Pregnancy Scanning

[Tidge]

At what stage would you have your (hopefully) pregnancy bitch scanned.

Does anyone know of anybody in the Sussex area who scans and how much I can expect to pay.

With Sandy's first pregnancy, I think we had her scanned too early and my vet charge me £60 for the priviledge, I wasn't allowed to be present and had to leave my dog at the vet for the whole morning which I don't think helped, she had a bleed the weekend after and although she was still presenting signs of pregnancy, we had her scanned again where the aftermath of her pregnancy was detected and nothing else.

Any advice would be helpful or should I forget scans altogether, but I don't think I can stand not knowing till week 6ish and she's obviously showing.

 

[*-Nikki-*]

It's about 3 weeks before whelping, not sure how much you will get charged it depends really what your vet is like   . We have never had a bitch scanned, however I know lots of ppl who do; to give them a good idea how many they are expecting (so they know when the bitch has finished, its a good idea as sometimes the bitch many stop pushing and doesn't  have any more contractions, yet there is still a pup left to come out and many do it for an indication to tell ppl on their waiting list for pups etc). I know our vet charges £45, but it does depend, some ppl get charged more or less .  
How many weeks is your bitch now ?
 

[Gilly]

Have you got a copy of the "The Book of th Bitch" by JM Evans & Kay White. An excellent book for any would be breeder. It goes into great length about the do's and don't of breeding, eye testing (very important   ), whelping and rearing and weaning the puppies    

[Jane S]

Scanning is useful for confirming pregnancy & making sure things are progressing well or identifying possible problems but its not reliable for telling you how many puppies may be expected. Our vet scans from 4-5 weeks into the pregnancy & the charge is about £35 but it depends on the area, some practices will obviously charge more if they are in an expensive area. Cost is really irrelevant when planning a litter though You might find this site useful as its a directory of mobile scanners in the UK.

[Tidge]

Hi again and thanks for the replies.

Yes I have got and read thoroughly, backwards, forwards and upsidedown the Book of the Bitch.

I live in West Sussex and the vets around here seem very keen to make a few bucks where they can, often advising various things that I have since been told aren't necessary.  It once cost me £15 to be told her Anal glands were blocked and another £15 to clear them, only to be told by a groomer that its easy enough to do yourself.  You live and learn!!!!!

Thanks for this list of mobile scanners, I'll check it out and see what I can find

[Jaljen]

We had a recent scan plus antibiotics for £30. Not bad.

It's not an invasive procedure so ring round for the best price. I rang round for microchip prices as I didn't think it required a huge amount of skill or compassionate care.
Our vet won't state a figure for whelps as it's apparently not an exact science-just confirms the pregnancy really.

Lotty had 2 scans and had to go in for the whole morning each time.
It's because it's a routine procedure and fitted in between ops and consultations so they are never quite sure when they'll get it done. That's why you are asked to leave them.

Admittedly Lotty lost 3 pups after her first scan but I don't think it was stress-related. As always with dogs I think you have to be carefree and confident on their behalf or they sense your anxiety.

Not sure I'd want to pay sixty quid.  

[Sharon]

My vet charges £25 and lets us stay to watch, she'll scan around 28 days!

Good luck!

[Gilly]

My vet charges £30 for a scan and will scan from 4 weeks. I have found ( through word of mouth) someone who scans sheep etc and is apparantley VERY accurate, he only charges £15, he will also scan from 4+ weeks.

[LindaW]

I must have reasonable vets then because they charge £18.50 + vat for scan and you stay and watch.  I have them done around 28 days too.  

[Tidge]

Just to update

I did have a scan at about 37 days (I think) counted 3/4 pups and she gave birth  to 5 pups!!!

   

[Cayley]

What a lovely surprise to get one more than was counted   .  A year ago our cocker, Lottie, looked like she wasn't having any, then she graced us with 7 beautiful puppies half an hour after England won the Rugby world cup. One of the pups didn't survive the night, so we had 6 puppies that were an absolute pleasure to look after for 8 weeks   .