I remember reading about this a year or so ago, possibly on here, and reading that my dog - a Jack Russel-Parson Russel cross - is too small to be donor. Is that true?
I also have a cat, but he’s unusually small as well, and I guess if cat donations are needed then there are plenty of unwanted cats at shelters who could get a longer stay there by donating blood. Mind you, I guess the same could be said of dogs. Are Staffordshire Bull Terriers particularly bad blood donors? Otherwise, if using them as donors could help keep them off death row, that’d be good.
There are weight limits for blood donation for critters just like there are for humans–the smaller you are, the less blood you have and the larger percentage of your total supply a donation unit is. You don’t want to make your donor sick/weak/anemic, etc.
The guidelines I’ve seen for dogs suggest a minimum weight of 60#. My GSD was unable to donate because she’s so slightly built and such a finicky eater she’s consistently right at or just under the weight limit.
I’m not sure how much is an unit. It does not take long, although some dogs and cats have to be sedated for the procedure. My dog doesn’t, though. She’s calm/petrified throughout the process, and barely moves. But, I’ve been told that I should not feed her before her scheduled donations, just in case she needs sedation. Some of the other dogs in the program are less tolerant and require sedation before donating.
Small dogs do not donate. UGA and LSU both used 50 lbs as the minimum weight required for canine blood donors, and around 10 pounds for cat blood donors. Both dogs and cats in large blood banks are type tested. My dog is (canine) type A- (hah, same as my human type!). She’s very much wanted.
Cats are special because they DO (like humans) have pre-formed antibodies and a type B cat getting type A blood gets a severe reaction. Luckily for the cats in the US, most cats are type A (type B is more common in other countries). Usually, though, a large blood bank will search for the golden type B donor and keep that one around.
They use the jugular veins for blood donations, at least in dogs. I think in cats (since I haven’t seen that process) taking from the femoral veins is probably less stressful and more accesible. These are relatively huge important veins, so blood WILL flow. Regular restraining works for most cases I’ve seen.
I’m not sure about horses, but I would guess either not at all or it depends on the specific blood types. There are specific horse blood antigens (Q and A) that can cause reactions if given to mismatched donors. The main reason a horse would need a blood donation would be neonatal isoerythrolysis (somewhat similar to the human condition). The blood donor in that case is the mare, since the culprit of the disease (colostrum) doesn’t contain antibodies against her own RBCs.
I’m sure there may be some research done on artificial blood products, and sometimes specific solutions (colloids?) can be used as “stand-ins” depending on what the dog needs. But I guess it is just easier for many clinics to just have a big dog around for donation purposes in case an emergency (rat poisoning) comes around.
There is no specific type of dog or cat suitable for being a blood donor, as long as it is healthy and meets the weight requirements.
I’m not exactly sure what what weight my dog is, but she is quite thin for her breed, really. There’s always food out for her, it’s healthy food with good variety, and the vets are happy with her, but she basically runs around all the time so is a wirey little thing.
I forgot to mention my dog was a former blood donor, she’s a 55 pound pit mix and she was DEA Type A Negative which is the universal donor. There are a few types but the only one of concern is the DEA Type A. Type A positive means they have antigens and cannot donate to a Negative dog but they can receive Negative. It used to be that Negative is more common but now that has shifted to Positive being more common.
Cats have Type A, B and AB. AB is extremely rare and if I remember correctly they can receive either A or B. B is rare and mostly seen in certain purebreds however in my long career I have seen two cats that were just domestic breeds test as Type B, one was a longhair and could have had some purebred genes. Unfortunately, we don’t have B donors (because they are so hard to find) and could not treat them. I think we referred one elsewhere and the other opted for euthanasia. Even 1 ml of the wrong blood type would be enough to cause a fatal reaction.
One of my cats has also donated blood, he’s Type A and a big guy. We have a few clinic donors but one is essentially retired and just lives there (and is the boss of the place) and the other two rarely need to donate.
A unit of blood for a dog is typically about 300 to 450mL’s. For a cat it’s about 60 to 90mLs. Blood is only good for 28 to 30 days under refrigeration. Plasma can be separated out and frozen but the red cells do not last any longer. Our clinic started buying a unit of canine packed RBC’s to keep on hand and we keep frozen and fresh frozen plasma as well. The RBC’s don’t always get used but the benefit of having them available outweighs the loss.
As for cats, we don’t routinely draw blood to store because they have to be anesthetized and it’s just easier to wait until they are needed instead of putting them through that monthly. We rotate donors and they may only be used once or twice a year. Also some animal blood banks may have cat blood on hand so it can usually be obtained when needed. We draw from the jugular veins which is quicker and easier for drawing a large volume.
I had looked into starting our own blood bank at one point so I read up on a lot of this but as I was already managing and doing the job of 3 people I decided to just use the other blood banks that were available.
Oh, swell. As I was reading this, I could actually feel it anchoring itself into my rapidly-dwindling brain cells, to cling there forevermore, like a limpet on a rock, never to be dislodged, right alongside the Gilligan’s Island theme song. Yes, when I am old and feeble, can’t remember to wear my underpants on the inside or what my children’s names are, I will still be able to tell you about hampster ranchers, which will make my elder care professionals think I’ve lost it to an greater extent than I will have. Thanks very much for that.
This thread didn’t turn out to be so mundane and pointless after all. My ignorance has certainly been fought and on the subject of blood transfusions for pets my ignorance has not only been fought, it has been savagely beaten.
A small one, it seems.