Wendy Barnett talks about setting up the UK’S first dog blood bank
IT makes perfect sense – if people often need blood during operations, then surely animals must, too? But up until recently, that wasn’t even possible, as Pet Blood Bank UK founder Wendy Barnett tells us.
“There was a change of legislation in October 2005 which allowed blood to be collected and stored. Prior to this, vets weren’t allowed to do that, so if they had a pet in need they would have to ask if the owner had another dog, or if someone they knew had a dog that could be a donor. Or veterinary staff, who tend to have animals, would be asked.
“In emergencies, there wouldn’t be time for a lot of screening of the blood, whereas now, with the change in the law, we can screen our donors to make sure they are fit and healthy – and make the donor experience enjoyable, so that they can come back time after time to donate.”
Dogs can donate up to four times a year at the moment, and the blood can be stored. Vets can then just ring and request what they need – different parts of the blood are required for different operations. This means that just one donation usually helps at least two dogs.
“Up to four dogs could be helped with one donation, so it’s a pretty amazing thing for a dog to do.”
Wendy explains how the operation now works across the country.
“Our main team is based here in the Midlands, but we do have a team up in Scotland and a team in the north of England and one in the south. We collect blood across five sessions a week in different parts of the country, so owners can look at the website or give the office a call to see where there might be a session near them.
“If we find owners with a lot of dogs or friends with dogs who want to be donors and we’re not in the area, we would go there if there was enough interest.”
Dogs have to be of a reasonable size to donate, Wendy says.
“Size is the most important thing – all of our dogs have to be over twenty-five kilos.”
This is around the size of a Labrador.
“That is a safety margin because we collect four hundred and fifty millilitres of blood – just under a pint.
“They have to be between one and eight years of age when they come on to the programme, and they can donate up until their ninth birthday.
“Giant breeds like Great Danes age a bit quicker so they might retire from donating at around six.”
Wendy explains that, like humans, donor dogs must be in good condition with no medical problems and not have travelled outside the country.
One of the first questions we had was whether all dogs have the same blood type, and it’s obviously a question Wendy’s answered many times before.
“They actually have up to 8 different blood types and in the UK we test for DEA 1 Negative and Positive. With only 30% of our donors being this type, keeping up with demand can be a challenge. We’ve found trends in breed and we are particularly looking for the following breeds that are more likely to be Negative to come forward: American Bulldogs, Boxers, Dobermanns, Dogue de Bordeaux, English Bull Terriers, Flat-coated Retrievers, German Shepherds, Greyhounds, Lurchers, Old English
Wendy Barnett talks about setting up the UK’S first blood bank for dogs.
Sheepdogs, English Pointers and Weimaraners.”
The procedure is very similar to human donation, just with an added tummy rub and extra treats! The dogs take it in their stride.
“The dogs have an appointment and their owner is with them throughout. They firstly go into the pre-screen area and are weighed to make sure they are at or over the twenty-five kilo mark, then they are seen by a vet and an animal care assistant who will perform a full physical examination, which is a great thing for the owner, to know their dog is fit and healthy.
“We then take a small blood sample to check if the dog is anaemic or dehydrated and some assessments to check the dog is happy in the environment and not showing any signs of stress. In the donation room they lie on a bed with a nice thick mattress and one of our qualified nurses will take the blood unit, assisted by some of our animal care assistants.
“The dog is stroked and their owner is there so they can let us know if they think their dog isn’t enjoying the process.
“We put a little bandage on their neck so they can’t touch the hole from the needle, then they move to the refreshments area where they can pick a toy and get their food and drink, then they get their bandana and a photo is taken for the Facebook page!”
Some of us can get a little woozy after donation, and the advice for people is to take it easy for 24 hours. But what about dogs?
“We would recommend they don’t do anything strenuous, but they can resume their daily routine. Most dogs are more lively after their donation because they are so excited getting their toy and all the fuss and attention!”
Wendy explains that the percentage of blood removed from the body works out slightly higher for doggy donors – depending on the dog, of course.
“It’s about twenty per cent of your blood volume if you are a twenty-five kilo dog. Having said that, we don’t get dogs fainting.”
What difference does Wendy think having a dedicated organisation makes?
“Huge. We supplied over twenty-seven thousand units of blood since we started.
“While some dogs may have received two to four units, others such as a little Yorkshire terrier may have only had half a unit.
“We get thank-you cards and messages all the time from owners saying how amazing the service is, because dogs are members of the family and you want the same care and attention for them.
“We have certainly saved a lot of dogs’ lives and had a positive effect for families who have managed to keep their companion.”
Wendy’s hopes for the future include extending the service to cats and increasing the donor list.
“It’s our tenth anniversary this year. I think we are aiming to have ten thousand donors by the end of this year.
“It would be a great milestone for us.” n