VERGI To The Rescue

Teddy, an adorable one-year-old Maltipoo, recently found himself at VERGI after developing vomiting and uncontrolled diarrhea, unable to keep even water down.

After a little investigating, his family realized Teddy may have helped himself to some food from a child’s lunchbox, possibly including carrots, mushrooms and grapes.

Bloodwork showed an elevation in Teddy’s ALT, an enzyme that can increase when liver cells are irritated or injured. Teddy was given medications to help settle his stomach and support his liver, along with a plan to keep a close eye on the ALT value.

Teddy came back to our hospital for rechecks while he recovered. His diarrhea improved, his appetite returned, and after finishing his medications…

His ALT was back to normal!

Even better, Teddy was back to feeling 100% like Teddy.

No more stealing lunches, Teddy!

🏥 VERGI 24/7 MEDICAL MINUTE 🏥

🍇 Grapes and raisins can cause sudden kidney injury in dogs. There is no reliable way to predict which dogs will be affected or how severely, so any suspected ingestion warrants a visit to your veterinarian or animal ER.

🍄 Not all mushrooms pose the same risk. Ordinary grocery-store mushrooms are generally considered safe for pets, while some wild mushrooms can cause serious poisoning, including potentially fatal liver injury. If you don’t know what kind your pet ate, don’t guess. Contact your veterinarian or Animal Poison Control.

🐾 Vomiting and diarrhea can have many causes, from a simple dietary indiscretion to toxins, foreign bodies and serious illness. If your pet is vomiting repeatedly, can’t keep water down, has uncontrolled diarrhea, seems weak or lethargic, or you know they may have eaten something dangerous, seek care immediately.

Bruno lives by the motto that you should never pass up an opportunity, especially when that opportunity stares you square in the face.

His dad, well…it seems he needs to live by the motto that you should always know where the animal emergency hospital is located!

Bruno, a 1½-year-old doodle, found that seemingly golden opportunity in a mango pit. His dad had been minding his own business, enjoying his fresh mango, when the pit slipped out of his hand.

Bruno heard the sound of a food item hitting the floor and came flying in, screeching to a stop as he spotted that glorious mango pit, and before his dad could stop him…

❗️GULP❗️

The entire mango pit was gone.

This was not a medical event to wait and watch - it was actually a potentially life-threatening emergency - so Bruno was rushed to our animal ER, arriving only about 25 minutes after swallowing the mango pit.

Because so little time had passed, the VERGI 24/7 Critical Care Team was able to induce vomiting.

And VOILÀ! 🥭

One whole mango pit made its return appearance.

Bruno received medication for nausea and was able to head back home, with strict instructions to wait until morning to resume his normal diet.

And judging by that face, Bruno appears to have absolutely no regrets about any of this!

🏥 VERGI 24/7 MEDICAL MINUTE: MANGO PITS & FOREIGN BODIES 🏥

🥭 A mango pit can become lodged in the airway, causing choking and potentially suffocation. If swallowed, it can also become lodged in the stomach or intestines, causing a potentially life-threatening obstruction that may require endoscopy or emergency surgery.

🥭 Mango pits also contain small amounts of cyanide-producing compounds. The toxicity risk is greater when the pit is chewed or crushed rather than swallowed intact.

🥭 Timing matters. If you see your pet swallow a mango pit - or any object that could become lodged - don't wait for symptoms to appear. Contact your veterinarian or animal ER right away. Signs of a gastrointestinal obstruction can include vomiting or dry heaving, lethargy or weakness, loss of appetite, abdominal pain or swelling, diarrhea, constipation or difficulty passing stool. Symptoms can vary, so if your pet has swallowed a foreign object and anything seems off, contact a veterinarian right away.

📌 And remember: don’t try to induce vomiting at home. VERGI is open 24 hours a day and always here for you and your pets!

This would definitely do the trick!

Happy Sunday!

Every. Single. Time!

Happy Caturday😻

I'm a little girl who recently got into a little fight with a MUCH larger dog.

As you might imagine, I wasn't feeling so great afterward. I was very painful around my neck and upper body. I had a small puncture wound on my head and an abrasion on my right leg.

Mom rushed me straight to the animal ER.

Because even small bite wounds can hide more serious injuries underneath (and did I mention that was a BIG dog I tussled with?!), my doctor recommended X-rays to make sure I was okay. Thankfully, there was no evidence of serious internal injury.

My wounds were cleaned, and I didn't even need any stitches! Since bite wounds can get infected, I went home with medications for pain and inflammation, along with an antibiotic. Mom will be watching my wounds closely for redness, swelling, increased pain, discharge or a bad odor.

I'll see my regular veterinarian in a few days to make sure everything is healing like it should, and make sure my pain is under control.

I may be small, but I am mighty!

Love,
Canela 🐾
(One-year-old Yorkie)

🏥 VERGI 24/7 MEDICAL MINUTE: BITE WOUNDS 🏥

🐾 Bite wounds can look minor on the surface while hiding more serious injuries underneath. Puncture wounds can also carry bacteria deep into the tissue.

🐾 Watch for increasing pain, swelling, redness, discharge or a bad odor, which may indicate infection.

🐾 If your pet is bitten by another animal, have them evaluated by a veterinarian immediately, even if the wounds don't look serious.

My dad recently adopted me, and he's already saved me from a life-threatening infection!

A couple of nights ago, I wasn't feeling like myself. I didn't want to do much besides rest. I wasn't interested in food, and Dad noticed I suddenly had a clear vaginal discharge.

He was really worried so he brought me to the animal emergency hospital. The VERGI 24/7 Critical Care Team immediately became concerned that I had pyometra, a serious infection of the uterus that can become life-threatening without treatment.

The doctor said I needed an ovariohysterectomy...what most people simply call a spay...to remove my uterus and ovaries.

I was given IV fluids and medications, had my bloodwork checked, and was prepped for surgery. Once the surgery was over, I stayed at VERGI for 24 hours so the team could monitor my recovery and provide supportive care. Thankfully, everything kept moving in the right direction, and soon I was ready to go home!

I'm feeling much better now and happy to say that food is my friend again! I wouldn't exactly call this funny cone around my neck a friend, but I guess I'll tolerate it for now. Dad at least takes it off while I eat so I can enjoy my meals. Am I a lucky girl or what?!

Love,

Cookie 🐾

🏥 VERGI 24/7 MEDICAL MINUTE: PYOMETRA 🏥

🐾 Pyometra is a serious infection of the uterus that occurs in unspayed female dogs and cats. Without prompt treatment, it can become life-threatening.

🐾 Pyometra can be open or closed. With an open pyometra, the cervix is open, allowing infected material to drain, so vaginal discharge may be visible. With a closed pyometra, the cervix is closed, trapping the infection and infected material inside the uterus.

Pets can become critically ill with either type. Closed pyometra is often more severe because the infection cannot drain, increasing the risk of serious complications including sepsis, shock and uterine rupture.

An open pyometra can become closed if the cervix closes—and even if it remains open, pyometra is still a medical emergency requiring prompt veterinary treatment.

🐾 Signs can include lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting, increased thirst or urination, abdominal enlargement and vaginal discharge.

🐾 Pyometra requires prompt veterinary treatment and is most commonly treated by surgically removing the infected uterus and ovaries.

If you suspect your pet may have pyometra, don't wait. Contact your veterinarian or head straight to the animal ER. And remember, we are always here for you and your pets...we never close!

When my family noticed blood around my mouth, they remembered having seen some on my paws a few days before and realized the two might be connected. The question remained, though...why was my mouth bleeding? With a lot of questions swirling around in their heads, and knowing I have a few health issues (I am 16-years-old, after all!), we rushed to the animal ER.

As soon as we arrived, the VERGI team took a good look at me and noticed I was bleeding from an infected area of my gums. (If you ask me, that was about the best news we could have hoped for!) The doctor said it would be best to remove the problem teeth; however, I also have a heart condition that could make anesthesia a little more risky.

You probably don't know my family, but I surely do, and it was no surprise that 1) I have a dental veterinarian and 2) we already had an appointment!

We did bloodwork while I was there so my regular and dental veterinarians would have updated results to work with. Then, they sent me home with an antibiotic for the infection.

Don't forget to see the dentist! (I'm lookin' at you, too, humans!)

Love,

Ramsey 🐾

🏥 VERGI 24/7 MEDICAL MINUTE: DENTAL HEALTH 🏥

🦷 Dental disease can cause pain, infection and bleeding in both dogs and cats. Regular dental exams can help catch problems before they become more serious.

🦷 Left untreated, periodontal disease can lead to tooth loss, abscesses and damage to the tissues and bone surrounding the teeth. Bacteria from severe dental disease can also enter the bloodstream and may affect other organs, including the heart, kidneys and liver.

🦷 Bad breath, difficulty eating, drooling, pawing at the mouth or oral bleeding are all reasons to have your pet checked by a veterinarian.

How many grapes would a Chase dog eat if a Chase dog could eat grapes?

The answer, it appears, is somewhere in the neighborhood of 40!

Yep - that's about how many green grapes I devoured when I had the tiniest window of a chance. As soon as the humans realized the error of their ways (upon finding the now empty grape bag), they rushed me to the animal emergency room.

My grape palooza was not to be long-lived in my belly. It was time to vomit.

Out came 40-ish grapes, but since I didn't count as they went in (WHO HAS TIME FOR THAT WHEN STEALING FOOD?!), we had no idea if they were all out. And that, along with the very real danger of grape ingestion itself, meant I had to stay at the hospital for a couple of days. During that time, the team gave me supportive care and monitored my blood for any elevations in my kidney values. If anything started to change, they would know right away and could adjust my treatment as needed.

Grapes can cause kidney failure in dogs.

Even ONE grape can be that serious, folks.

My kidney values were normal when I arrived, but it hadn't been very long since I had eaten the grapes, and sometimes with grape toxicity, renal (kidney) values may not rise for up to 48 hours. Luckily, mine stayed normal! VERGI made sure I was eating and drinking well, too, and they even checked my p**p for more grapes that might have passed through my body that way! 🧐

Hey man, whatever makes them happy...that's what I always like to say! Now read below for some pretty important information about grapes. And remember, raisins used to be grapes, too!

Love, Chase 🐾

(You can check comments for a pic of the fairly impressive pile of grapes, but it's vomit so don't look if you are queasy that way!)

🏥 VERGI 24/7 MEDICAL MINUTE: GRAPE & RAISIN TOXICITY 🏥

🍇 Grapes, raisins, sultanas and Zante currants can cause sudden, life-threatening acute kidney injury or complete kidney failure in dogs. Tamarind has also been associated with the same type of toxicity.

🍇 Tartaric acid is currently believed to be responsible, but the amount can vary between fruits…and dogs don't all respond the same way. Not every dog that eats a grape will develop kidney injury, but there's no way to know which dog will be affected or how severely.

🍇 That's why it's never worth taking the risk. Even if your dog eats only one grape or raisin, contact your veterinarian or animal ER right away rather than waiting to see if symptoms develop.

📌 And remember!! VERGI 24/7 never closes. If your pet needs emergency or critical care, we're here 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

It was my first real case as a new vet. I’d begged for the opportunity. And suddenly she was mine. She was a young Dalmatian named Frederica. Freddie for short. She was very anemic. Owned by a widow, Camille, and her twenty something old son Jacques. They lived off the Main Line in Philadelphia. Freddie was transferred to ICU from the ER at the University of Pennsylvania where I was on my first rotation since graduating from Texas A&M vet school. I’d only been a doctor for a minute. Ultimately she was diagnosed with Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia. IMHA for short. I had only studied about it in school but I cut my teeth on this case. She developed pulmonary thromboembolisms, not once, but twice. Dr. Lesley King, the director of the ICU and my hero, told me to put her in oxygen and let the macrophages do their job. They are part of the white blood cell line that cleans up after cellular debris. Like a wrecker driver who sweeps up broken glass, torn bumpers, and the remnants of a car after a horrific traffic crash. But they can’t repair a life, torn apart by trauma and inattention to the road, speed, drugs, alcohol, medical emergencies, wrong way drivers or mechanical failures. As a young cop before vet school, I’d watched plenty of times as wrecker drivers did their thing. As we all did. But the macrophages. The life saving macrophages. They are integral to saving lives.
So I did what I was told. I put her in oxygen and I ordered a packed red blood cell transfusion. Then I ordered nine more transfusions. I ordered a life saving red blood cell transfusion ten.different.times. Like the macrophages who clear up a crowded roadway, red blood cells are pretty awesome too. They carry oxygen to the tissues. You see, when you’re anemic, oxygen is not being delivered to the tissues and you kind of need that. If you want to live.
I also ordered immunosuppressive drugs. Ultimately, IMHA is a disorder with the immune system. For some reason, the body starts thinking that the red blood cells are a foreign invader and the immune system sets out to destroy them. What is scary is that when you give a red blood cell transfusion, you are now introducing foreign red cells. It becomes a balancing act of giving life saving blood and trying to keep the body from destroying those very cells that can save a life.
IMHA can be either primary, like in certain breeds like Cocker Spaniels and also secondary, which is way more common. It’s often secondary to vaccinations in the previous 6 weeks or to a chronic infection, like a urinary tract infection or a skin infection, or even cancer. You often spend thousands of dollars to never discover the cause and spend thousands on blood transfusions, then send them home on 100$ worth of meds. And sometimes they get better. But you have to test them so you can treat the underlying cause. It’s just good medicine.
Freddie spent two weeks in the ICU at Penn. Half of my entire ICU rotation. (I’d had a few more ICU rotations during my internship and residency and it was my favorite and most intense rotation). Freddie survived. And her mom and Jacques? They became my life long friends.
I credit Freddie for me wanting to become a veterinary specialist in internal medicine. Since then, I’ve treated hundreds of cases, none as special as my first. RIP Frederica. You lived another five years. Circa 1999.

It really IS pretty perfect ✨

Happy Sunday!