Riley, an eight-year-old crossbreed, was signed up to a blood donation program when he was aged just one and has given blood since for seven years.
The life-saving pooch donates every six weeks, the time frame recommended by vets, meaning that he has donated the maximum amount of blood possible.
Experts believe he is one of the most prolific blood donating dogs in the US, with the identity of the top blood donor unknown.
Owner Deanna Wilson, from Maryland, said: “The first visit he spent in my lap – he was just a little unsure about what was going on and they just took a small sample for testing.
“Ever since then he has been fine and happily follows the vet out to the room. When he thinks we’re going to donate he starts barking in the car close to the vet office in excitement.
“He actually pulls me into the donation room and jumps right up on the table. If he has to wait for another dog to finish, he’ll bark to let them know he’s ready for his turn.
“We think Riley can donate for another year – probably until he turns 9. We’re so proud to think of all the other dogs he has been able to give a longer life to.”
Dogs can replenish their blood in around three weeks and usually donate between 230 and 430 cubic centimetres (CC).
Jocelyn Pratt, who works at the Blue Ridge Veterinary Blood Bank in Virginia where Riley’s blood is sent, said he has been an “awesome donor”.
She said: “Dogs can replenish their blood in about three weeks so we have them donate once every 5-7 weeks to make it convenient for their owners.
“We travel to up to seven donor sites a week and try to schedule between 15-20 dogs per site but most often we end up with less.
“There is no way to predict what we will need or what we will collect which is why it’s important to have committed donors and their owners like Riley and Deanna in our program.
“A dog like Riley who has been an awesome donor for seven years and given at the consistent frequency of every six weeks could have saved between 112-224 dogs had all of their components been used already.”
~Via Express UK
Tags: Dog blood donor, dog donor, dog hero, dog saves lives
