Nottingham Pet Crematorium were incredibly honoured to look after Woodie the wonderful greyhound recently. This amazing dog donated 10,000ml of blood to save scores of dogs’ lives.
Rita Harbury-Carlisle the owner of Nottingham pet Crematorium said: “Woodie was laid to rest in our chapel and we provided an individual cremation which allowed his owners to take his ashes away later that afternoon. It was an absolute privilege to be allowed to look after Woodie who had saved the lives of so many others – he was a true hero”.
exceptional service
Woodie’s owner Wendy Gray said: “Firstly can I say what an exceptional service Nottingham Pet Crematorium provide for grieving owners. You surpass expectations and the final touch bought us to tears once more. Thank you for taking care of our very special boy. He donated blood with Pet Blood Bank over the years. He now lives on in those he saved”.
Woodie made 22 separate donations to the Pet Blood Bank over a six year period and saved around 88 dogs.
Owner Wendy added: “When we donated he never showed any sign of stress and then came bouncing out – even though he’s got all four legs empty of blood. Dogs get a full health check every time they go to make sure they’re okay to donate. They go up on the table and immediately go into a sort of daze and the vets take the blood.”
Greyhound blood is particularly sought after as it is more likely to be negative, which allows it to be given to any dog in an emergency. Dogs can have either positive or negative blood. It is thought that only 30 percent of dogs have negative blood.
Wendy adopted Woodie when he was three and he has been giving blood ever since. He received a special hamper for his retirement, complete with a ceramic bowl, dog collar and treats.
cuddles and treats
She said: “He just strode into the room, got all the cuddles and treats and then laid down patiently as they took his blood.”
Plasmas are extracted from the blood and these are used to treat illnesses and for emergencies. Wendy said owners whose pets are saved from blood transplants can’t thank her enough.
She added: “Dogs are my whole life. Lots of people don’t realise blood banks exist. As an ambassador, if I see healthy dogs I’ll introduce them to the bank. People are always surprised to hear that dogs need blood too. I always post on social media after we’ve visited the bank, and after all these visits I still gets people saying ‘I didn’t know that existed’.”
blood is always available
The bank, set up in 2007, operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to ensure blood is always available. It now provides blood to vet surgeries across the country.
To be a donor a dog must weigh at least 25kg, be between the ages of one and eight, and be fit and healthy. Any dog below 25kg has not got enough blood to give, and after eight dogs blood is not optimal. After every donation, dogs receive a gift bag for their troubles.
Wendy added: “Owners are always so grateful. Occasionally they will contact you and say things like ‘my dog wouldn’t be here without it.’ There was a case a couple of years ago that traced Woodie’s blood to a dog that was saved. It was a little dog at the other end of the country with a blood disorder who would have died without Woodie’s blood. My Woodie helped save all these dogs’ lives, he was just amazing.”
Anyone interested in allowing their dog to donate blood can visit the Pet Blood Bank’s website by clicking here or call 01509 232222.