Hello I was just wondering how accurate scans are really. I had a scan done once on my bitch and the vet got it right ,the amount of pup[s they saw was the amount born ,but this time round there saying there is definately 1 pup maybe 2 but my girl is ballooning , she is panting a lot like she is carrying a large litter. Are they accurate , or do you think she is just gaining more weight as she has already had 1 litter?!? She is only 45 days now.
andrea xx

I would say they are highly inaccurate, have never ever relied on one for numbers.

I only scan my bitches if there is a problem nowadays. The vets have got it wrong so many times. How often have we heard on here that people have been told their bitches have missed only for a huge litter to be born?

I scan to confirm and to get a rough idea on numbers. My usual vet is pretty accurate with his guesses. However they are just guesses and I wouldnt hold it against him if he were wrong!

I wouldnt use a scan to try and determine the exact amount due and if my bitch was ballooning (which she is, so she may have the odd one or two extra), then I wouldnt be overly concerned about the accuracy.

Looks like you could be in for a few more than expected!

my vet said ....i can see 2 maybe 3 and our girl went on to have 12 lol lol lol

OMG thats way out White Lily, you cant always see behind the ribs though, just a few hiding is  common, we have scans done and they are usually there or there abouts, last 1 said 10 puppies we had 11,

i should of gone to your vets lol !!!

he he! no our vet doesnt even have an ultrasound scanner, we have a guy that comes to the house, he is brilliant, as i said he is never far wrong, he scans to test for ovulation too, but i prefer blood tests personally,

Thankyou everyone , I will be prepared incase there is more , I was just worried as to why she is getting so big if there is only one or two. i will let you know how many she goes on to have. Thanks again xx

Good luck Andrea,  sounds like there are a few in there.

i can't fault them  always  bang on!!!  have  a litter here at the mo was told  5   , maybe one up in the ribs  .  had 5 !!

must add i use a sheep scanner xx

Unfortunately the equipment ie scanner is only as good as the operator.Its a top class operator and a very very expensive piece of kit that can detect canine ovulation.

Here is my scan history.

Bitch 1
Litter 1: told 2 - she had 2 one was born dead
Didnt mate her again after this as she had problems conceiving in the first place - she is still enjoying life aged 8

Bitch 2
Litter 2: told 10 - she had 10 and all survived - kept one from this litter
Litter 3: told 8 maybe 9 - she had 9 and one born dead
Litter 4: told 8 maybe 9 - she had 9 and lost one at 6 days (our vet helped him on his way - v. sad)

Bitch 3 (daughter of bitch 2)
Litter 5: told empty - rescanned and told 1 puppy - currently waiting for her to whelp....

Same person scanned all my litters so I was shocked the last litter was so wrong!

yes your correct, i trust my scan man 100% what he says is usually not far off, i just like blood tests for pre mate, although just once i scanned for ovulation she had 10 puppies. he been doing it years and years.

So far we've had one sheep scanner, said bitch was empty and she was, alas. Next litter didn't waste money on that as she had a couple of infections post mating although she had been on antibiotics, we just got her palpated. To my shock vet said at least 2 puppies, and 2 big puppies turned up a few weeks later!

i only get a scan to confirm if there are pups, 1st litter vet said at least 4 there was 12, 2nd litter said at least 4 and there was 8. Its practically impossible for vet to tell.

Just letting you know , My girl had 4 beautiful babies ... they are a week old tomorrow :-)

thats great news andrea :) what sex are they?....bless x x x x

congratulations Andrea,

Thankyou , we have 3 dogs and a bitch , there coming on brilliantely :-)

Well done,

My vet will NOT tell you how many puppies can be seen on a scan. The reason is that if the vet says there are 6 pups, some people stay with the bitch until the 6th pup is born & then leave them, come back to find more pups born and sometimes dead pups then blame the vet for giving the wrong number! Some vets get sued becasue of this :(

All I like to know is that the bitch is pregnant & there is more than 1 JIC there is a caesar needed!