World Blood Donor Day – Celebrating Animal Blood Donations at the Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨
World Blood Donor Day on 14th June 2016 is a time to raise awareness of the importance of donating blood and helping to save lives – and it’s not just humans whose lives can be changed by blood donations. Unbeknown to many people, thousands of animals’ lives are saved too, and there is an increasing need for dog and cat donors.
On this global awareness day, the Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨ (Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨), which currently has the busiest animal hospital blood donor programme of its kind in Europe, will be thanking the hundreds of animals who have donated blood and saved the lives of their fellow animals, as well as encouraging more donors to come forward.
In order to celebrate World Blood Donor Day and highlight the bravery of its fantastic blood donors, the Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨ has created a ‘Blood Donor of the Year’ award. This year’s winner is Raisin the Labrador who donated blood to 8 dogs through the Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨’s Blood Donor Programme during his two years on the programme.
Raisin is a true hero. Not only is he a blood donor, he is also a hearing dog for his owner Ann Fort. He joined the Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨’s programme because Ann has been very unwell over recent years and has received many blood transfusions herself. Ann wanted to give back, and while she couldn’t donate, Raisin could. So not only has he been a day-to-day lifeline for her, he has also helped dogs too. Raisin retired from donating blood at Christmas but will be returning to the Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨ on 14th June to receive his award.
Ann commented, “I first read about the Blood Donor Programme in the Royal Vet College Magazine Hooves and Paws. My husband and I thought this was a wonderful service and one perhaps we could offer help.
She continued, “After consulting Hearing Dogs for Deaf People I contacted the College and was invited to attend a preliminary interview and test for Raisin. After having blood taken and the results back Raisin and I were invited to his first "donation day".
“When Charlotte, his nurse, said he would have to lie still for at least 5 or 10 minutes I thought it would be unlikely. Raisin is such an active lively boy who at that time was 2 years old. Much to my amazement he did exactly as he was asked. Jumped on the couch, lay down, and patiently waited whilst blood was taken. Afterwards he received lots of cuddles and treats and a big bowl of food.
“At subsequent visits Raisin became very excited as soon as I drew up in the car park. Could not wait to get in and to greet "his nurses".
“Everyone at the Hospital was so welcoming it was a pleasure to attend. Raisin loved the attention and is a sucker for "ladies in uniform". He seemed to remember exactly where he had to go and what to do without any prompting or cajoling. I could not believe how well he behaved.
This is truly a marvellous service and every pet owner who has a pet of the right age and fitness should consider joining. We never know when we might need the service for our beloved pets.”
The Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨ created its Blood Donor programme at its small animal referral hospital – the Queen Mother Hospital for Animals (QMHA) in 2005 to try to address the demand for dog and cat blood. This demand increases year on year, particularly given the complexity of the treatments offered at the QMHA - from open-heart surgery to emergency and critical care, and from spinal surgery to cancer treatment.
The Å·²©ÓÎÏ·µÇ¼ƽ̨’s blood donors are the pets of people in the local community and they are put through a rigorous screening process to ensure they are comfortable with the process of donating blood and are healthy enough to do so. Ther