When Samantha Dascomb tells people she works at a canine blood bank, they look confused and respond, “You do what?”
“And I say, yeah, this is a thing,” she says.
It’s not commonly known, but blood banks for dogs exist, and in Manassas, the North American Veterinary Blood Bank accepts donations from furry heroes. Generous donors with names like Cheerios, Nikita, Bravo, and Charlotte visit once a month, giving 450 milliliters of blood to help other canines in need of a blood transfusion.
“No one realizes there’s such a need for canine blood,” says Casey Mills, NAVBB director. “You don’t know about it until you’ve had a situation where you may have a dog that requires a blood transfusion, and where does that blood come from?”
The NAVBB was founded in 2017 by emergency veterinarians who saw an urgent need to source reliable and comprehensive blood products. Its goal is to ensure longevity and limit discomfort for donors throughout their donation experiences. If at any time the donor shows signs of uneasiness, staff ends the session immediately.
“You are in safe hands — we would never do anything to harm your pet or make your pet uncomfortable,” Mills says.
The NAVBB’s job is to facilitate veterinarians and staff with blood products necessary to treat their canine patients. Trying to meet a tremendous need for canine blood, the organization provides vital blood products to veterinarians nationwide, thanks to generous dog donors in Northern Virginia.
How Do Dogs Give Blood?
Understanding that more blood donations will be made if it is easier to do, the NAVBB welcomes dog owners to conveniently make appointments between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. weekdays at its Manassas location. Once owners register online, pups 50 pounds or more come by the office once monthly to donate. At an initial screening, a dog is assessed to make sure it’s a good match for the process.
Potential donors include “any dog that’s people friendly, likes to please, and is food motivated,” says Dascomb, who is NAVBB’s marketing coordinator. During the initial screening, aggressive or unwilling pets are ruled out after three tries. The process just isn’t a good match for every dog, staffers say.
“Some dogs we have to reject, because they’re just not suited for it. If the dog says no, we say no!” says Dascomb.
The initial assessment test results take about two weeks to come back, and the staff checks for heart murmurs, lumps and bumps, and anything that could raise the dog’s inflammatory response. And just like people, man’s best friends have different blood types and need specific blood products.
“We’re doing much more extensive bloodwork than you’re doing at your average veterinary practice,” Dascomb says.
When approved donors arrive for appointments, they are warmly greeted and showered with treats like peanut butter, cookies, cheese, belly rubs, toys, face rubs, and weighted blankets. Staffers learn what best pleases each donor — sometimes it’s food, sometimes snuggling.
“We have a surprising amount that will actually fall asleep during their donation, which is really nice,” says NAVBB phlebotomist Riley Childress.
During the 20-minute visit, the staff checks the dog’s weight, heart, and red cell count, then numbs the area where the needle will be injected to make the experience pain-free. Staff members say donor dogs’ lifestyle is not affected by giving blood. One benefit of canine blood donation is that each donor’s vital signs and donations are tracked. Doing so can detect whether a dog is experiencing health issues sooner than an annual checkup.
“It’s really good preventative medicine and there’s no cost to the owners,” says Kim Roberts, licensed veterinary technician.
The actual blood donation takes only three to five minutes. Dogs can make themselves comfortable; Fido might be laying on his side on the bed or sitting on the floor or table. The day Northern Virginia Magazine visited, Stormy blissfully lay on a bed, being cuddled by a technician.
No one on the NAVBB staff has ever been bitten during a blood donation. They say owners can stay and watch the procedure or leave, grab coffee nearby, and be back in 20 minutes.
Nikita and Stormy’s Story
For the past year and a half, Fairfax Station couple Sharon Voss-Northrop and Andrew Northrop have brought in pets Nikita and Stormy every month to donate. The Northrups have five dogs and found out about NAVBB canine blood donations when their now-deceased pet, Shadow, needed a blood transfusion.
“We said, ‘Holy cow, if somebody hadn’t donated blood we would have lost her,’” says Voss-Northrop. “Now we want to pay it forward.”
The two dogs’ donations have been put to good use. Nikita’s blood helped prolong the life of Hank, a gravely ill pup that needed a blood transfusion and emergency surgery.
“Within an hour of us calling, Nikita was walking through our doors ready for a donation,” says Mills. “She was a superstar for giving a donation, and we were able to get that blood over to the hospital within two hours of them calling.”
Thanks to Nikita, Hank underwent a successful surgery. Sadly, he only lived a few more weeks, but the family was immensely grateful and treasures the extra time that Nikita’s donation afforded them.
“We are making a difference and helping to either save lives or give owners more time and families more time with their pets, which is important,” says vet tech Roberts.
Doggie Day Care Donations
“The biggest barrier we have come across is the time commitment from owners,” says Mills.
In order to make blood donations as convenient as possible, the NAVBB takes its show on the road, regularly visiting area doggie day care centers. For dogs that already attend doggie day care regularly, many have become blood donors on site. For owners, it’s no time commitment, their pets are happy to donate, and countless canine lives are saved as a result.
“All they have to do is follow their regular routine, and in the process, their dog is having their health monitored,” Mills says. “We view it as everybody wins, and we try to make it a really positive experience from all aspects.”
When owners pick up their dogs from day care, they receive a report card telling them all about how their pet did at the donation event. In addition to the NAVBB’s Manassas headquarters and dog day care centers, donation locations in Middleburg, Winchester, Fairfax, Arlington, Alexandria, and Kensington, Maryland, are available.
“It makes life easier on parents because everyone’s busy,” Dascomb says.
Meeting the Need
There are only 11 veterinary blood banks registered with the Association of Veterinary Hematology and Transfusion Medicine. Combined, the veterinary blood banks can only meet about 30 to 40 percent of annual demand for blood products, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. The NAVBB aims to serve these continual needs of emergency canine medicine.
“Our goal is to make it easier for the vets and the staff to be able to have the products they need to treat the patient.” Mills says.
“We tell people, one day it could be your dog that needs a blood transfusion,” says dog owner Voss-Northrup. “You want to know these facilities and options are available.”
9431 Main St., Manassas, navbb.com
Feature image courtesy North American Veterinary Blood Bank
This story originally ran in our July issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine.
