Brotherly bond that gives cats extra lives

ABU DHABI // Sam and Stripe are blood brothers.

Stripe, a six-year-old tabby, came to Sam’s rescue with a blood transfusion after he was hit by a car in Dubai’s Silicon Oasis and needed urgent surgery at Umm Suqeim Veterinary Centre.

“Sam had his pelvis fractured and he now has seven pins in his body,” said his owner, Kerstin Wohlers. “He already had a blood condition, the result from a tick bite, and the shock and trauma of the accident were rather severe, and at one point the vets decided that a blood transfusion was his only chance, to give him the strength to fight.”

Ms Wohlers, a British-German expatriate, said Stripe, a blood-donor match, provided the lifeline his brother needed.

“Of course we are proud of Stripe for giving blood and we made the decision as a family to use him as a blood donor,” she said. “He was only a little weak afterwards, no other ill effects.

“He got his favourite food afterwards – and lots of it.”

Ms Wohlers said she later volunteered the pet to help another kitten in need.

“A while later we were asked by the vet whether we would consider helping another cat,” she said. “The other cat had fallen from a balcony and again, to have a fighting chance, needed blood.

“We see our cats as part of our family and spend a lot of time and energy to keep them healthy and content. We chose to help the other cat because we put ourselves in the other family’s position.

“Stripe, again, was given a big bag of food as a thank-you for helping the other cat.”

Ms Wohlers urged other pet owners to volunteer their pets as donors. “It would be good to have a donor list for animals, maybe for each city,” she said. “Many pet owners love their animals and would go to great lengths to help them.”

______

Read more:

› Furry blood donors needed, UAE vets say

› German shepherd Kita has been saving lives with blood donations for six years

› Surge in financially strapped owners abandoning pets, welfare groups say

newsdesk@thenational.ae