Author Archive | ajones
Friendship Express – Demodex Mange
We recently rescued Friendship Express from a local animal shelter, but he still needs a savior. This gentle pup is just 9 months old and is suffering from a horrendous case of demodex mange, a common form of mange caused by mites which live in the affected dog’s hair follicles. Friendship Express is so infected by […]
Your gift is MATCHED 100% for #GivingTuesday, up to $25,000!
What could be better than saving the life of a homeless and vulnerable dog, cat, puppy, or kitten? Saving the lives of two dogs, cats, puppies, or kittens, of course! YOU can be the lifesaver who rescues not one, but TWO animals at risk of being euthanized right here in Houston! Now through November 30th, Giving Tuesday, donations made […]
Just saved from being euthanized… now they need you!
Do you see these smiling faces? Yesterday they weren’t quite so happy. These six pups were going to be euthanized unless we saved them – they had no other options. Of course, we just couldn’t let that happen, so we got them out of there as fast as we could. Now, we’re sending an urgent plea […]
Gwen, Twix, Denali & Jimmy’s medical bills
We’ve had a handful of medical cases on our hands (warning, some medically graphic photos here). It’s all part of the job to get our babies ready for their forever homes, and we’ll do whatever they need, but it doesn’t make their journeys any easier. Unfortunately, it also doesn’t come for free. These four babies […]
TRIPLE your gift (200% match!) through National Mutt Day: 7/31/21
Would you like to be part of saving THREE TIMES the number of dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens from being euthanized? Well, now through National Mutt Day, Saturday, July 31, when you make a lifesaving gift to HPA!, a generous donor will MATCH your one-time gift 100%, up to $5,000! But there’s even better news! […]
Microscope needed to diagnose medical issues
“Hear ye, hear ye! Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears! HPA! needs a new microscope. Can you help so they can better diagnose medical issues like my giardia? Yuck!” HPA! uses microscopes to diagnose all intestinal parasites, including but not limited to hookworms, roundworms, coccidia, giardia, tapeworms, whipworms, and many others, for ear cytologys […]
Pickle – sarcoptic mange, intestinal parasites, and eye trauma
Pickle was found not long ago by a local animal shelter abandoned by her owners, alone and in a major pickle. She has sarcoptic mange, which is caused by parasitic mites that burrow just beneath the surface of the skin and feed on material on or below the skin. It’s all over her body, as you […]
Mama + 11 puppies were just dumped and need your help!
This sweet family was JUST dumped at our facility – the puppies were literally in a Huggies diaper box. Not only do they need a foster (if you can help, apply here), but we also need help covering their care! At an average of $252/pup, this family of 11 will run us $2750+ through their […]
Splinter – upper respiratory infection and conjunctivitis
This is #A570768. He’s only 3 weeks old and found himself sick and alone at a shelter. He has a horrible upper respiratory infection and conjunctivitis. And since he’s still so young and motherless, he needs to be syringe fed frequently until he’s able to eat on his own. Unfortunately, all of this created the […]
Mandy & 12 puppies need your help
Last week, we put a call out to our HPA! family for a lifesaving foster. It wasn’t a small ask: a mama dog and her 11 one-week-old puppies. But because our family is amazing, a lifesaving foster stepped up to save this entire family. And, it turned out one puppy was hidden amongst them, and […]
Will you sponsor a dog’s heart worm treatment?
Nearly every Saturday, we host a dog adoption event at our 2800 Antoine Drive facility. But this Saturday, things will be a little different. Instead of dozens and dozens of dogs finding their forever homes, over 100 HPA! alums will be receiving heart worm treatment, at NO cost to their adopters! At Houston Pets Alive!, […]
Princess Pooch – cyst and mass removal
Princess Pooch was found as a stray and surrendered to a loud, scary shelter where her bony body couldn’t stop trembling – see for yourself in the video. Luckily, one of our fosters was able to step up to save her, and now she snuggles up to stay safe. But Princess Pooch’s battle isn’t over […]
Save 2x the lives for Giving Tuesday
Are you ready to save TWICE the number of lives for Giving Tuesday?! Thanks to a generous donor, all gifts will be matched 100%, up to $25,000. That means your Giving Tuesday donation–and your lifesaving impact–is DOUBLED! Will you help turn a $25,000 goal into $50,000 to save cats, dogs, kittens, and puppies at risk […]
Ask a vet: looking ahead to the holidays, the scoop on poop & other things
In the spirit of the season, there is a good chance that your pet(s) and foster(s) (if you have one!) will have an opportunity to get in on some good treat action and socialization with new animals visiting from various places. This is a good time to refresh some important dos and don’ts over the holidays.
4 ways to know your dog is engaged in “good play”
Something we get asked a lot is what “good play” looks like – folks often aren’t sure if their dogs are playing, they are being too aggressive, or if all the noises they hear are friendly or not!
Billie Jean – FHO surgery
Billie Jean is definitely a lover, but this outwardly smiley girl is suffering inside from hip pain and a lack of mobility because she has bone degradation likely due to either an old injury or a lack of blood supply to her femur. Following X-rays and multiple veterinary opinions, it has been determined that her best option is a Femoral Head Ostectomy (FHO) operation to remove bone-on-bone contact and restore pain-free mobility to her hip.
Alina – tail tip necrosis
Adorable Alina has a pretty obvious case of tail tip necrosis, which means the cells at the tip of her tail are literally dying. You can see that it’s totally raw and void of fur.
Peach – infected eye abscess (warning: graphic content)
Six week-old Peach is just 0.8 pounds and had a severe eye infection from a giant abscess gone wrong, likely caused by feline herpesvirus. Her eye was bleeding and discharging and needed surgical attention. Our amazing in-house vet, Dr. Hanna, performed a double enucleation (removal of both eyes) to give Peach the best chance at […]
Kakashi – notoedric mange aka scabies
Poor Kakashi came to us with the WORST case of notoedric mange (aka feline scabies) our vet has ever seen, and he needs your help to heal! Scabies is a highly contagious parasitic skin disease appearing as scabby, scaly skin from infection by a feline mite, which you can see in the microscopic image. Itching […]
Make more families whole – $10k match!
UPDATE: Due to impending storms Marco and Laura, matching funds will help support any anticipated needs from the storm! Thank you for your support! * * * It has certainly been a challenging year so far. But it has also been an amazing one! During this pandemic, together, we have saved 1,769 animals and gave […]
Meatball – dermatitis & mange
We recently saved four dogs together from a single shelter, and three of them have a trio of skin issues – dermatitis, demodectic mange (from mites), and fleas. Of the three, poor Meatball is suffering the worst. Meatball has an especially severe case of dermatitis and will need extra time and resources to heal. He […]
Michelin’s cruciate tear
Michelin is a sweet, gentle lab mix that recently entered our program after being saved from a city shelter. When he arrived at our center, we noticed he tended to favor his back left leg, and that that leg had a slight tremor. Upon examination, our amazing in-house vet suspects it’s a cruciate tear (a torn […]
Giblets – cherry eye & sialocele
Poor little Giblets is having a really rough time, inside and out. As if being heart worm positive wasn’t enough to deal with, he has a pretty gnarly cherry eye and, most obviously, is suffering from a sialocele (salivary gland cyst). Cherry eyes are relatively common and are caused by inflammation and prolapse of the […]
Sea Biscuit – gastropexy
When a Houston-area shelter had to close temporarily due to COVID-19, we saved several animals that were at risk. One of those animals was Sea Biscuit, a senior Great Dane. It was unclear whether or not she had been spayed, and upon examination, she was not. But, knowing spay surgery was necessary, it gave our […]
It takes time to build a pet connection
By Meghan W., adopter If anyone who adopts their dog and doesn’t have the immediate ‘connection’ they think they should have – don’t worry! It will come! We started fostering Yolo, and when we got him he was so timid. He settled in well enough to sleep on our floor, but he wouldn’t come near […]
Fosters and donations needed ASAP to save 30 kittens
Can you open your heart and home to save a life?! We would love to be able to help ALL 30 kitties but we need foster commitments first! These should be very short term, though you must be committed to fostering through adoption!** If you can help us save these babies, please EMAIL intake@houstonpetsalive.org ASAP […]
Captain America – ulcers and a feeding tube
Captain America needs YOU to be HIS hero! He has severe oral ulcers and throat swelling of unknown cause that make it very painful and difficult to eat. Subsequently, he has been losing (too much) weight. Luckily, Captain America is responding to medications, but a temporary feeding tube implant was necessary to ensure he gets […]
Hobbes – broken leg
Can you help Hobbes heal? Hobbes (fka Garfield at the shelter) had what appears on X-ray to be a pretty old fracture of his rear leg. Even with the injury, he didn’t let it stop him from being a super cuddler. But his injury required amputation to allow him to live a normal life. […]
Keep families together with microchips
“I can’t find Mom. I don’t know where I am. I don’t recognize these people. I’m scared. I’m getting hungry. Is my family coming to find me?” When Charlie slips out of her leash or bolts out the front door, it happens in an instant. If it was your beloved furbaby, can you imagine the […]
Moby – degloved tail
Moby is an adorable 4 month old puppy who came to us from the shelter at Jacinto City with a seriously degloved tail, which means an extensive section of skin was completely torn off from the underlying tissue, severing its blood supply. Knowing an immediate amputation was necessary, we accepted her into our program and […]
Anubis needs your help to walk painlessly again
Anubis was originally brought to our friends and partner, Jacinto City Pound, by a good samaritan who found her on the side of the road. She was in pain and unable to walk, with injuries to both left legs as well as her head. She was covered in wounds and bruises and after veterinary evaluation was […]
Help heal Hooligan!
Update: Hooligan has been adopted and is finishing his recovery in his loving forever home. * * * Hooligan was picked up as a stray and had a few huge wounds that seemed a few days old. It is suspected that he got swiped by a car, but luckily none of his […]
Your $1 = $3 for COVID-19 crisis relief
You showed up for them during the last crisis. Now, these innocent animals need you again. Houston has the worst stray problem of all major cities in America. Please don’t let COVID-19 stop our mission to save the lives of these forgotten puppies, kittens, dogs, and cats. Every day, countless dogs and cats suffer through the […]
Your $1 = $3 for COVID-19 crisis relief
You showed up for them during the last crisis. Now, these innocent animals need you again. #GivingTuesdayNow is a global day of unity created as an emergency response to the unprecedented needs caused by COVID-19. And the need is great here at home. Houston has the worst stray problem of all major cities in America. Please don’t let […]
Pollock and O’Keeffe need your help to recover from the streets
* * * UPDATE 2: Pollock and O’Keeffe have been adopted and are now in loving, forever homes! * * * UPDATE 1: For all of you following Pollock and O’Keeffe’s medical journey, they are feeling much better and have doubled in weight at a hefty 5 pounds each! They […]
What’s important to you?
Donate for #GivingTuesdayNow in response to COVID-19
During this pandemic, YOU have given hope to so many puppies, kittens, dogs, and cats… 700+ lives saved! 700+ spay/neuter surgeries! 450+ loving homes found for our precious animals! But there’s still a LOT of work to do. #GivingTuesdayNow is a global day of unity created as an emergency response to the unprecedented needs caused […]
Tesla needs an echocardiogram for her heart
When little Tesla was anesthetized for her spay surgery, her heart unexpectedly could not handle the stress, unbeknownst to our medical team. The next day she presented in an emergent state with congestive heart failure, which was diagnosed by X-ray. She was provided high doses of a diuretic, which stabilized her. We learned that Tesla was born […]
Help protect them
Just because doors are closed, it doesn’t mean our beloved animals are protected from life-threatening heartworm disease. One simple mosquito bite can turn a pup’s life upside down. Routine details may seem menial with everything that’s going on right now, but monthly heartworm preventatives save the pets in our families from a treatment that requires […]
Milo’s broken leg needs your help!
Help! Milo’s broken leg needs you! Milo came into a shelter as a stray with an injured leg, and when we took him into our program we suspected a femoral head or pelvic injury with nerve involvement and muscle loss, much evidenced by his labored limping and also evaluated by our vet. The best […]
Volunteer Spotlight: Laura & Adrian Berg
Laura and Adrian Berg of Katy, TX have been volunteering for Houston Pets Alive! since August of 2018. They are HPA! volunteers extraordinaries, acting as lead dog fosters, hosting adoption events, assisting the medical team, and stepping up everywhere in between. How did you originally hear about HPA!? During Hurricane Harvey. We were part […]
COVID-19 Coronavirus Announcement
Given the situation regarding the coronavirus outbreak, we wanted to inform you that HPA! is working diligently to keep our pets, volunteers, and staff healthy and safe. We are taking preventative measures to ensure that we have enough supplies to take proper care of our animals. Fortunately for HPA!, many of our volunteers and staff […]
Kittens Need YOU to Survive! Your Gift Today will be MATCHED!
When you hear the cries of hungry, motherless kittens, do you turn away? Of course not! You are different. You’re a person who believes that all animals deserve to live… and you dedicate yourself to that mission. What if you could save 1,000 kittens and mother cats from euthanasia this kitten season? That’s 1,000 hungry […]
Magoo’s Broken Femur Requires Your Help for Amputation
Magoo was recently hit by a car, which completely shattered his femur, fragments spewing out in all directions. His leg is swollen and inflamed, and he’s in a lot of pain. The best course of action is amputation, which could run upwards of $1,200 if outsourced. Luckily, our awesome in-house vet can do the job, […]