As a general guide, we recommend starting progesterone testing around day 5 to day 7 from the first day you notice bleeding or clear signs of her season.

However, this can vary depending on your bitch’s history. You may need to start earlier if:

• She has short seasons
• She has ovulated early before
• She suddenly becomes very receptive to a male
• You are using chilled or frozen semen
• The stud dog is travelling or only available for a limited time
• You have previously had missed matings or small litters

A blood collection from your veterinarian or a vet nurse is required for this test. A minimum of 1ml whole blood or 0.5ml of separated serum is required to run this test. Samples should be provided in a plain sterile collection tube (Clear/White or some Red Top Vial with No Additive). Tubes can be provided if needed.

The collection form provides further guidance and should (where possible) be provided with your blood sample. 

 A pregnancy scan is usually carried out from around 4 weeks after mating or insemination,  however our preference for a better scanning experience is between 30-33days post first mating.

Accurancy of timing is based on those that have been tested for correct mating times. Where no testing has been carried out and we scan purely on mating times then this could be too early to confirm a viable pregnancy. All this information will be discussed at your appointment and if a repeat scan is required then we can talk through dates and timing for this.