There are three things which are absolutely essential to rescue centres investing in an ultrasound machine for hedgehog pregnancy scanning.

1. Safety
2. Value for money
3. Image interpretation

This article will address each of these in turn. You may also wish to check out the video below, where Carol of Hurst Hedgehog Rescue explains why the ScanX ultrasound machine is so useful to her work.

Safety

Tiny animals are particularly vulnerable to the thermal energy emitted by ultrasound scanners. All ultrasound probes emit thermal energy, but very few entry-level machines ensure that this is kept to a minimum. Certainly, machines found on Amazon, Alibaba or eBay are almost guaranteed to have been manufactured with no mind to outputs whatsoever. Sadly, these marketplaces are quite happy to allow companies to sell these medical devices into our country, despite them being unsafe for the purposes for which they are advertised.

In our experience, hedgehog rescued are uniquely ‘clued up’ and mindful of these risks, due to the fact that they are dealing with very small creatures to whom they feel a very strong duty of care. If you run a hedgehog rescue, you are not buying an ultrasound machine in order to perform a chargeable service for the general public: you are investing in equipment that you believe will enhance the quality of care you are providing for your rescue animals. For this reason, owners of rescues tend to put a lot of research into buying an ultrasound machine, and are keenly aware of the pros and cons.

Value for money

Animal rescue centres rely on donations in order to support their work. This means that funds are not limitless, and that every penny spent on ultrasound equipment is money not spent on another, also vital, piece of equipment. This makes hedgehog rescues – and indeed, all charitable missions – feel a weight of responsibility that other buyers may not experience so keenly.

Interestingly, this does not necessarily translate into “what is your cheapest ultrasound machine?” – a question frequently asked by other types of potential client! Rescues are well aware of the false economy of buying something that’s not fit for purpose, and instead want to know what machine will serve them the best without spending any more than they need to.

Image interpretation

Hedgehog pregnancy scanning with ultrasound is a very niche topic, and there is precious little available when it comes to training resources. Our monthly online training course is undoubtedly the most useful resource, but even so, the focus of this course is primarily dogs (with some cats, alpacas and guinea pig scans included). The lack of any books, useful journal articles or example images of hedgehog pregnancy on ultrasound means that it’s really important for new users to a) have an ultrasound machine which produces clear, easy-to-interpret images, and b) have access to expert support and guidance: someone they can send images and video clips to for a second opinion.

Which ultrasound machines fulfil all of these criteria?

For all of the reasons above, the ScanX ultrasound machine with a microconvex probe is the most popular choice for hedgehog rescues. It keeps its thermal outputs well within safe levels and displays this on screen at all times, for total peace of mind; it delivers excellent value for money, with everything you need and nothing you don’t; and, finally, its crystal clear images and the fact that it is designed and supported by us here at PortableUltrasoundMachines means that we know this machine inside out. We can also connect remotely to your device to support you at any time, and we have a sonographer on team with over a decade of experience in scanning very small animals. All of this means that you are never on your own.

With our growing community of hedgehog rescues now using this machine, we hope to build a database of images that we can all share with one another to improve the care we give to these very special creatures. For more information on the ultrasound machines we stock and to get involved with hedgehog scanning, please talk to us.