Anemia
Key concepts ·Also called: anaemia, low red blood cells, pale gums, low haematocrit
What it is
Anaemia shows up as low red cell count, low haemoglobin and low haematocrit together. Signs range from mild lethargy and pale gums to rapid breathing and collapse, depending on how severe it is and how quickly it developed.
Why it matters
The three mechanisms — losing blood, destroying blood, or not making blood — lead in completely different directions, and the reticulocyte count is what separates them. A regenerative anaemia means the marrow is working and the problem lies elsewhere; a non-regenerative one turns attention to the kidneys, the marrow, or chronic disease.
What it can point to
- Blood loss: trauma, a bleeding tumour such as a splenic mass, a stomach ulcer, or a heavy flea or hookworm burden
- Blood destruction: immune-mediated haemolytic anaemia, toxins such as onion or zinc, or certain infections
- Reduced production: chronic kidney disease, bone marrow disease, FeLV in cats, or long-standing inflammation
- How fast it developed matters — a pet that has become anaemic slowly can tolerate a strikingly low value that would cause collapse if it happened overnight
Dogs and cats differ
In cats, FeLV and FIV testing is part of investigating a non-regenerative anaemia, and feline haemoplasma infection is a recognised cause of red cell destruction. In dogs, immune-mediated haemolytic anaemia and bleeding from a splenic mass are the two causes seen most often in emergency practice.
Questions worth asking your vet
- Is the anaemia regenerative or not — what do the reticulocytes show?
- Do we need to look for a source of bleeding?
- How urgent is this, given how fast it seems to have developed?
Related terms
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