Does anyone know or have any info?  I know that you can buy your own ultra sound scanning machine and scan your own dogs for pregnancy but can you then offer this service to others? What I am asking is do you have to be a qualified vet to be able to offer this service and if not does anyone have any information on where you could go or how you could learn how to scan?

Any info greatly appreciated...

I don't know the answer to your question but a lot of people on this site have used the services of a sheep scanner to scan their dogs. I would presume that the sheep scanner is not a vet so therefore one wouldn't have to be a qualified vet to perform this service but I have no idea if other qualifications are needed. There are quite a few people on here though who have had fairly inaccurate scans done and most times this has been put down to the inexperience of the person performing the scan so experience would count for a lot for most people requesting this service.

Hope that helps a bit

I have my own scanner and I'm certainly not a vet, but i only scan to confirm pregnancy not numbers, I offer to scan friends dogs free of charge just to get experience with different breeds other than my own.

Sharon, What scanning model have you got. I'm seriously considering of taking it up as a hobby/ small business type thing. Have asked around and exhaused google but there seems to be a real shortage of advice to follow.

I have the Draminski Animalprofi, I ordered it direct from Draminski in Poland, but they do have agents here in the UK....a company called Boss Products http://www.bossproducts.co.uk/

I've been using a doppler supplied by Thames Medical for about 15 years and their equipment and backup is second to none.  Email Mike Brampton at MikeBrampton@hotmail.com and ask for a price for a dog doppler.
PS Don't be tempted to rent one - it's not the right unit for the job!!!

I have my own scanner and I offer scanning services around my area. I am not a vet, but a qualified VN and I learnt to scan through my role as a VN and set up my business after the birth of my son. In reply to your question, no you don't have to be a qualified vet, but all the ultrasound courses I have found are for vets only or people in the veterinary industry - not lay people. I have to say, it really is not the sort of business you can run whilst 'self teaching'. Breeders rely on this service to be accurate, so they have high expectations and expect a certain degree of experience when you visit. HTH x

Thanks for all your replies..like Tanya I have found a real shortage of info and also like Tanya i am thinking about it as a hobby/ 2nd income perhaps starting with friends and going from there...I completely understand how people expect a certain level of service and it is something that you really need to earn a good reputation in and build up lots of experience before running it as a business...it's a shame there are not any courses for lay-people and more information available If anyone like yourself Maria ever fancies offering lessons please give me a shout!

Many thanks

> ...I completely understand how people expect a certain level of service and it is something that you really need to earn a good reputation in and build up lots of experience before running it as a business...it's a shame there are not any courses for lay-people and more information available

And yet I read of people going to sheep scanners, are these people VNs or just qualified by experience with sheep?

Most sheep scanners are self taught I believe, however a pregnancy is a pregnancy albeit dog, sheep, pig etc. I started off with no practical experience of scanning livestock but can easily see if my own sheep are pregnant (same with pigs, but a bit harder due to the internal fat!) I had the great privilege of working with a vet who was very good on the ultrasound, who to be fair kicked off my interest in it.
Vets really don't learn much in the way of practical ultrasound at uni. They learn about the ultrasound machine and the principles of ultrasonography - everything else is learnt through specialist CPD and hands on practical experience after they have qualified. The same with VN's, we are taught about the machine and basic priciples (or at least we were when I qualified) everything else comes along with experience!