A dog ultrasound is a great diagnostic tool because it’s cheaper and risk-free than surgery. But, it can get costly and leave you with heavy medical bills.
Several factors affect the ultrasound cost for dogs. First, a regular veterinarian scan costs between $300 and $350. However, dog ultrasonography would rise from $400 to $500 if a specialist is treating your dog or if you include sedation.
Let’s look at the operation of ultrasounds, what factors into the price, and how to reduce the ultrasound cost for dogs.
Factors Affecting Ultrasound Cost for Dogs
Costs for dog ultrasounds often vary from $300 to $500. However, several factors affect the procedure’s expense, including;
- Time: Ultrasounds require more time than X-rays to create a picture, contributing to their higher price. Depending on the doctor’s search, the duration and expense of your dog’s ultrasound may differ considerably.
- Location of the veterinary clinic: Where you live can influence the cost of veterinary treatment. Going to a clinic in a small town usually costs less than going to a city.
- Type of ultrasound procedure: A general practitioner, veterinarian, or sonogram specialist can perform ultrasounds. A general practitioner will cost you between $300 and $350. A sonogram specialist can set you back between $500 and $600. Your veterinarian will recommend one depending on how difficult the needed scan is. An urgent care vet can promptly check on the puppies of your pregnant dog. Looking for damaged ligaments or tumors requires a long time and is typically done by an expert.
- Other services and sedation: Most canines won’t need sedation for the ultrasonography. However, the veterinarian might need to sedate your dog for the duration of the scan if they feel overly aggressive or nervous. The price of the ultrasound will go up as a result.
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Types of Ultrasound Procedures
Many medical situations could benefit from ultrasound tests. To aid in the diagnosis and choose the best course of treatment for your dog, your vet may ask for an ultrasound. Here are some scenarios in which ultrasounds can be useful:
Abdominal Ultrasound
Ultrasound is one of the few techniques for seeing live images within your dog’s body. The doctor can examine your dog’s internal organs using ultrasound imaging to determine whether anything seems out of the ordinary. Almost all the internal organs, lymph nodes, blood vessels, and glands, including the thyroid gland, may be seen with ultrasound technology.
The veterinarian can spot anomalies such as tumors, cysts, degeneration, ruptures, kidney stones, obstructions, etc., by using ultrasonic scanning to get a clear view of these organs.
Pregnancy Ultrasound
Ultrasounds, like in people, are the safest and most popular pregnancy monitoring method. Radiation-emitting imaging techniques like X-rays can harm a developing fetus. Radiation exposure during pregnancy increases the risk of congenital abnormalities.
A veterinarian can determine the dog’s pregnancy status, the pregnancy period, and the growing fetus’s health with the help of an ultrasound scan.
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Cardiac Ultrasound
The ultrasound procedure known as echocardiography can monitor a dog’s heart functions. The size of each chamber, the thickness of the heart walls, the beating, and other heart processes may all be precisely measured using echocardiography.
The general condition of your dog’s heart should be evaluated, and echocardiography specialists should monitor any anomalies.
Musculoskeletal Ultrasound
Assessing the health of the dog’s soft tissue can also be done with the help of ultrasound scans. Examinable soft tissue includes the thyroid gland, eyes, tendons, and ligaments, to mention a few.

To best recommend treatment, it is vital to be aware of any anomalies by ultrasound scanning.
Related: A Vet Explains Preventive Care & Medical Costs for a Dog
Cost of Ultrasound Procedures for Dogs
The cost of your dog’s ultrasound will vary depending on the veterinarian you see. If your primary care veterinarian offers ultrasounds, you can anticipate paying between $200 and $350 for the procedure.
Your appointment cost and any additional tests are probably not included in this. You may be required to pay the veterinarian to copy the images to a CD if you intend to take a copy of the ultrasonography to a specialist. That isn’t always the case, though, as emailing these photographs is commonplace.
You can budget between $400 and $500 for the ultrasound if your dog sees a specialist. Once more, it is unlikely that this will include the visit charge, extra testing, and ultrasound results.
How Much Does an Abdominal Ultrasound on a Dog?
A general practice veterinarian will charge between $300 and $350 for an abdominal ultrasound, while a specialist will charge between $400 and $500.
How Much Is a Dog Ultrasound for Pregnancy?
As early as day 20–22 after mating, ultrasound pregnancy detection is possible, although this window of opportunity can be missed. A helpful diagnostic technique for confirming pregnancy is an ultrasound on day 30 following breeding. The disadvantage of ultrasound is that it cannot accurately count puppies, but it can identify heartbeats in the puppies.
A board-certified veterinarian cardiologist can perform this for about $500–$600, or a skilled general practitioner can do it for about $300–$350.
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Cardiac Ultrasound Cost for Dogs
An echocardiography, a kind of ultrasound, aids in determining whether a pet needs heart medication. A board-certified veterinary cardiologist can perform this for about $500–$600, or a skilled general practitioner can do it for about $300–$350.
Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Cost
For a Musculoskeletal Ultrasound to obtain sufficient pictures for evaluation, specialized probes—linear and high frequency—are needed making it quite expensive. For ultrasonography of other locations, these probes are typically not used extensively.
The type and quantity of locations you examined will determine the MSK ultrasound price, which starts at $400, including a hospital stay.
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Location of Veterinary Clinic
Wherever your pet is, there’s a strong chance that your normal veterinarian can do an ultrasound on them. Several general practice vets will hire a mobile ultrasound service to come a couple of times a week for planned cases if they don’t have an ultrasonography machine or the necessary skills.
For instance, more metropolitan areas like New York City and Los Angeles will cost more for canine ultrasonography than Nashville. If you go to a vet in a nearby low-income region from a larger town, you might save up to 30 percent on ultrasound charges.
These vets typically have lower prices and are already acquainted with your dog.
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Additional Factors Affecting Ultrasound Cost for Dogs
There are other additional factors for the ultrasound cost for dogs. They include:
- Who carries out an ultrasound process? A general practice veterinarian’s examination will be less expensive than a specialty veterinarian’s ultrasound.
- Image technology type. Compared to cutting-edge 4D ultrasound scans or iPhone-sized wireless scanners, two-dimensional B-Mode ultrasound scans are cheaper.
- Areas examined. A standard prenatal ultrasound costs less than a heart scan, called an echocardiogram, which involves more computations and measurements.
Investing in a high-quality pet insurance policy is the greatest method to protect your finances and avoid exorbitant diagnostic costs. The expense of the monthly charges is frequently outweighed by the reimbursements you receive for veterinary services.
By avoiding more expensive surgery costs and protecting your pet from surgery hazards, ultrasound is a good method to save money.
Factors Affecting Ultrasound Cost For Dogs | Explanation |
---|---|
Ultrasound Procedure | Routine pregnancy ultrasound procedure is less expensive than cardiac ultrasound for dogs |
Location | More costly in the city than in rural areas |
Imaging Technology | A 4D ultrasound procedure is more expensive than a regular 2D scan |
Expertise | Specialists charge higher than the general practice vets |
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Does a Dog Need to Be Sedated for an Ultrasound?
Unless you want to obtain biopsies, most ultrasound tests don’t often require anesthesia. Most dogs will stay comfortable during the scan because the method is painless. Your dog may require a sedative on rare occasions if the dog is frightened or agitated.
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Ultrasound Cost for Dog: FAQs
Q: How Much Does a Cat Ultrasound Cost?
A: Costs for a cat ultrasound range from $300 to $600. The location, which body area needs an ultrasound, if a specialist or a GP will do the procedure, and the length of the test will all affect the final bill.
Q: How to Get Low-Cost Ultrasound for Cats?
A: Just like the dogs’ ultrasound, the cost depends on the location and the experience of your vet. So, to find low-cost ultrasound for cats, visit your local vet or have pet insurance for your cat.
Q: Is an Ultrasound Necessary for a Dog?
A: Ultrasound technology can precisely locate, measure, and describe an interior mass, swelling, or pain. Your veterinarian can choose the best course of therapy for you, whether it be a biopsy, surgery, or more observation. Suppose your pet’s physical examination reveals any of the following. In that case, your veterinarian may suggest an ultrasound:
- Abdominal or nearby swelling
- Touching the stomach or another internal area causes discomfort
- There may be a mass or bump in the abdomen or close to an organ like the kidney or liver.
Q: What Will an Ultrasound Show in a Dog?
A: Veterinarians can find, evaluate, and diagnose pregnancies, tumors, blockages, and other internal events using ultrasounds, which closely examine a dog’s organs. Compared to X-rays, ultrasounds are better at gathering information. Veterinarians can use ultrasounds to find cancer, tumors, rips, and other diseases.
Related: Canine Care: Breaking Down The CT Scan Dog Cost
Conclusion
Although a scan’s initial price may seem excessive, it correlates to the cost of the associated technology, specific training to interpret the images, and the time required to complete the procedure.
It is a valuable, non-invasive diagnostic instrument that can help safeguard your pet’s health due to its applicability in pregnancy diagnosis, evaluation of the inner organs, assessment of cardiac function, and examination of specific eye problems.