Despite all our efforts, things were still very "touch and go". At this stage, we felt that Nala would benefit from a transfusion of blood plasma.

Some years ago this would have been difficult or impossible. In October 2005, a change in legislation made it possible for vets to store pet blood. Subsequently, the Pet Blood Bank UK (PBBuk) was established. PBBuk collect canine blood which is then processed into various blood products and can be stored on premises or ordered from a central site by courier.

Nala received her transfusion the next day and her condition improved dramatically. she went on to make a full recovery - now, in fact, her main problem is trying not to gain too much weight - well, she is a Labrador!

How can you help? Who are our doggy donors? Well, they're pets like yours. These dogs attend one of PBBuk's regular blood drives where they make their donation. Dogs need to fit and well and over 25 kg in weight. Afterwards, these vital donations are taken to custom made facilities where they are processed and split into packed red cells or fresh plasma. This means that just one donation from your pet has the potential to help up to 4 animals in need.

Link to Pet Blood Bank UK