Page 6 - Paws and Hooves - Spring 2024

years of

innovation

The RVC’s Blood Donor Programme was created to Donating without sedation
ensure a reliable blood supply for our critically ill This is now standard practice at the RVC and has
patients. From the beginning, the welfare of our donors improved the donation experience for all our feline friends.
has been of paramount importance. The RVC has Through our work, vets around the world are recognising
worked hard to research improvements to the blood that just like dogs, cats don’t need a general anaesthetic
donation and transfusion process. By sharing this work to give blood.
with the veterinary community, we hope to improve the
welfare of our donors, and donors worldwide.
We published the world’s first
protocol for acquiring feline
blood donations without

cats being sedated.

Dog-to-cat blood transfusions
We published some of the largest reports on
xenotransfusions, where dog blood is used as an
effective way to treat cats. Before our first study,
information about xenotransfusion was scarce and
BB2 gives blood
outdated. Xenotransfusions can only be used once, and
2004 2005 2008 2010 2012

Launch of the RVC First feline blood The Blood Donor team First recorded The RVC Animal Care
Blood Donor Programme donation and acquires a director of unsedated feline Trust begin fundraising
transfusion Transfusion Medicine, blood donation for the Blood Donor
First canine blood Dr Karen Humm with cat Richocet Programme. First
donation and transfusion 5 feline (pictured top right appeal purchased a
blood donors The first full time blood
19 canine donors with owner Karen) blood bank freezer for
6 feline blood donor nurse joins the plasma products, which
36 canine blood transfusions team, Robyn Taylor is still in use today!
transfusions
Robyn develops a
Canine blood products technique using a
can be stored. sterile tube welder
to create smaller
0 dedicated blood
donor nurses blood units for our
smaller patients.
Marty

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