Donating dog blood experiences

I wanted to donate blood, but as I am anemic and currently on tons of medicine, I of course can't. So I decided it would be a good experience for Nigredo to do it. We volunteer for other things, so why not?

Yesterday, Nigredo went for his exam and blood tests to see if he's eligible to donate blood. He easily passed his physical and temperament tests, and his vet records etc. are all up to par. The vet told me that they look for the negative blood type, as it's far less common than positive.

He stood still like the champion he always is while they got 2 1/2 vials of blood from a front leg. If the tests come back clear, no heartworm, no diabetes or other endocrine disorders, and no other blood disorders, he will be eligible.

He said that they take the actual donation from the dogs neck, and it takes nearly 8 minutes and the dog must be very still. He also said most dogs are sedated for this. Not put under GA, but sedated. Their necks??? Ouch!

Has anybody had experience with donating their dogs blood before? Would be interested in stories.

My friends curly coat retrievers used to do it and got on fine.

I gave blood at work and 30mins later passed out on the office floor after coming over all weird. I know loads of people do it but I wouldnt do it to my boy, am a whimp

My Fleet and Flash have both done it. In the UK they cannot store blood so it has to be taken when the vet has a dog in need. Yes it is taken from the neck and they both had to have a patch shaved into the fur on their necks. Fleet was OK without sedation but Flash was sedated. They use the pre-med sedation usually given to calm them down before the anaesthetic proper. Neither suffered any ill effects and enjoyed the sausage reward. However, neither of the dogs they donated to survived. But we had to give them the chance. One of them was their litter brother.

Dobermonkey, I get not wanting to do it. I know there are no real threats, perhaps slight discomfort. I would have never tried it with any other dog I've had except Nigredo. He manages everything so easily. An easily frightened dog, a dog who is very nervous etc. they don't recommend.

Thalice, that is useful information, indeed. Here, they can store it for 30 days, and then it's no good. So sorry the recipients did not make it, though in your case. When he said the neck, I did think... ouch! But it seems we will manage ok at should he qualify.

I don't want his thick, wavy, silky neck fur awkwardly shaved and him have a gap in his coat, though... the vet did not mention any shaving. Yikes. That annoys me, is it imperative that he be shaved? They didn't shave him for his blood test.

Fleet and Flash were show dogs so I was very put out the first time as they hadnt mentioned it. However the neck fur is trimmed to show so it soon grew back. The second time was for their litter brother so we didnt care xx

Ah, so them not mentioning it is customary. Nigredo is not a show dog, but I am very particular about how he looks because we go around to places all the time. I'd not want people thinking he had a disease or something. I suppose it's not a huge deal, thanks again.

I once offered Tweed as a blood donor, but she was refused. I think they had to be 25 kilos at that time, and she was 18k in her prime.
I salute everyone who is prepared to be on standby though, it is something that we could all have need of someday. Perhaps the dog could have a red cross ID tag to signify the reason for the hair loss.

Yup, having had a recent blood transfusion myself is what brought this about. Anybody could need one at any time, and any pet, too. The minimum weight here is 50 lbs. Jade is barely over the weight, but the maximum age is 5 and she's 11 so huge no go. Not exactly sure what 50 lbs is in kg, but Nigredo is 90 lbs, which is about 40 kg. Maybe I can get a tag or something, thanks.

His blood work is clear and we are scheduled for Thursday. He unfortunately doesn't have the rare negative blood type they really need, but he will be able to donate once every other month at least. I've asked the coordinating vet what protocols I should follow and he's not gotten back to me yet. He claims he's very busy and behind on all his paperwork. He said he has the results, but it'll be a bit before he can give me copies for his records.

I would love my two to donate blood especially as we live so close to where they can store ( Loughborough) it unfortunately it's not to be as one of my dogs isn't heavy enough and the other is on permanant pain killers for the forseable future