Equine Breeding Season

It’s that time of year again — equine breeding season. Are you prepared?

Equine breeding season is here. Now is the time to ensure your equipment, protocols, and team are ready for a smooth and successful season. To help you prepare, here are a few practical ultrasound tips and reminders:

Transrectal Ultrasound:

Depending on the indication and stage of the reproductive cycle, examinations may be performed transrectally or transabdominally. For most transrectal reproductive exams, a linear probe is preferred. Linear probes provide:

Small Ruminant Ultrasound Insights

As we head into spring, demand for small ruminant pregnancy ultrasound increases. Whether you need to identify open females or confirm bred animals, we are here to help. Here are some tips to keep in mind this season!

Preparation

When ultrasounding small ruminants transabdominally, we recommend using the C-60 T-Handle Probe, which can be plugged into our Flexx machine. It’s important to use plenty of alcohol, gel, or lube, either applied to the skin or directly onto the probe head, to get the best image possible.

Service Check Reminder

When was the last time your ultrasound equipment had a thorough cleaning or service check?

Don’t test your luck this upcoming preg-checking season — send your unit in for a service check and head into the busy months with confidence. ReproScan equipment is built for durability and performance — designed to work as hard as you do. But like any hardworking tool, your ultrasound system needs periodic maintenance to stay reliable and efficient.

When should I send my machine in for a service check?

Getting your machine in for a service check every two years is recommended to ensure it is working at its best! Our repair department will thoroughly go through your machine to ensure it is running at peak performance before the next preg checking season. A check can ensure accurate imaging, optimal probe performance, and increase your machine’s lifespan. Even if everything appears to be working fine, small issues can develop quietly — and catching them early prevents costly breakdowns.

Equine Breeding Season

It’s that time of year again — equine breeding season. Are you prepared?

Equine breeding season is here. Now is the time to ensure your equipment, protocols, and team are ready for a smooth and successful season. To help you prepare, here are a few practical ultrasound tips and reminders:

Transrectal Ultrasound:

Depending on the indication and stage of the reproductive cycle, examinations may be performed transrectally or transabdominally. For most transrectal reproductive exams, a linear probe is preferred. Linear probes provide:

Small Ruminant Ultrasound Insights

As we head into spring, demand for small ruminant pregnancy ultrasound increases. Whether you need to identify open females or confirm bred animals, we are here to help. Here are some tips to keep in mind this season!

Preparation

When ultrasounding small ruminants transabdominally, we recommend using the C-60 T-Handle Probe, which can be plugged into our Flexx machine. It’s important to use plenty of alcohol, gel, or lube, either applied to the skin or directly onto the probe head, to get the best image possible.

Service Check Reminder

When was the last time your ultrasound equipment had a thorough cleaning or service check?

Don’t test your luck this upcoming preg-checking season — send your unit in for a service check and head into the busy months with confidence. ReproScan equipment is built for durability and performance — designed to work as hard as you do. But like any hardworking tool, your ultrasound system needs periodic maintenance to stay reliable and efficient.

When should I send my machine in for a service check?

Getting your machine in for a service check every two years is recommended to ensure it is working at its best! Our repair department will thoroughly go through your machine to ensure it is running at peak performance before the next preg checking season. A check can ensure accurate imaging, optimal probe performance, and increase your machine’s lifespan. Even if everything appears to be working fine, small issues can develop quietly — and catching them early prevents costly breakdowns.

Equipment Charging Best Practices

FAQ: How Do I Charge My Equipment?

If you purchased an ultrasound and a monitor, each piece of equipment must be charged separately. These are two separate devices, and both require charging.

To keep things simple, both the monitor and the ultrasound use the same ReproScan charger, so ReproScan chargers are interchangeable between devices.

⚠️ Important: DO NOT use a charger other than a ReproScan charger. Using a non-ReproScan charger can permanently damage your equipment.

Settings Tip: Frame Rate

Are you using your ultrasound for more than just bovine repro—maybe scanning a dog or an equine neck?

If so, you may want to take a moment to adjust your settings. Small changes can make a big difference in image quality, and one important setting to look at is frame rate.

Frame rate in ultrasound refers to how many images (frames) the system captures and displays each second. Increasing the frame rate can produce smoother, more real-time motion, which is especially helpful for applications outside of standard repro work. Most of our machines default to 1 frame per second to eliminate any lag on the extension arm, but for other uses, increasing the frame rate can result in a smoother-looking image.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I love this time of year—from Thanksgiving, which gently ushers in the holiday season with a reminder of all we have to be grateful for, to the close of the year when we reflect on where we’ve been and look ahead to what’s next. Writing this letter is a sweet tradition for me, and I truly look forward to it each year. (Now, does anyone actually read it or care? I’m not entirely sure 😉.)

2025 at ReproScan has been a year of good change. We’ve had some staff changes, and they’ve been incredibly positive. You may not always see it, but behind every ReproScan product is a team of people who genuinely care about the animal health industry and about supporting you to the very best of their ability.

At the same time, 2025 has felt a bit like a rollercoaster. Between international markets, shifting policies, and the beef industry itself, I think we all ended the year with a little whiplash from the twists, turns, and ups and downs.

One bright spot in the office has been the addition of a new office puppy, Trigger. He brings plenty of laughter—especially when we’re all figuratively chasing our tails during busy season and he decides to join in literally.

Training courses continue to be a highlight for all of us. We truly enjoy spending time with you and hope that our days together help set you up for success with your preg-checking work.

Overall, it has been another good year, and we are grateful for the role you play in that. Whether we meet you at a tradeshow, talk with you over the phone, or follow up after a sale, we genuinely enjoy the connection. Thank you for helping make 2025 another blessed year for the ReproScan family.

Cheers (or as my almost two-year-old daughter says, “cheewrs”), and here’s a fond farewell to 2025 and a warm welcome to 2026. I pray that amidst the hustle and bustle of Christmas you will remember the true meaning of this holiday, that God sent his son, Jesus, to die for our sins, offering us hope eternal.

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” -1 Peter 1:13 ESV

Merry Christmas!

–Elle

Doc Talk with Dr. Terhaar

Doc Talk with Dr. Terhaar

Watch the video below as Dr. Terhaar explains what can be seen on the ReproScan 2.0 Monitor!

As explained, Dr. Terhaar is taking a moment to study a fetus that is laying in a unique position. When a fetus is laying in a certain way, or their body is showing certain signs, it can mean something is specific. For this fetus, Dr. Terhaar took a couple extra seconds to ensure it was not schistosomus reflexus.

An ultrasound gives you peace of mind in situations as such to determine if the fetus is healthy or other intervention is needed.

Here are some of the images you may see while preg-checking, which in turn can give you instant data to make a decision for your herd**

This ultrasound capture detected multiple fetuses. This allows a decision to be made such as where this cow calves. A rancher may choose to calve in the calving pen instead of a pasture.

This ultrasound captures shows a dead fetus in the womb. This information is vital to not only herd health, but also for the rancher/farmer as a cow may be “recycled” through breeding, so a whole breeding season isn’t lost.

Evidence of granulosa tumor cells. A granulosa cell tumor is a benign tumor of the ovary that arises from granulosa and theca cells — the same cells that are responsible for hormone production.

Two fetuses can be seen at 30 days. As stated above, finding multiple fetuses is very important. A young heifer may need more intervention, whereas an larger frame cow may be able to calve on her own.

This video confirms this fetus is a bull calf. The determination of fetal sex can be a value-adding tool to any operation. For those who plan sales, an ultrasound gives them more data to use to plan. If a cow consistently produces high-value heifer calves, you can prioritize her or her embryos for replacement heifers.

This video also shows the ear of the calf moving, demonstrating just how detailed ultrasound images can be

Ultrasounds can help you detect many things. In this case, an infection was found. Infections can be caused by an array of things and can affect many things as well. Your cows may not cycle, they could develop inflammation such an endometritis, embryo survivability could diminish, and much more.