Blood Type B

[Antonio65]

At last my kitty Giada is going to be spayed. We got an appointment next Thursday.
A few days ago I took her in at the clinic for a complete check up and blood test. She's mainly fine, apart from the clotting time which is still very high and out of the range. We've been checking it since June and the level is going high and high.
Despite this, the vets agreed to go on.
Along with the last blood panel I had asked a test for the blood type, because I was just curious. Well, it turned out that I did the right thing, because the kitty is Type B.
This is a very useful info, though a bit worrisome, because in the unlikely event of a transfusion, we would have a hard time finding a blood donor!

Did anybody else have a similar experience?

 

[di and bob]

No, but I do know A is the most common blood type, B is not common, but AB is rare. If you know the blood type of your other cats it may be a good idea to have them close by in case a transfusion is needed, or some B donor near.

 

[klunick]

Hmmm... never even thought about cats having blood types. I will have to jot that down and ask next time we go. Hopefully it won't be until sometime mid-year 2021 for vaccine updates.

 

[Antonio65]

No, but I do know A is the most common blood type, B is not common, but AB is rare. If you know the blood type of your other cats it may be a good idea to have them close by in case a transfusion is needed, or some B donor near.

My only other cats are the one that has had her teeth removed and her friend, both in my courtyard, semi feral, not tested, at least not recently.
The vet who tested my kitty said she's the first Type B cat he has met in his life. It is also true that nearly nobody has their cats tested for the blood type, so it's hard to have good statistics.
For the same reason I don't think that I could find a person who knows what blood type their cats are and consequently use them as donors.
Hopefully Giada won't need it this time, but it's a thing to consider.

EDIT: the cats in my colony are too feral and 'wild' to be counted in as donors.

 

[babiesmom5]

I have had two cats who have required blood transfusions. Both transfusions came from the state Veterinary school; in this case Univ. of PA. They maintain a donor pool of cats for this exact purpose. They are very young, very healthy cats whose blood types are known. These cats on a periodic schedule give their blood for the feline blood bank. These cats are very well cared for during the time they are a donor. At age three, these cats are adopted out, sometimes vet students adopt them too. I have considered adopting one of these donor cats in the future to play the kindness forward. I would check with your Veterinary schools as they would most likely have a blood bank/donor cats with Type B blood.

 

[Antonio65]

Tonight I brought the cat with the oral surgery (teeth extraction) back home.
She was operated at a clinic, but was later moved to the local vet's practice.
Before leaving this practice, I asked the vet to test the operated cat for her blood type, we could have been 'lucky', and use her as a donor, but she's a normal Type A cat.

The local vet asked me if I could agree with making my kitty a donor, because she is a rare Type B cat.
I said I could think about it, but as far as I knew, donor cats must be at least 9 lbs, and my kitty Giada is only 7.

I will ask the clinic to get in touch with the University Hospital and see if they have a Type B blood bag.

 

[Antonio65]

I would check with your Veterinary schools as they would most likely have a blood bank/donor cats with Type B blood.

I have just learned that feline blood can't be stored long. I have read an article about it.
And when I read that article, my vet's words came to mind. He said "we couldn't even take some blood from your cat a few weeks before the surgery and use it just in case, because the cat's blood can't be stored for long time"

I haven't called the vet hospital because it's rather hard to talk to them. Probably a vet would have a better chance.