Vergi 24/7

08/07/2025

Look at that belly! What did this adorable face do?

Howdy- I’m Buck! And guess what? I'm a girl who has been in this world for a whole 4.5 months now, so I thought I was a big girl who could make her own decisions. Well, I actually CAN but turns out, maybe I don't make the best decisions...

I stole a Busy Bone from my dog sibling and Mom thought I ate part of it. She got really worried when she realized my tummy was distended (swollen). Since it was early evening and our regular veterinarian was closed, she took me to the emergency animal hospital to get checked out.

My care team took some x-rays of my belly and saw a lot of food in there. They said to tell you this is called food bloat – which just means I ate too much. See what I mean about maybe not making the best decisions? The doctor couldn’t tell if I actually ate the Busy Bone because of all the food. It's called "hiding the evidence" 🤫😉

I have human siblings, too, so Mom thought they may have fed me extra. Yes yes mmmmhmmmm that's what happened. I quite like that story!

I got to go home after getting subcutaneous fluids (all of that kibble soaks up fluid and could have dehydrated me, plus the fluids I got will help it move on out of here!) My care team also sent me home with some medicine for my tummy and intestines.

Mom has to keep an eye on me at home to make sure I pass the extra servings of food I ate, and in the meantime, she will make sure that I don't develop any concerning symptoms. The good news is we know VERGI never closes - if we need them, they will be there...always!

Bye!
Buck

Visit vergi247.com for hospital info and helpful pet articles!

08/06/2025

✨Tuesday Trials & Tribulations – Age is only a state of mind✨
My name is Annie and even though I am 12 (yes, that is officially senior status for canines - so rude), most of the time I really do feel like a teenager (the good kind!)

You know that saying, “age is only a state of mind?" It usually applies until your body tells you otherwise. A few days ago, I began feeling some pain in my right front leg. This caused me to limp. My mom did not see any improvement from the pain meds she had been giving me and wanted to get a better idea about what might be going on, especially when I did not want to put any weight at all on my leg to stand and eat breakfast. We have been going for walks and I jump in and out of the vehicle, as well as off the bed, so maybe I landed wrong on one of those “jumps” and hurt myself?

Best way to know for sure was to go head to VERGI 24/7 - they are very experienced with these things.

The doctor who examined me was very gentle. She could tell that I was painful and was so nice to me. Interpretation of the x-rays indicated I may be experiencing bone spurs along the thoracic vertebrae. We increased the pain meds to three times a day and added a prescription to help reduce inflammation because inflammation can exacerbate the pain. The doctor told Mom if I did not improve, we might want to seek out a CT or MRI since x-ray cannot diagnose soft tissue injury.

I am hoping the added meds and a little bit of rest will help me feel younger again!

Is VERGI 24/7 the fountain of youth? ✨

Before I sign off, I want to thank the critical care team for helping Mom and me have a better understanding of what might be causing the pain in my body. They are pretty awesome, even if they haven't mastered reverse aging yet 😏

Love, Annie 🐾

Visit vergi247.com for hospital info and helpful pet articles!

08/05/2025

These sweet girls! We can’t wait to see their official model pics 😍

We had a foster photoshoot over the weekend where all our current adoptables get together for photos with AnandaJoy Photography. The girls showed up and my oh my— they are beyond precious.

Mirabel walks with confidence now although she still doesn’t really like her head touched much. And Isabela is ready to play with everyone & everything!

Such special girls.

Just a little ‘behind the scenes’ pic of them. Stay tuned for their other photos!

08/05/2025

Buckle up, Buttercup! This is the story of me, Princess, and the fight for my life. Like really - there was a fight.

So yeah, I told you my name is Princess but I didn't tell you I am 12, and just a little chihuahua girl. My mama was talking me for a walk when this BIG dog who is our neighbor got loose and attacked me! I was painful and scared and Mama was traumatized but she knew just what to do. She carefully grabbed me up and rushed me to the veterinary ER (just like the human ER, but the patients here are way cuter - see?!)

The critical care team moved fast, first giving me strong pain meds to help me feel safe and comfortable. Initially, my medical team found injuries to my lower back, and the left side of my chest and neck, but then they discovered that the wound on my back actually extended into a deep pocket across to my left shoulder (more on that later.)

X-rays revealed no fractures, no organ pe*******on and no dislocation of my joints. Let me tell you...whew! I was also free of trauma to my head. My brain lives there, and my brain knows where the treats live so I am very glad that information was protected like the top secret security clearance important stuff that it is. Anyway, sometimes I get distracted. We aren't even to the surgery yet.

So I went to surgery. I was nice and asleep when my wounds were cleaned, debrided (removal of damaged tissue) and stitched. One thing about wounds like this - you can't see the extent of the tissue damage just by looking so the debrided area can extend much further than the actual visible part of the wound.

👉Here's why: Imagine the trauma to the tissue creating tunnels under the skin. You can't see them from the top but the doctor has to find where they end to know they have reached healthy tissue, hence my back wound going all the way to my shoulder.

VERGI placed a drain to remove excess fluid and blood from my body as it healed after surgery. Then the best part... I got to go home (with orders for taking meds and orders to rest) and…

Guess what? By the time you are reading this, I have made a few visits back to VERGI and they also took my drain out and said I am healing really well!

Love,
Princess 🐾🩷👑

PS: Even though my mom's quick thinking and getting me to the hospital as fast as she did was superhero status, it is important to note that even with proper wound treatment and surgical care, these types of wounds can still become infected. Signs of infection include redness, pain, discharge, swelling, and odors. If infection of the wounds occur, additional surgical treatments and testing of the wounds, such as culturing the bacteria and finding out what antibiotic it needs (called culture and sensitivity), should be performed.

Visit vergi247.com for hospital info and helpful pet articles!

08/03/2025

💯✨

🤪

08/03/2025

File this under weird life lessons, maybe? I’m really not quite sure.

08/03/2025

Well ok then. They aren’t wrong.

08/02/2025

Want to be a part of helping us get to 14k followers, and reach even more pet lovers? The more we reach, the more lives we might save through simple awareness. We would rather prevent an animal ER visit if at all possible, but you know we will always be here for you and your pets 24/7.

❤️24/7 isn’t just part of our name…
It’s also our promise to you❤️

To invite your friends to follow us⬇️

From our home page:

👉click the three dots
👉click invite friends
👉click “select all” or choose friends you want to invite

Thank you! We are so close!🐾

08/02/2025

I spy with my little eye… a one-eyed cat named Valerie here to tell you her story!

Hi, my name is Valerie—and before you ask, no, I didn’t visit the animal ER because of my eye. I actually came in for a completely different body part: my tail!

My mom brought me to VERGI because she noticed I was holding my tail funny. Normally, I carry it upright with pride, but this time it was drooping, and she knew something wasn’t right. The team at VERGI sedated me to take a closer look and discovered that my tail was swollen and had an abscess. They gave me a little haircut (thanks, I guess?) and cleaned the wound. I also got an antibiotic and an injection of pain meds (whew) before heading back home to heal. My tail should be back to its usual fabulous self in about a week or so.

An abscess is a pocket of pus that forms when bacteria enters a wound—usually from a bite, scratch, or bump—and causes an infection. It’s always important to watch for any changes in your pet’s behavior, as those subtle signs can signal something more serious.

I’m really glad my mom acted fast and brought me in. No one knows how I got the injury, but one thing’s for sure: I’m on the mend, and I’ve got my eye on a full recovery! ✨

Love and one-eyed wonder winks!
Valerie 🐾

07/31/2025

The most powerful medicine? Maybe it is simply love.

Sometimes, compassion looks like medicine.
Sometimes, it looks like monitoring vitals.
And sometimes… it looks just exactly like this.

You see, Puddles had been found lying in a puddle after a rainstorm, unable to move, undoubtedly painful and cold. Hit by a car and left on the side of the road, alone, to die, her last breaths taken in the muddy water.

Not all heroes wear capes, though. A Good Samaritan saw her. See something, say something, do something.

RED Collar Rescue was contacted and as always with the most severe of cases, they said, "Yes."

Puddles is about two years old and weighs in at just 18 pounds. She was rushed to us for emergency and life-saving critical care, likely feeling scared and unsure of her sudden new world while at the same time, relieved, for no matter what was to come next, it could not possibly have been anything worse than what she had already endured.

This is when hope starts to enter the picture. These animals may not have the word "hope" to use, but we know they feel it just the same. A glimmer of light, the feeling of warmth and the sound of kindness.

Hope is a language that needs no words.

Puddles needed surgery to save her life, but she was not stable enough to survive the surgery. We had work to do, and we had to do it thoughtfully and fast.

The reality was this: she was in shock (pale gums, rapid heart rate, weak pulse, cold body to the touch and low re**al temperature), she had severe open wounds on her body, her blood pressure and red blood cell count were dangerously low, her bladder and small intestine had been knocked outside of her abdomen, her p***c bone was split in two, her pelvis was fractured...and while this seems like a lot, she was facing even more in her healing journey.

We wanted her to know that every hand reaching for her only wanted to help, so we met her where she was—with patience, soft words, and the kind of love that cannot be measured with data.

In this snippet of time captured between Puddles and one of our critical care technicians, everything in our hospital seemed to almost pause around them. The usual noise and activity lessened for a moment and in those few ticks on the clock, it was simply gentle connection between a human and a dog who really needed a little kiss.

A quiet promise that she wasn’t alone.

This is what we mean when we say we treat our patients like family. Every life that comes through our doors matters, every bit of hope is woven into our care, and every bit of love is shared in our touch.

Puddles' recovery was literally minute by minute for some time, and we never left her side.

Thank you, RED Collar Rescue, for giving Puddle's hope. It has been incredible to watch her spirit begin to shine, and her strength growing. She has been through more in her young life than most of us can even imagine and watching her walk out on her own with that little tail wagging away...that's the stuff that our dreams are made of! She is a happy, trusting soul who fought so hard to heal - she's done the hard parts, and it was such an honor to provide the care she needed to prance right on out of here!

Want to donate to Puddles' extensive care (that is still ongoing?) You can call our hospital directly at 713.932.9589 and donate to Puddles.
Red Collar direct donation options include:
Website: https://redcollar.org/donate/
PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/redcollarrescue
Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/redcollarrescue
Check: 945 McKinney St, #424, Houston, TX 77002

Visit our website for more on our hospital, helpful pet articles, and more! www.vergi247.com

07/31/2025

Hi, I’m Eevee! 🐾

I had to visit VERGI 24/7 ER the other day. My mom thought I might have eaten a rubber stopper from a flowerpot… just because I was playing with another one. (Moms always jump to conclusions, right?) She even told them I’m “known to ingest anything and everything.” How embarrassing! 🙈

The ER team made me vomit to check if the stopper was in there—no planter stoppers, but a few sticks showed up. (What can I say? They’re tasty!) My care team also took x-rays and saw something still in my stomach that could have been the stopper… or more sticks.

I got to go home with medicine to help my tummy and guts feel good, but my mom was told to keep a close eye on me and to come back if I started vomiting or anything else changed.

👉Here’s the important part:
If your pet swallows something they shouldn’t, it’s always safest to have them checked out at the animal emergency hospital right away. Many objects (like rubber stoppers!) can cause dangerous blockages that require surgery. Acting quickly can make a huge difference!

That’s my story! Thanks for reading—I love to share stories with people.

See ya!
🐾 Eevee