Blood Bank Information
One
of our goals at the Metro Animal Emergency Clinic is to provide
the best possible care for our patients. One of the ways we are
attempting to improve our quality of service is to have ready
access to blood and blood products for patients that require transfusions.
Did you know that one unit of whole blood can actually help to
save the lives of a number of animals? So far we have relied on
the pets of our staff and a few generous clients to donate when
necessary but as the demand grows so does our need for blood donors.
That's where you can help.
We are currently building a list of suitable
donors so that we can begin to organize an actual blood bank for
both dogs and cats. There are certain criteria that must be filled
in order for an animal to qualify as a blood donor.
Canine blood donor:
- Must be up to date on annual vaccines.
- Should be heartworm tested and on preventative medicine.
- Have a good temperament (very important).
- Be between 2-6 years of age.
- Weigh more than 50 lbs.
Feline blood donor:
- Must be up to date on annual vaccines.
- Tested negative for Feline Leukemia virus and Feline immunodeficiency virus (this will be done at the time of the first donation).\
- Reside indoors only and not be fed raw or under-cooked meat.
- Be between 2-6 years of age.
- Weigh more than 10 lbs.
- Have a good temperament (again, very important).
Certain blood testing will be done prior to using the donation for transfusion. These tests will be done at no cost to you and your pet will benefit from the fact that they have been done and the information will be sent to your regular veterinarian.
As a donor your pet will receive a special tag identifying them as a canine or feline blood donor that they can show-off to all their friends.
