Sian Davis of Lola Belles Mobile Pet Scanning in the West Midlands recently shared a scan of a closed pyo on the Facebook group. She had been called out by a breeder who had been sent home by the local vet, but she was sure that something wasn't right with her bitch. Here is what Sian found using theSonoScape A5v portable ultrasound machine:

sian davies

In a healthy pregnancy, the uterine horns inside the bitch are not visible. It can be seen from the scale to the left of Sian's image that the horns are swollen to over 2cm in diameter. This is the type of appearance you would expect in an animal the size of a cow. See, for example, these images below on a bovine pregnancy scan:

Bovine metoestrus:

Bovine metoestrus

Bovine early healthy pregnancy:

cow early pregnancy

This characteristic 'star' of fluid within the uterine horns is very rarely imaged in bitches, and when it is, there is almost certainly something seriously wrong. It is essential that those offering a professional scanning service know the appearance of closed pyometra on a scan. This is a medical emergency and the patient needs to be immediately referred to the veterinarian, without delay.