Punjab: Veterinary Institute Comes Up With First Blood Bank For Dogs In North India

The facility has been set up after getting approval from the Department of Biotechnology and will cater to the needs of sick and blood deficient dogs.

"It will be of great benefit to the sick and injured dogs who need blood and will help in saving their lives. People love pets as their family members. Therefore, the pet owners are also happy about this facility," Vice-Chancellor Dr Inderjeet Singh was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

"The university is making strenuous efforts in the treatment of animals through state-of-the-art machines, advanced techniques and expert doctors. Our Veterinary Hospital treats more than 30,000 animals every year, including more than 20,000 small pets," he added.

Talking about the initiative, Dr Shukriti Sharma, assistant professor, department of veterinary sciences, GADVASU, said that it is the first such blood bank for dogs in northern India. At the facility, donated blood of dogs is segregated into Red Blood Cells (RBCs), platelets and plasma.

"At least 25,000 dogs are treated at GADVASU each year suffering from different ailments, injuries etc. At least 500-600 suffer from low haemoglobin problems too. This blood bank will help in improving survival chances among dogs with easy availability of blood, RBCs, platelets and plasma," Dr Sharma said.

The initiative received praise from many, including Punjab Governor VP Singh Badnore.

"I congratulate & commend the faculty of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana for setting up the first-ever Dog Blood Bank in Northern India where blood, platelets, plasma are offered to ailing or injured dogs," BAdnore said in a tweet.