I had my maiden bitch scanned yesterday, as i was pretty certain she in pup and wanted to confirm. I have quite a keen eye and can usually i see some thickening of the waste at this stage and i have to say she has only SLIGHTLY increased in waist size, She is 4.6 weeks post last mating which i believe was the more successful of the two mating's due to her's and the stud dogs enthusiasm. She was not pg tested. She is a relatively compact/slender girl.

The scan did confirm she was in fact in pup, however although the vet was reluctant to give numbers, he stated that he is almost certain she is having 2 or less and recommends another scan in 10 days time time to determine if we are likely to encounter any problems. Last time i had my bitch scanned, she was scanned for 2 and went on to have a very even big litter, and i had made arrangements for a pre-arranged c section due to the fact i was advised (by a different vet to aforementioned)  that the puppies looked incredibly big and it was likely the bitch would be unable to deliver a small litter naturally. She delivered naturally two days before this date to lovely healthy average sized puppies. What i do find odd is that she does have a LOT of clear discharge which i have been told by some old timers is an indication of a big litter.

My girl is from a long line of self whelping bitches and i would prefer to avoid any possible c sections where necessary. She is a deep chested toy breed and often pups can 'hide' behind the rib cage. I was just wondering what people's experiences are from scans and whether if she is having a small litter of one or two i should allow her the opportunity to deliver naturally as her mother before her did.

Everybody i have spoken to have differing opinions. I have to say i did get to see the scan for myself, and i definitely could see at least two he was talking about, but he scanned her for a few minutes and i have to say i am not entirely convinced there are not more. I know their is always the chance to x-ray but at this point i am unsure if it is needed. Its just a generally chat really to see if people believe size is an indication of litter size etc?

all advise/chat appreciated :)

I forgot to add i am over the moon that my girl is in whelp... and i am happy with whatever number i get as long as they are healthy.

My vet never does numbers and I can't push him on it. He will show you a couple or few and then that is it!!!

Its just a generally chat really to see if people believe size is an indication of litter size etc?

Scans really do depend on who does them. I had one vet who was utterly useless at numbers. Once she said 4 pups and we got 10, another time she said one, maybe to and we got ten as well. Current vet much more reliable -last time said at least 6 and we got 7, time before said at least 3 and we got 4, time before that said more than 8 and we had 9. As regards size though -not found it to be reliable. I have one bitch who with her first litter I guessed she would have maybe 5 pups, and she had ten. Her daughter for her first litter was huge and we all (including a very experienced breeder, 40 years in breed) guessed 10-12 pups at least, and she only had 7.

I had I scanner come and scan my girl at 35 days. I was told she was fantastic at numbers but having read on here how unreliable scanning can be just wanted to have an idea of numbers as mine are a big breed and renown for being very lazy whelpers! The scanners said 6 and maybe 7 she went on to have 11! The scanner was with me for 10 mins and scanned a friends bitch as well that was the quickest £170 I've seen earned for a long time! Lol

£170 !!!! I pay my vet just over £20!

> The scanner was with me for 10 mins and scanned a friends bitch as well that was the quickest £170 i've seen earned for a long time! Lol

the scanner I go to charges £20 and even my vet only charges £35. I think you were ripped off!!

£170!! gosh!!! i paid £36 with a ten minute consult with my vet!! :O

I feel very torn and just don't know what to do.. she is carrying small but its early days, she is so deep chested i am not convinced she is having just two.. he didnt seem to really notice the second pup until the other vet pointed it out, and then seemed to be hitting another, and was somewhat dismissive just saying shes having a small litter and pregnancy confirmed. He is usually a brilliant vet but im not entirely convinced he knew exactly what he was talking about..

i dont particulary want to waste money on more scans if not neccessary when ive saved copious amounts for possible problems. i guess only time will tell.. i just really want my little show girl.

Once again, why not wait.   If this was a planned mating.  Scanning only suggests a pregnancy at the time of the scan with no guarantee the bitch will carry to term.   It would help with a decision about spaying or not if this wasn't a planned mating.   Frankly I usually noticed a slight thickening of the flanks by around 5 weeks which for me would be equally as reliable as a scan.  X-ray is more accurate but not what I'd do until the end of the pregnancy despite x-ray being safer these days?   My opinion.

Vet scanned - told to expect a singleton, she went on to have six pups.
Local breeder scanner - told to expect 7-8 puppies, she went on to have eight pups.

My vet admitted that he is not great at the "numbers game" and although he will confirm pregnancy he will now never give any sort of indication of litter size, whereas the lady I use is superb.. she has so far been right (or almost right) every time.

The accuracy of the scan is only ever as good as the person using the equipment. Also, in my largest litter of 8 puppies you could not see any change in my girl at all until she was almost 7 weeks pregnant, she then blossomed...

update.. i have since had my girl scanned by a sheep scanner.
she is infact heavily in pup with 4/5 puppies and now looks like shes swallowed a bowling ball.

vets.. you have to love them lol!

Only ever had 2 of my girls scanned, first one said 3 and she had 6. Second one 4 and she had 8. Speaks for itself.

They were correct - the bitches were both pregnant, and that's pretty much all a scan is for.