JOIN USNo central blood bank for pets
Blood donors for dogs are increasing but it often falls short. Due to the pandemic, those who relied on public transport to bring the pets for blood donation are hesitant to make the trip. Since the city does not have a centralised blood bank, some pet parents have to take to social media platforms to find a donor.
Sneha Patali, animal rescuer, was fostering an injured dog a few weeks ago and realised that he required blood.
Sharing the story, she says, “People wanted to come forward, but since they didn’t have their own vehicle, they were hesitant to help. We had to look for pet owners who live near the hospital.”
Bengaluru has a great community of dogs and many pet parents are willing to help each other out, but sometimes the logistics of it doesn’t work out, she
adds.
Building a database
Animal rescuer Divya Raghuvamsini has been actively creating a database of blood donors.
“There are about 18 to 20 active donors in Bengaluru now. However, when there are multiple requirements at a time, this is not enough.” She feels the database could grow now as pet adoption increased during the pandemic.
Medium to large-sized dogs of at least 25 kgs weight with a clean bill of health are preferred donors.
They have to be between one and six to seven years of age.
“Dogs need to wait six months before donating again. The blood can be stored for up to a week; but if we had a good centralised blood bank, it can be stored for a month,” says Divya.
Petition for better facility
Priya Chetty-Rajagopal, trustee, CJ Memorial Trust and founder, Cubbon Park Canines, along with her team of animal lovers, had petitioned for Queens Vet Hospital to be equipped with ready-to-use equipment and staff.
According to the petition, the super-speciality vet facility had promised a range of medicines, confirmed allotment of 35 vet surgeons and specialists. A blood bank was also promised.
Priya says, “Somehow the government hasn’t understood the seriousness of the lack of facilities. Right now everyone who requires blood reaches out to friends and Facebook groups. and almost always someone comes forward. But we need a better system in place to avoid the last-minute panic.”
At animal shelter CUPA, healthy dogs help each other out. Sandhya Madappa from the organisation says, “Our shelter in Bommanahalli does not have any problem finding donors as we have our own dogs to help out, but the ones who come to our private clinic in RT Nagar have to find their own donors. We want to help, but the distance and logistics aren’t always feasible.”
But whenever pet parents do struggle to find a donor, dogs from the animal shelter come to the rescue.
General misconception
When a dog donates blood, the breed and blood type don’t matter. But if the same dog requires another transfusion, the blood has to be of the same group
Divya says, “There’s where social media comes into play because it’s not always easy to find the same group.”
She points out that some pet parents are skeptical to bring their dogs for donation.
“I’ve seen several cases where parents think it’s pointless to give blood and the dog does not make it out alive. They feel it’s a waste of blood without realising that it’s good to clean out the system once in a while,” she says.
FAQs about pet blood donation
Can all dogs donate blood?
Yes. As long as they are medium to large-size dogs, healthy and weigh 25 kgs. The best age donate is 1 year to 7 years.
Will donating blood affect my dog?
No, it will not make your pet weak. They also don’t need a special after-care diet. Some of them will bounce back in a few hours, some may take a whole day to recuperate.
Where to sign up?
You can register with the directory of Canine Blood Donors, at pet clinics or keep an eye out for posts on social media.
‘Tick fever on rise
Tick fever in dogs is quite common and severe cases will require the pet to have a blood transfusion. Veterinarian Dr Lohith says, “Almost 70 cases we get are dogs with tick fever. We have been doing alright with the blood transfusion, but when there are too many cases, we tend to run out of the stock. That’s when the parents have to find their own sources.”