Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Description and evaluation of a canine volunteer blood donor program.
- Journal:
- Journal of applied animal welfare science : JAAWS
- Year:
- 2006
- Authors:
- DeLuca, Lawrence A et al.
- Affiliation:
- Sun States Animal Blood Bank · United States
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
This study looked at a program where dogs volunteer to donate blood, which is a relatively new idea compared to human blood donation. Out of 98 dogs considered for the program, 14 were not allowed to donate, mainly because some tested positive for certain blood-borne diseases. Among the 84 dogs that did donate, many were able to give blood more than once, and there were no serious problems reported. Some minor issues occurred, like mild reactions and bruising, but these were similar to what happens with human blood donations. Overall, the study found that community-based blood donation programs for dogs can work well and keep safety and ethical treatment in mind.
Abstract
Human volunteer blood donor programs are commonplace, but the concept of nonhuman animal blood banking is relatively new. Few studies exist regarding efficacy, donor screening, and safety for volunteer companion animals. This retrospective study evaluated a nonprofit, community-based canine volunteer donor program using community blood drives. Of 98 potential donors, 14 were ineligible to donate, including 4 who tested seropositive for blood-borne pathogens. Of 84 donors, 45 were Dog Erythrocyte Antigen (DEA) 1.1 positive and 39 were DEA1.1 negative. Donations totaling 143 included 29 repeat donors (35%). No serious adverse events occurred. Minor adverse events included acute donor reaction (2.8%), hematoma (4.2%), rebleeding (2.1%), and skin irritation (0.7%). Adverse event rates were comparable to data for human blood donations. A substantial fraction of donors donated multiple times, suggesting that volunteer donors and their guardians perceived the donation process to be safe and effective. This article discusses the issue of donor consent and use of the term volunteer. This study indicates that nonprofit, community-based canine volunteer donor programs for animal blood banks can be successful while maintaining high safety standards and ethical treatment of volunteers.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16956317/