PETALING JAYA: Malaysia urgently needs dedicated pet blood banks, with veterinarians warning that the lack of a structured donor system is delaying lifesaving transfusions and putting critically ill animals at greater risk.
At present, veterinarians often rely on personal contacts, rescue groups, shelters and social media appeals to find blood donors when emergencies arise.
Veterinarian Dr Sohanjit Singh Chehal said most clinics do not have access to a formal blood supply system.
“We usually contact pet owners we know and ask them to bring in their animals. We then test for compatibility and proceed if there’s a match.”
While the approach can work, Sohanjit said it consumes valuable time when animals are suffering with severe anaemia or bleeding heavily.
He noted that blood matching is critical, particularly for cats.
“Cats are very sensitive to receiving the wrong blood type. Dogs may tolerate a mismatched transfusion once, but subsequent mismatches can be fatal due to antibody development,” he said.
Universiti Putra Malaysia Department of Veterinary Clinical Studies associate professor Dr Khor Kuan Hua described the situation as “critical”.
“It is inefficient because it relies on vet-to-vet calls, social media posts and personal networks.
“But it is critical because the mortality rate for pets requiring blood in Malaysia is unnecessarily high due to delays in getting transfusions.”
Khor said turning to social media appeals is the last thing veterinarians want when dealing with life-threatening emergencies.
“When a pet is bleeding out, a Facebook post is not what one wishes to do. There is a lot of stress involved.”
Beyond delays, she warned that emergency donors may not always undergo thorough screening for diseases, potentially exposing recipients to secondary infections.
She also raised concerns about donor welfare, noting that some clinic-owned donor animals may be used too frequently without a centralised system to track donation history.
Khor said Malaysia should work towards a centralised pet blood bank model, similar to those used overseas, with strict screening standards and animal welfare safeguards.
Until then, she said, veterinarians, shelters and pet owners would need to continue relying on community-based donor networks.
“Until a national system exists, the local community must act as its own safety net.
Veterinarian Dr Tan Zhang Jian agreed that the current system is far from ideal.
“Sometimes social media appeals work very quickly. Other times, there is no response at all. The reach is wide, but the reliability is not there.”
Tan said a structured blood bank system, supported by a donor registry, regular donation drives and proper storage facilities, would significantly improve emergency care for animals.
“A centralised effort, whether privately run or government-backed, is necessary at this point,” he said.
