Open 24/7 every day of the week
Specialty Teams
Mon-Fri: 8am–6pm
Sat-Sun: Closed
Open 24/7 every day of the week
Specialty Teams
Mon-Fri: 8am–6pm
Sat-Sun: Closed
Critical Care Team
Meet Our Critical Care Team
Advanced expertise when your pet needs the highest level of care.
When a pet is critically ill or injured, experience and specialized training matter. Our Critical Care team provides advanced care for patients with complex, life-threatening conditions, working alongside our emergency, ICU, diagnostic imaging, internal medicine, surgery, and other specialty teams.
What Is a Veterinary Criticalist?
A veterinary criticalist is a veterinarian with advanced training in emergency and critical care who specializes in treating pets with serious, complex, or life-threatening conditions. Following veterinary school, criticalists complete additional specialized training, including a residency focused on stabilizing, monitoring, and treating critically ill or injured animals.
At Sugar Land Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Care, our Critical Care team works closely with our Emergency, ICU, and specialty teams to provide advanced treatment, continuous monitoring, and coordinated care for pets who need the highest level of medical attention.
Dr. Rhue studied at the University of Houston and Texas A&M University before being accepted to vet school in 2006. After vet school, she completed a rotating and specialty internship at Garden State Veterinary Specialists and Ohio State University. Dr. Rhue completed her Critical Care Residency while also completing her Masters in Veterinary Science in 2017 at Auburn University. After passing her ACVECC Boards in 2017, she taught at the University of Queensland Veterinary School from 2018-2019.
Dr. Martinez earned his Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Sciences from Texas A&M University before completing his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree at the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, while concurrently working their hospitals ICU. He then completed a small animal rotating internship with a focus in emergency and critical care at the Arizona Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Center. Following his internship, Dr. Martinez returned to Texas A&M to complete a residency in Emergency and Critical Care, which he finished in 2026.
Advanced Care for Critical Patients
Our Critical Care team has access to advanced monitoring and treatment capabilities for patients requiring a higher level of care, including:
- High-flow oxygen support
- Mechanical ventilator support
- Blood gas monitoring
- ECG and blood pressure monitoring
- Blood transfusions
- Advanced clinical pathology
- Intensive monitoring and supportive care
When Every Moment Matters
Serious illness can be overwhelming. Our Critical Care team works alongside our Emergency, ICU, and specialty services to provide coordinated, advanced care when your pet needs it most.
Emergency services are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
