Blood Bank
You may not have thought about it, but our furry companions need life-saving blood donations too!
We are always on the look out for our clients to join our blood donation list of heroes. Unfortunately, sometimes our pets also need life-saving blood transfusions due to acute bleeds or anaemeas brought on by immune-mediated disease, trauma or surgery.
Our Ideal Candidate:
- Your pet needs to be up-to-date vaccinations and heartworm prevention.
- The ideal age is between 1 and 8 years old.
- The ideal weight is over 25kg for dogs, over 4.5kg for cats.
- Your pet needs to be desexed and, in the case of females, have not had a previous litter.
- Your pet must be healthy with no long-term diseases or be on any medications other parasite prevention.
- Your pet needs to have a good temperament and enjoy the process of coming to the hospital to give blood.
The Process:
- Your pet will have a thorough health check with one of our vets prior to donation to ensure they are healthy.
- We will take a small amount of blood to check their blood volume prior to blood donation.
- They will be given a light sedation so they are nice and relaxed as they will need to sit still for approximately five minutes which is not always achievable in our young bouncy pets!
- They will be given intravenous fluids for a few hours during and after the collection.
- We collect less then 10% of the blood volume, which is under the minimum amount required.
- Your pet will be with us for a few hours during the day and will go home later that afternoon after they have had a big bowl of food for being brave.
After:
- We advise to keep your pet warm and comfortable the night of the collection.
- Minimal excerise over the next 3-4 days.
- We will put your pet on our blood donor list and they can donate again after 3 months.
- For being a hero, your pet will receive a FREE bag of Premium Dog food.
