What is ultrasound?

As with human ultrasound, we use sound waves to image the body's internal organs. It is a low risk, non-invasive procedure that can provide us with valuable information about what is happening inside your pet. In most cases we are able to perform the ultrasound examination but sometimes we will recommend a specialist perform the examination (this can still be done here in our hospital).

When and why is ultrasound used? 

• For confirming pregnancies
• For examining the heart. Ultrasound is often recommended when we hear an abnormal sound or murmur when we listen to the heart during a consultation.
• Examining the abdominal organs (liver, kidneys, spleen, bladder, stomach, intestines, pancreas and lymph nodes).
• We may recommend ultrasound if we feel an abnormality during examination, if blood tests indicate poor function of one of the abdominal organs or if your pet is showing signs of intra-abdominal problems such as bloating, vomiting or not being able to urinate.

For some organs such as lungs and bones, xrays are better than ultrasound but for some cases we may need to use xrays as well as ultrasound.

What happens during an ultrasound?

An ultrasound examination may take anything from 5 minutes to an hour or longer depending on what we are looking at. As most animals will not sit still for very long we often have to give them a light sedative. They also need to have the hair shaved from the area that we are examining so that we can get a good picture. We look at each organ from as many different angles as possible to ensure we get a complete picture. If needed we can take samples of tissue or fluid which we may then look at or send to the laboratory for a pathologist to examine.