Has your pet had an illness that required a transfusion? Have you ever wondered where the blood comes from? Have you wondered what's involved in the cost?
Canine blood products are commercially available from organizations that maintain colonies of donor dogs that have been carefully screened for diseases that can transmitted through blood products:
- Canine brucellosis
- Borrelia burgdoferi (Lyme Disease)
- Dirofilaria immitus (heartworm disease)
- Ehrlichia canis
- Rocky Mountain spotted fever
- Coccidioides immitus
- Babesia canis
- Babesia gibsoni
- Plasma levels of von Willebrand factor
Cat blood is not readily available commercially, so any cat blood given at our facility has been collected in our "in-house" blood bank. Members of our staff have volunteered their own pets for donation, and after a through health screening, they are placed on a "donation rotation".
To meet donation requirements, cats:
- Must be fairly friendly and like to be around people
- Must weigh over 10 pounds (without being overweight)
- Must be current on vaccinations
- Must be healthy and not receiving any medications other than heartworm, flea, and tick preventive
- Must be indoor-only, and all companion housemate cats must be indoor and negative for feline leukemia or kitty FIV
- Cannot be exposed to any other cats (no fostering or pet-sitting of other cats)
- Cannot have a heart murmur
- Must be between 2 years and 6 years old when entering the program
- Must have never received a blood transfusion nor been pregnant
If they meet these standards, then further tests are run:
- Chemistry panel
- Complete blood count
- Feline leukemia virus
- Feline immunosuppressive virus
- Hemobartonella
- Toxoplasma
- Blood type
- Thyroid panel
When it has been determined that your pet requires a transfusion, it must them be typed and cross matched. The donor blood is delivered to your pet through an IV pump that has been approved for blood products, through a line that includes a filter, and then through a catheter that has been placed in the pet. A carefully calculated volume of blood is delivered at a carefully calculated rate, and during the process and for hours later, the patient is observed closely for any type of transfusion reaction.
As you can see, blood transfusions are an involved but often life saving tool in our arsenal. Triangle Veterinary Emergency Clinic would like to acknowledge and thank the staff members who have volunteered their pets to undergo this process for the good of our patients!
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