When the staff at VCA Animal Medical Center of Pasadena in Texas began getting tornado alerts on their phones the afternoon of January 24, they weren't very concerned. They were all too familiar with disasters like hurricanes, floods and freezing temperatures. But a tornado? Destructive ones are rare in the greater Houston area. The last major tornado in the area had occurred back in 1992.
"Then the rain started blowing sideways," recalls Dr. Gail Goble, the hospital's medical director. "The lights went out. We heard the wind pick up, and our ears popped. When that happened, I yelled for everybody to get into an exam room in the center of the building."
Everyone safely rode out the EF3 tornado—with winds as high as 140 miles per hour—as it passed over the hospital, causing some exterior damage to the building. As emergency sirens blared throughout the community, the staff called clients to let them know their pets at the hospital for grooming and other procedures were safe and could be picked up.
When one of those clients arrived, she informed hospital Associates that the tornado had destroyed part of the Pasadena Animal Shelter & Adoption Center, and help was desperately needed.
Immense Team Effort
Dr. Goble, VCA Regional Manager Leslie Wilkerson, and hospital Associates immediately sprang into action. The staff volunteered to stay and set up kennels while Dr. Goble and Leslie drove the two miles to the city shelter in Leslie's car since Dr. Goble's car had been smashed by a fence.
Along the way, there was a lot of destruction.
"The elementary school down the street from the shelter had portable buildings that looked like they had been pounded with giant hammers and flattened," Dr. Goble remembers. "The power lines along the street were laid almost completely sideways. Billboards were bent in half."
The tornado had ripped off part of the animal shelter's metal roof, impacting about 200 animals and causing over $1 million in damage, according to the City of Pasadena website. "The best way I can describe it is like if you rolled back the lid on a tin can," says Dr. Goble.
There were people everywhere when they arrived, according to Dr. Goble and Leslie. "It was mass chaos but in a good way, because everybody was there to help," Dr. Goble says.
Before Dr. Goble and Leslie even got to the shelter, they decided they would try to take some of the bigger dogs. "They were asking people to take the dogs to their homes for a few days, and the 80-pound dogs are not the ones people are going to take," Dr. Goble notes. The only problem was how they were going to transport all those dogs from the shelter to the hospital.
Fortunately, amidst that mass chaos, Leslie spotted Larissa Gavin, founder of Lola's Lucky Day, a local rescue organization that partners with VCA Animal Medical Center of Pasadena’s sister hospital, VCA Westside Animal Hospital in Pearland, Texas. Larissa was looking for a place where she could take some of the dogs in her rescue's transport van.
"It was really neat that these two amazing women took the initiative to come over and offer their help and temporary space for the dogs," Larissa says.
"We filled up the van with all the dogs we could fit and drove them to the hospital," Leslie recalls.
In the meantime, back at VCA Animal Medical Center of Pasadena, the staff used flashlights as they prepared kennels with food, water and blankets for the incoming dogs. When the transport van arrived, the staff took turns removing each dog from their kennel, walking them and then bringing them inside to their kennel. In the darkness, the dogs were fed and finally settled in for the night.
Amazingly, none of the dogs had major injuries. One dog had a minor cut on his foot that was treated with anti-inflammatories. The dogs were initially very stressed out, which Dr. Goble says was not surprising considering the ordeal they'd experienced.
"We had a little assembly line system the next day," Dr. Goble says. A staff member would bring a dog to her or Dr. Yolmari Denney, so they could give a physical exam and vaccinations. The dog would then be bathed.
"Everybody stayed and got all the dogs situated," Dr. Goble recalls. "Lola’s Lucky Day sent pizza for the staff. We had some time to sit, decompress and share stories of what we had all experienced.”
The hospital was without power for three days, so VCA Animal Emergency Hospital Southeast, a nearby hospital that had been outside the tornado’s path, invited the hospital staff to use its facilities during the day when it is usually closed.
A Tradition of Community Partnership
Although destructive tornadoes are rare in that area of Texas, VCA Animal Medical Center of Pasadena has previously dealt with other disasters, including hurricanes, flooding and freezing temperatures.
As a hurricane approached a couple of years ago, a pit bull needing an immediate C-section was brought to the hospital late in the afternoon.
“I asked the team if they would stay, and they said yes,” recalls Leslie, who was the hospital manager at the time. Dr. Goble performed the surgery, successfully delivering 12 healthy puppies. “Dr. Goble doesn't panic or freak out. She's very calm,” Leslie says. “She's a mother of three, so she's used to chaos.”
After Hurricane Harvey, a Category 4 hurricane that caused catastrophic flooding and over 100 deaths in Texas and Louisiana, VCA helped Lola’s Lucky Day with vetting dogs. “It was great to see VCA step up like that,” Larissa says. “I'm honestly not surprised, based on my interaction with them and our partnership, that they stepped up after the tornado.”
To help improve animal welfare in communities across the United States, VCA partners with over 150 animal shelters and rescue organizations, including Lola’s Lucky Day, providing medical, fundraising and marketing support. Although the City of Pasadena Animal Shelter is not part of that network, VCA still stepped in to help save pets.
VCA has partnered with Lola’s Lucky Day since the rescue organization was founded in 2015. “VCA is always willing to help us help more dogs,” Larissa says. “Sometimes when they get a case, they’ll contact us to see if we can help.”
Lola’s Lucky Day has helped save the lives of over 8,000 dogs. “Pasadena is such an oversaturated area with the homeless dog population,” Larissa says. “I'm originally from Wisconsin, so our goal is to fully vet the dogs here and once they're ready to go, we partner with rescue groups in Wisconsin that focus solely on getting them adopted. It’s been a successful model.”
Leslie says Larissa is amazing. “She really does care. We've always had a great relationship with Lola’s Lucky Day. VCA does what we're good at, and Lola’s Lucky Day does what they're good at. We can get pets healthy and comfortable, and we're happy to have these shelter partnerships so they can find them loving homes and get them out of a shelter or off the euthanasia list.”
From Near Tragedy to Forever Homes
Less than a month after the tornado, most of the dogs taken in by VCA Animal Medical Center of Pasadena had been transported to areas where they’re likely to be adopted.
“Hospital Manager Cortney Graef and Customer Service Representative Mary Spink really helped with making sure the dogs got everything they needed for transport,” Leslie says. “All the dogs needed health certificates, microchips, to be spayed or neutered and a few other things. Mary was also one of the customer service representatives who helped receive the dogs the night we brought them in. She also took lots of pictures trying to get them adopted.”
The three dogs remaining at the hospital are being treated for heartworm disease.
One of those dogs, a lucky pit bull named Hippo, has already been adopted—by a VCA Animal Medical Center of Pasadena Associate who fell in love with him.
“There aren’t words to explain how proud I am of our staff and how well they came together,” Dr. Goble says. “Not only in the moment, but in the moments afterward. And every time we've ever had a crisis, that's what they always do. You could not ask for a better group of people.”
VCA is proud to partner with over 150 qualified animal shelters nationwide. To provide peace of mind to all new pet adopters, every pet adopted from a VCA animal welfare partner is eligible for a free initial health exam and qualifies for a health guarantee that covers common minor illnesses. Find a VCA shelter partner near you on our website!
