Newsletter

AABP

The American Association of Bovine Practitioners 51st annual meeting and trade show was in Phoenix, AZ this year. In celebration we are offering an AABP sale to honor our large animal veterinarians for the month of September. Also, we did a drawing for a free 2.0 Wireless Monitor. A big CONGRATULATIONS to Dr. Rathje from Wisconsin who won the drawing. He now will have the new wireless monitor that works great in bright sunlight. We greatly appreciate all of you who took the time to stop by the booth! We hope to see you next year in St. Louis.

Fall Photo Contest

ReproScan would like to see how you use your ReproScan Equipment. Send in your picture before Oct 27, 2017, for a chance to win a ReproScan accessory to fit your setup: (RAM Mount, Battery, Monitor Batteries etc). The only requirement is that ReproScan equipment is somewhere in the picture. Please send you picture to Elle: email: elle@repro-scan.com text: 515.468.7169. Please include your name and location where taken.

*Note: By submitting your photo you grant ReproScan permission to use and/or publish your photo for promotional purposes.

Why Train?

“Veterinary ultrasound equipment has helped a lot of people improve their ability to diagnose pregnancy and reproductive problems in beef and dairy cattle. People still need to continually ask themselves if they are using the equipment to the best of their personal ability and is the equipment set to the optimal settings for the type of examination being done. In the world of cattle reproductive ultrasound, many people work on their own and don’t have the opportunity to compare their skills to others and to learn more about setting their equipment.

Tips, Tricks and Techniques - Getting the Most Out of Your Battery!

It’s that time of year again… time to pull out the ultrasound and dust it off. Did you charge your battery in the off season? If not, you may not be getting the most out of your battery. Lithium Ion batteries do best if stored with a partial charge. Like most phones, ReproScan’s 2.0 Monitor has a constant slight draw on the battery, due to the touch screen. This means that even though you stored it charged, it would have died if not charged in the off season.

Industry Spotlight - Dairy: The Use of Ultrasounds in Dairy Farms

With June —dairy month— just around the corner, we would like to highlight ultrasound use in the dairy industry. Reproductive ultrasound technology was first used on dairy farms in 1984. Dr. Ginther, at University of Wisconsin, and his team are credited with the first research involving ultrasound imaging of the bovine reproductive tract. Since 1984, an incredible amount has been learned about reproductive cycles, early pregnancy detection, fetal aging, fetal gender determination, ovarian structures and more.

CE and Training Opportunities

In many parts of the country, fall brings pregchecking season. This fall, do you want to sharpen your ultrasound skills or learn to ultrasound? We closely work with several trainers to provide a variety of courses.

Participants of Dr. Craig DeMuth’s most recent course in Columbus, Montana had the opportunity to learn and discuss different ovarian abnormalities, the diagnosis of twins, the diagnosis of fetal death, and more during the lecture. The following morning at a local ranch, each participant had the chance to develop their arm in cow ultrasound technique and their convex probe extension arm technique. With numerous cows at different stages, the wet lab provided ample opportunity for each person to practice determining fetal age and fetal sex.

Fall Photo Contest Results

Thank you to all the people who sent in photos for the contest. We received all sorts of pictures from across North America. Keep an eye on our facebook page for all of the pictures. The winner is Jim Sackett from the Parker Ranch in Oklahoma. JB has a BoviScan Curve an LCD Monitor and a ReproArm. The Parker Ranch will receive a RAM Mounts accessory kit for their ultrasound. The runner up is Darren McGhee from the McGhee Ranch. He will receive a spare battery for his monitor.

Tips, Tricks and Techniques – Fetal Aging: Plan Ahead for Success!

One of the greatest benefits of ultrasounding is the ability to age the fetus and determine the stage of gestation of the pregnant cow. When determining fetal age, it is important that the animals are presented at an estimated stage of gestation that gives you the results that you and your client desire. For example, if accurate fetal aging is required to confirm that pregnancies are the result of artificial insemination versus cleanup bulls, then the timing of the pregnancy testing is critical to one’s success. With some practice, one can categorize fetal age into 5 day increments using the grid lines on the ultrasound’s display for measuring. It is best to do this in the 28 to 85 day window. As you get closer to 100 days of gestation, there is too much variability due to genetics, fetal sex, nutrition, position of fetus in the uterus and other factors to ensure the same accuracy in fetal measurements and fetal aging.

Tips, Tricks and Techniques - Adjusting Your Ultrasound Unit to Get the Best Image

ReproScan ultrasounds have easy to use operating systems. These units have been designed so the operator can quickly and easily adjust the settings to improve the image. For most of us, we are concerned with the cow’s uterus and its potential pregnancy.

So, let’s assume we have arrived at a ranch and the cows have been off water, causing their manure to be dry. Yesterday, we ultrasounded a set of cows with juicy manure in a nicely shaded shed and had an excellent image on the monitor! Today, there is no shed; the sun is shining; the wind is blowing; the manure is dry and the image is going to be difficult to see. Welcome to the cattle business!

Tips, Tricks and Techniques – Ultrasounding Cattle when it is Cold

Ultrasound pregnancy testing cattle on cold days adds additional challenges to an already busy and challenging job. Below are a few tips and ideas from someone who has spent many a cold day chute-side. (Yes, you folks in Florida and other warmer climates can skip this article. Please send us your tips on how to beat the heat.)

How cold is cold? Most of us don’t mind a little frost on the ground during fall work. Some of my best days started standing on very solid ground. It’s the 5 degrees Fahrenheit (-15C) and colder that I consider cold, and there are special considerations to keep in mind while ultrasounding. How cold is too cold? Good question, I have been out at -13F (-25C) and everything went well. I wouldn’t recommend going to all your clients at this temperature, as too many things can go wrong in a poor setup even on a good day. Any colder than -13F (-25C), a little warmer if there is wind chill, and the LCD monitor will not function properly.