As a writer, getting inspiration for your next article is not always an easy task. Some days, ideas can be few and far between, resulting in frustration, anger and lots of hair pulling. However, social media can serve as a great tool for providing inspiration, and can help to kick start those creative juices!

On this note, many of you reading this will be aware of the Vet Image Solutions Facebook page. The page serves a number of purposes, including a place breeders and scanners can share their experiences, ask and receive advice, learn random ultrasound-related facts and view images of scanning previously carried out. Consequently, over the next couple of weeks I’ll be taking a look at some of the interesting and thought-provoking comments that have been written so far this year, and what we have learnt as a result. There were so many posts that I wanted to include, apologies that I couldn’t get them all in!

To begin, one topic of conversation that seems to come up regularly pertains to the veterinary ultrasound training courses that Vet Image Solutions runs. For example, on January the 17th, Kelly Shiveral Grant asked ‘Do you have any training dates coming up please?’ which prompted further discussion regarding training locations. Catherine Stowell replies that courses are primarily held in Kent, Birmingham and Warwickshire regions – all areas that should be easily accessible for people living in the UK. More recently, Debra Greenwood, a dog breeder, asked a similar question on the topic of training and purchasing an ultrasound scanner for her Newfoundland and Irish Wolfhound dogs. Catherine referred Debra to a dedicated section on the website likely to be of use, or also suggested that she may want to call to discuss things further. Please remember that we are always here to help, and you can contact us at any time.

Following on, it’s always nice to hear from clients who have either attended one of our training sessions and/or purchased one of our veterinary ultrasound scanners and see how they are getting on. Helen Marsden posted a video on the 30th January showing a heartbeat using a Landwind C40, whilst Louise Grant posted a rather more comical image on the 12th April, entitled ‘Looks like an alien’, describing her Whippet at 42 days of gestation. From the comments posted below, it seems that this image was fairly well-received!

The Vet Image Solutions Facebook page also aims to address some of the more general enquiries you may have regarding veterinary ultrasound. On the 3rd April, Megan Thompson asked ‘What are people’s thought on the Sonoscape A5v?’, which prompted quite a response with comparisons to the A6v, whether or not this scanner is suitable for identifying the onset of heat/the presence of pyometra and even goes on to look at the S9v (our top quality scanner). You can find out more about these ultrasound scanners by clicking on the names listed above. Angela Coleman-Anderson asked about the '…effects of ultrasound on pregnant dogs during pregnancy?’ on the 20th March. Although no studies have been carried out to address this issue in dogs, Catherine replied that this is not the case in human pregnancy. Ultrasound imaging in dogs is not an intrusive technique, and as such the risks associated with scanning can be considered as low. In fact, an article dedicated to this subject was written and is available to read on the Vet Image Solutions website by clicking here.

Next time, we take a look at some of the more ‘unusual’ posts that have cropped up on Facebook, and see the fruits of our ultrasound labours. Be sure to come back and check the website then.