I was at a bird rescue facility, and I thought they were leading into a mention of blood types. But, the conversation changed, so I posed the question. The guide didn’t know as they don’t perform transfusions. So, I got to wondering if birds and/or other animals (besides humans) have blood types? And if so, are they the same as ours? And, do they have all the same quirky rules?
I know that primates generally have our blood type structure.
Dogs, cats, horses, and other animals often have their own blood structures, though I think it generally follows the same rules (“attack anything that’s not the same as you”).
ETA: Not sure about birds, it may only be mammals or somesuch thing.
I did some searching, and it seems that blood transfers aren’t very practical in birds, so not much research has been done into bird blood types.
Most other animals seem to have blood types, with the exception of the ferret.
Yes, they do.
Cats have only 3 blood types: A, B, and AB (no type O).
Horses have 8 blood types: A, C, D, K, P, Q, T and U.
Cattle have 9: A, B, C, F, J, L, M, S, and Z.
Dogs have between 8 and 13 – Vets disagree on how to count them. (Somewhat like the Rh + or - factor in humans; it occurs, but is not counted as a separate blood type.)
Blood types are caused by antigens (usually proteins, sometimes other things) on the surface of the red blood cell. Unfamiliar proteins trigger an immune response, which is why you need matching ones to receive a blood transfusion. (Plasma transfusions work differently, because the plasma has the antibodies in it, and may attack your own blood cells.)
The primary human blood types A, B, and O (A and B being two separate proteins, one, both, or none of which may be on the surface of your red blood cells) are a genetic distinction which predates the speciation of humans and chimpanzees, six million years ago. You, with A blood type, have a gene which is more closely related to a chimpanzee’s gene than it is to my gene, which codes no proteins, making my blood type O. (It actually goes back further than chimpanzees; gorillas also have the ABO typing.)
In fact, you can (theoretically) trace ancestries for all of your genes, and you will discover that through those particular genetic lines you may be more closely related to any number of unexpected creatures than you are to me.