your dog safe is look out for them this summer. Let them stay in the air conditioning. Be mindful of the outside temperatures, the humidity and the surface temperature - their paw pads can easily burn, too, in this heat. If your dog is outside, make sure they have shade and fresh, cool water, and that play time is limited, including swimming. Certain dog breeds are more prone to heat stroke ("smushed face breeds" especially), and dogs with pre-existing health issues as well as older dogs are also more susceptible to the dangers of the heat. NOTE: Shaving your dog in the summer does not help keep them cool.

We focus on dogs when we talk about heat stroke because cats don't typically enjoy the same activities as dogs do, like walks and chasing balls in the yard. Cats CAN experience heat stroke as well. No animal should ever be left in a vehicle or enclosed space without AC. Never trust your vehicle's AC to keep your dog or cat cool. The system can fail, your car's engine can die, and even with all things operating as they should, if your pet cannot escape the sun beating down into the car, they can still quickly overheat.

We want you and your pets to stay healthy and safe in this heat! And as long as we are talking weather, have your supplies in order in case a hurricane comes our way.

While you can’t exactly stay cool outside, you can advocate for pets to stay safe. And if you ever see an animal or child locked in a car, call the authorities immediately.

07/02/2024

Pet Spotlight – Billing Specialists

Working in a 24-hour veterinary emergency hospital takes a special kind of person, and at Vergi 24/7 Animal Emergency and Critical Care Hospital, we are very lucky to have a lot of these “special” people on our team. Our Client Care Coordinators are the first people our clients meet, and typically the ones who say “thank you”, “goodbye”, “I hope your pet continues to do well” and unfortunately there are times when they say, “I am so very sorry for your loss.” We have two extraordinary client care coordinators who volunteered to wear multiple hats by reviewing the charts, double-checking charges to ensure all are correct, and processing refunds for those clients who did not use all of the funds they deposited with us upon approval of the medical care plan for their pet.

It should come as no surprise that these two individuals have opened their homes to care for furry creatures and we would like to celebrate them here.

April’s home is filled with pets. Peyton, a white terrier mix, was April’s first pet and holds a special place in the hearts of her family. He is always ready to watch football in the garage with all the neighbors or to have a beach day and a puppuccino. He is currently 14-years old and can get a little grumpy if another pet gets a little too close, because he values his space but deep down inside, he is a sweetheart.

April also has three cats. Fefe came in as a neonatal which a client found on the highway. She was bottle fed, very demandingly every couple of hours. She would claw and try to climb up the bottle as well as April’s hands as she ate. April’s hands took quite a beating during those feedings. Fefe is now six-years- old, living her best life and insists on sleeping at April’s husband's feet every night. Lou, a tuxedo cat, is nine years old and diabetic so he gets his insulin twice a day and takes it like a champ. It takes a lot out of him though, so Sapphy is always there to snuggle with him. Sapphy is eight 1/2 and made her photo debut earlier in the year when VERGI 24/7 was featured on the cover of Spring Branch Plus Magazine.

Kristi shares her home with her Pembroke Welsh Corgi, Darbee, who is two and a half years old, and a new bunny, BonBon. Kristi and her daughter, Ellie, ran into this very cute and friendly Corgi and immediately fell in love. Kristi realized she should get her daughter a friend, since she was the only child, so she was able to get in touch with the breeder of the corgi they had met and it was love at first sight. Ellie and Darbee are like sisters - their relationship is just so special. Darbee loves to play fetch and she can literally play ball all day long, as long as someone is willing to throw the ball! She loves to cuddle, loves to eat, and loves her family. Bonnie aka BonBon was found outside at Kristi’s apartment complex one day. They saw this cute white rabbit all alone outside in the heat so they went outside and caught her after 30 minutes of trying. She is sooo sweet, loves to eat and loves to be petted. She is now a part of Kristi’s little family.

07/02/2024

Now is the time to make plans for your animals who are terrified of fireworks. All animals should have tags and microchips with current contact information. GPS collars are great, too.

If medications help, make sure you have those on hand ahead of time. Consider staying home with your pets, having music or the TV on, and offering them an interior closet or safe place to escape to if that helps them. We have treated severely injured dogs who broke out of windows, trying to escape the sound.

Please consider your neighbors and their pets, as well as city ordinances, when it comes to fireworks. A lot of humans have PTSD from war and other life altering events, and the sound of fireworks going off can be debilitating for them. Fireworks are also illegal in many areas.

And remember, we are always open and here for you and your pets, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We never, ever close - not during holidays, hurricanes, ice storms…you name it, we will keep showing up ❤️🤍💙

07/02/2024

💊

Meet Lottie! Lottie is a 1-year-old female Havanese whose mom rushed her to our hospital immediately after suspicion of eating (potentially 6) Aleve gel caps. Lottie is very lucky her mom brought her to us when she did. Our critical care team was able to induce vomiting, check bloodwork, and provide supportive care.

Naproxen drugs are extremely toxic to dogs and cats and can result in severe gastrointestinal ulcers and kidney failure. Some common signs your pet will display if they have ingested naproxen are: vomiting (including bloody vomit), diarrhea (including black stool), lack of appetite, a painful abdomen, and weakness.

A gastrointestinal ulcer can perforate and rupture the intestines. If this had happened to Lottie, she could have quickly become septic and died.

While naproxen is safe for humans to use, never give it to your dog or cat.

Lottie was able to go home the next day and she showed no signs of toxicosis. She had no vomiting or diarrhea in hospital and her blood work came back normal.

Reminder: Ibuprofen (Advil) is also toxic.

06/30/2024

Crazy straws and best friends really do help ❤️‍🩹

06/30/2024

Life isn’t always what we hope it will be. Sometimes, it seems simply unfair. Tonight, though, we focus on the heroes of Connie’s story who went to great lengths to show her that her life matters. We are so grateful for Connie and the love she got to experience. We cheer on the puppies she brought into this world. We will carry on the kindness that her story stirred up.

Still, it is so incredibly heartbreaking to share this news. We all fell in love with Connie and in her death, we will all mourn her, too. Rest easy, sweet girl. You did good ❤️‍🩹

Forever Changed Animal Rescue shared the news that Connie had passed away after a battle with pythiosis.

06/29/2024

Is it ok to have dogs on a Caturday if it is so, so accurate? 😏😆😼

06/28/2024

My dog can overheat in the pool???

It is officially summer, the Fourth of July is just around the corner and Houston is HOT HOT HOT. Before you let your dogs play in any body of water to cool off, make sure you help keep them safe!

Yes, dogs can overheat in the water (so can humans.) The sun is beating down, the pool water is not cool, your dog is swimming and playing and they can definitely overheat or have a heat stroke, even in the water. If your dog loves to swim, limit swimming times to the cooler parts of the day when the sun is not overhead.

Not all canines are natural-born swimmers and even if your dog can swim, always supervise them and be aware of currents in natural bodies of water. Make sure they wear a well-fitting life vest that you attach a leash to and have control of at all times.

Always have fresh, cool water for drinking available.

*Ocean water contains high levels of salt and is very dangerous for pets if they drink too much. If your dog has ingested too much ocean water, they will become dehydrated at best but saltwater toxicity can quickly become fatal in dogs. Some milder symptoms of salt water ingestion include vomiting and diarrhea.

*Pond, lake and river waters can contain parasites and bacteria that can make your dog sick (the ocean can as well.)

*Pool water is generally safe in small amounts, as long as your chemicals are properly balanced, but it is still not recommended. Never allow your pet to drink pool water after shock or chemicals have just been added.

More water safety tips:

*Stay away from water that has blue-green algae. For more info: https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/riney-canine-health-center/canine-health-information/blue-green-algae-poisoning-cyanobacteria-toxicosis

*It is best to rinse your dog off after they have been in any type of water to remove any chlorine, salt, and algae. Make sure to dry their ears as well to prevent ear infections.

*Pool toys can be choking hazards.

*Safely store pool chemicals in areas your pet does not have access to.

For more info on pets and overheating, visit: https://www.vergi247.com/helpful-articles/is-your-dog-overheated #:~:text=If%20your%20dog%20suffers%20heat,paws%2C%20stomachs%20and%20inner%20thighs.

06/28/2024

Remember Susie Q? We want to share a sweet card and update we received from her parents! We offer the best care possible to our patients while not forgetting the humans who love them!

“Dear Dr. Noaker:

From a deeply grateful heart, THANK YOU & your staff for taking such extraordinary care of Susie Q. on the night of June 10th.

We quickly gathered her up in soft sheeting, & rushed to VERGI~sweet, brave lil Susie never cried out or whimpered-she is such a courageous & strong lil doggy! I was heartbroken & my husband was so sad....As I sat there crying, you came over to us and kindly offered your sage advice & comments with reassurance that she would adapt to having one eye and would still live a good life. Dr. John Ellis (surgeon), Diana, April, Dante, Karen & all of your staff were so patient, understanding, thoughtful and gracious.

Susie Q. is healing well, and today she gets her stitches removed~~YIPPEE!!!

We have been going to VERGI for many years, and applaud each of you a thousand-fold. VERGI is truly the BEST Animal Emergency facility in Houston, and we are so thankful you are always there when we urgently need your help.

May Almighty God bless you for the amazing work you do everyday 24/7!

THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

Becky & Carl

06/27/2024

Awwwww…sorry, buddy. 🥺🛁🫧

PS if your dog or cat meets a porcupine and has quills (usually in their face), do not touch the quills or allow your pet to rub them. Get your pet to a veterinarian immediately.

06/26/2024

Hi - I’m Scooby! My mom took me to Vergi 24/7 to check my bad breath because she said it smelled like urine. The fancy word for bad breath is “halitosis.”

The doctor told my mom that the primary causes of halitosis are oral in nature like plaque, tarter buildup, or decomposing food particles. Other causes are dental disease, oropharyngeal (back roof of mouth) disease and a foreign body (like a splinter) that can cause an abscess or inflammation. The urine odor in the breath can also represent kidney disease but there was no evidence of this in my bloodwork and urinalysis. The doctor recommended a specialist visit next so they can further look into what has been contributing to the halitosis. Wish me luck!

If your pet starts having bad breath, you should take him or her to see your vet. Your vet will have suggestions and ideas to prevent and treat halitosis. If you are worried, or if your animal is experiencing an emergency (or just not acting like themselves,) you can also come visit us at VERGI. We are always here for you and your pets!

06/26/2024

Let’s celebrate the pets who share a home with one of our Client Care Coordinators! We couldn’t just call this team “receptionists.” They are the first people you usually see when you come to our hospital. Their role is to work directly with our clients and to begin the patient admitting process.

Meet Daisy, Roux, Hammy and Sally! Their mama is Torie, one of our evening Client Care Coordinators.
Daisy is a 16-year-old chihuahua who came into Torie’s life as a random stray 15 years ago. She was running across a busy road and Torie begged her mom to stop and help her. Her mom agreed and said she could come home with their family until they found her humans…. She never left and now just spends her days sleeping on the couch with Torie’s dad.

Roux is a 3-year-old Boston Terrier/lab mix tri-pawd. Torie’s dad adopted her from the Houston SPCA in January of 2022 as a present for his wife. There was just something about her that caught his eye and he instantly fell in love. She loves to go to dog parks and uses her missing limb to her advantage, shaking it at Torie anytime she has to tell Roux no for something. It is almost as if she’s telling Torie “but look, I have a disability and I’m and cute!” and don’t even get started on her puppy dog eyes.

Hammy is her almost 6-year old tabby cat. Torie was working at the Houston SPCA in 2018 when he came in on the ambulance at just 8 weeks old after being very badly burned. He spent the first couple of weeks at the shelter to make sure he was healing properly, but they soon said he could go to a foster home, and Torie jumped at the chance. She was only going to foster him until his wounds were healed but quickly fell head over heels in love with him. Looking at him now, you would never know he had been so badly burned, except for the scars on top of his head where fur doesn’t grow. He spends his days napping in the sun next to the patio door, snuggling and rough
housing with his little sister, Sally.

Sally is a 4-year-old calico. She came into Torie’s life as just a 2-week old bottle baby when the world first shut down due to covid in 2020. Torie was only working one day a week at the time, so she and her roommate had all the time in the world to raise her and her 2 brothers. Torie was never supposed to keep Sally but she fit right in and put Hammy in his place. Torie is truly Sally’s “mom” and Sally knows it. She is very chatty and “yells” at Torie constantly when she does not hold her and cuddle her like a baby. One of her favorite things to do is to go lie on Torie’s back any chance she gets. She also likes to smell Torie’s wet hair just after a shower and rub her face in the smell of the shampoo and conditioner.

We love that our team loves and rescues animals. It is one of the things that makes them even more special and perfectly suited to be there for our clients during a pet emergency.

Team Tuesday: Pet Spotlight

06/25/2024

Let me tell you, I have been through it!

So first of all, I snuck a piece of a steak bone one Wednesday night. Swallowed it fast - you know how you want to grab that thing out of your dog’s mouth but they swallow faster than you could imagine possible? That was the scene with my mom. The next morning I was just feeling blah and didn’t want to eat. I’m 11 - oh, my name is Mabel by the way. Nice to meet you! Where on earth did my manners go? Anyway, my mom kept thinking I would feel better and tried not to worry too much. Moms. They always find a way to worry.

Saturday morning, I didn’t want to get up at all. Mom was really scared at that point and called my vet who knew the best thing was to refer me to Vergi 24/7 so I could get the help I needed, with 24-hour care.

Since I had swallowed that bone, a bowel obstruction was suspected. They didn’t find a bone but what they did discover was that my gall bladder had ruptured. For a lot of days after the surgery, I was very critical. I finally felt better and could go home but we had to wait for test results. My poor mom.

Science lesson time 🧑‍🔬🧪🧬

When I first got to the hospital, I was very dehydrated. I had low blood pressure and a high PCV (they go together with being dehydrated.) PCV stands for packed cell volume (also called hematocrit, or HCT.) One of the things it measures is the number of red blood cells in the blood. When an animal is dehydrated, you often see an increase in PCV. It is very simple for doctors and technicians to do this test and it only takes a little bit of blood. It is also a very good test for pets with anemia. Why is it called “packed cell,” you ask? I’m here with answers! It’s called packed cell because the blood gets put into a tube and then spun in a centrifuge. The centrifugal force packs the red blood cells into the bottom of the tube and leaves clear plasma above. The plasma is used for other tests. Maybe one day, they will talk about “buffy coat” here. I think they should have science lessons every week.

But back to my test results. They finally came back and we are celebrating! A non-neoplastic process. It’s really good news! My cells went a little haywire but it was not due to a malignancy/cancer.

My mom hugged me even tighter than usual when she found out.

So that’s my story.

Love, Mabel

06/24/2024

tory Time! Did you know this about the KONG toy?
There are various versions of the story to be found, but they all go something like this:
Joe Markham was a mechanic in Denver, Colorado in the 70s. He was a young guy in his 20s and had a dog named Fritz. Fritz loved to chew on pretty much everything.
Joe's shop was getting burglarized but when Joe asked for more patrols in the area, he was denied due to budget cuts. The officers suggested something, though: get a guard dog. Joe happened to know of a dog who was being given away for free...an adorable, lovable German Shepherd who had just flunked out of the police academy for nothing other than "excessive chewing."
It seems Fritz really loved to chew on rocks and sticks. Not a good idea for a number of reasons! Fritz would also find various car parts in the shop to chew. One day, Joe was working on a VW Bus and tossed a rubber suspension part Fritz's way, hoping maybe it would do the trick. It bounced. It rolled. It was chewy but impossible to destroy. It had a weird shape. It was safe and FRITZ loved it. Joe had an idea!
His newly invented dog toy, called Tuffy, was originally shunned by pet stores. Joe believed in this creation of his, though, so he poured all of his money into commercials that said "available at your favorite pet shop," in hopes that pet shops would then have no choice but to carry the Tuffy once calls for it started coming in. Joe very wisely refused to accept anything other than pure success for this dog toy.
So how did the toy's name go from Tuffy to King? Well, one of the earliest distributors was a company called King and somebody said the toy looked like King Kong's ear plug, and the new name stuck!
And that, my friends, is the story of a young man named Joe, his dog, Fritz, who wanted to chew everything, and the happy accidental discovery that has kept dogs (and their humans) happy ever since!

06/22/2024

Bonus Caturday Funny because next Saturday is too far away to wait to share this😻😹😸

06/22/2024

This is always hilarious!

Happy Caturday!

06/22/2024

Gentle Giant - such a purrfect name- was a Vergi 24/7 patient earlier this year. He had a large wound on his left shoulder, most likely caused by an attack of some sort. His primary veterinarian knew to transfer Gentle Giant to us because he needed specialized wound care and continued critical care. Since it was the weekend, our hospital was the best choice since we are always open! We love our referring vets ❤️‍🩹

Our critical care team quickly got to work and prepared Gentle Giant for minor surgery. During this procedure, our team trimmed off portions of necrotic tissue and treated his wound with hydrotherapy (water can be an amazing healing agent.) The wound was left open, allowing it to heal by secondary intention (the wound is left to heal and naturally close rather than being stitched together.) With a protective bandage placed on Gentle Giant’s wound, he was soon able to go home. He returned to us the next day for another bandage change and was already beginning to heal!

Gentle Giant was able to have his future bandage changes at his primary veterinarian during the following week. Our goal is to have your regular veterinarian resume the care of your pet as soon as possible - that is a special relationship that we will always honor!

*NOTE: Post surgical wound pic in comments.

06/21/2024

for

This is Lilly! Mom brought her to Vergi 24/7 because her left ear was swollen and she was shaking her head constantly. She had a mild ear infection, which is why she was shaking her head so much. When doggos do this, the shaking can result in damage to their ear lobes, causing swelling under the earlobe skin. We call this a hematoma.

We checked in with mom a few days later and she gave us this :

Thanks for checking in! Lilly saw Dr. Smith today. He said her ears looked great! We are to finish up the pills and then we are good to go. She handled her “no flap wrap” that you sent her home with really well.

Thanks so much for all the wonderful care y’all give. You have a great team!

Take care,

Lilly’s Hoomans

06/20/2024

And some select cats.

06/19/2024

🍫

Hi, I’m Belle and I love chocolate (even though I am a black Lab!)

One day, I decided to eat 2½ bars of 85% dark chocolate (about 9 ounces.) I started acting a little bit different than I normally do, so Mom got worried and brought me straight to Vergi 24/7. Mom told the critical care team that I was very hyper, anxious, panting, not myself, and that I seemed a little aggressive with my food.

The VERGI team consulted with poison control, kept in contact with my mom and worked their magic to help me feel a lot better!

When my mom picked me up, VERGI told her that:

-Chocolate is toxic to dogs due to the theobromine and caffeine in it. The worst chocolate to be ingested by pets is baking chocolate, followed by semisweet and dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and finally chocolate flavored cakes/cookies. This is due to the level of theobromine/caffeine in each type of treat, listed in order of descending levels. The size of your dog relative to amount and type of chocolate consumed must also be considered, as does the amount of time from consumption to the ER visit. The sooner you get here, the better. The hope is to induce vomiting before any systemic effects begin.

*A good rule of the thumb is: the darker the chocolate, the more dangerous it is for us.

-Chocolate toxicity causes vomiting, diarrhea, restlessness, hyperactivity, tremors, a racing heartbeat or arrhythmia, seizures, and death in severe cases. The high fat content of chocolate can also lead to pancreatitis, which can be extremely serious and even sometimes fatal. This is aside from the effects of theobromine/caffeine.

Please be careful with chocolate around your dogs! Some of us can be very sneaky about finding it and eating it!

If your dog gets into chocolate, please call your vet or come to VERGI! We are always here for you and your chocolate eating dogs when you need us most! And don’t be embarrassed if this happens. We see it so often. It’s quite interesting to see how these dogs decide to get their chocolate fantasies met!

Protein pancake mix ✅
Brownie mix ✅
Cake✅
Chocolate bars✅
W**d brownies✅ (double whammy there!)
Easter basket✅
The list goes on. We don’t judge. We just help your dog feel better 💚