Blue Ridge Veterinary Blood Bank
Donor Information
Free treats donated by our community partners at every donation.
Shout outs and featurettes on our social media pages.
A BRVBB bandana at first donation
Exam at each donation appointment.
Annual hematologic screenings
Annual screenings for Brucella, heartworms, and tick-borne illnesses.
Eligible for complimentary blood for emergencies for the donor pet.
Knowing that you have made a difference in the life of someone's pet.
Donor Requirements
Flexible donor appointments are available at our home site in Purcellville, VA, and we are currently recruiting donors at several of our satellite locations throughout Maryland and Virginia.
We have just a few specifications that we need our donors to meet:
At a healthy weight of at least 40lbs, between the ages of 1-7 years old.
Up-to-date on Rabies and Dhppcv vaccines and on year-round heartworm/flea/tick preventative.
No history of serious diseases.
Donors are asked to visit to one of the many blood donation sites throughout the MD, and VA area approximately every 5-7 weeks.
Please note that some medications may exclude your dog from the blood donor program.
Be people-friendly and generally healthy.
Important Donation Reminders
Friendly reminders from your neighborhood blood donation team!
Upcoming surgery, emergency surgery, any procedure using general anesthesia, sedated dental procedures, lameness or limping, lump removals, mysterious lumps, vomiting, diarrhea, and medications are important things to call and tell us about prior to your donation appointment.
If you still have questions about your pet donating, allow our Blue Ridge Veterinary Blood Bank team to answer them.
You can reach the Blue Ridge Veterinary Blood Bank team on the donor line at (703) 909-4004 or contact us online.
A quick pre-screening over the phone with our donor coordinator establishes that the dog meets our basic criteria.
We then schedule you a convenient appointment time on-site. We will have you and your dog come in for a meet-and-greet evaluation so we can see how comfortable your dog is with our staff. We like to see if dogs are food motivated and what their temperaments are like.
Our staff will happily give your dog treats if they have no dietary restrictions. We practice getting up and lying on the table with your dog, sometimes even drawing our initial blood screening if your pup is super comfortable. If everyone is happy and your dog seems to be a good fit for the program, pending the blood work results, we invite you to enter the program.
All that we ask is for your commitment of five to seven donations per calendar year. We try to schedule all donors every five to seven weeks, and your dog can donate upwards of eight to nine times per year.
We basically teach donors a new trick: how to lie down on a cushy massage table while being snuggled (this is for safety) and either receive snacks or belly rubs for a total of five to 10 minutes.
Right before the draw begins, we will get your dog comfortable and shave and clean the donation site for sterility, and then your dog will give a donation. The actual donation time varies from three to five minutes, depending on the volume taken and the rate of flow. Sometimes, this is an easy task; other times, we are not successful. Just like with human donations, there are a lot of factors that go into successful donations.
We are excited to have you learn more about our program! If you are interested in participating, please call our donor coordinator, Jamie, at (540) 370-9955 Option 3, or send an email to [email protected].