Ultrasonography in Goats During Pregnancy

The aim of this review is to further study and analyze the use of ultrasonography in small ruminants and in the goats during gestation. Thus, the underlying principles of ultrasonographic techniques at the level of the genital tract of the goat are described, together with an indication of the current methods being applied. A historical analysis of the development and importance of ultrasonography at the reproductive level is presented and, in aspects such as the early diagnosis of pregnancy, the determination of the number and sex of fetuses, and the research in fetometry that has been carried out in recent years and its correlation with the gestational age of the fetus are considered. Finally, the importance of new ultrasound techniques, such as Doppler and three-dimensional ultrasound, in the field of goat reproduction is discussed. In addition, a series of ultrasound images are presented, which illustrate, among other aspects, for example, the formation of embryonic vesicles, the heartbeat in the early stages of gestation, the development of the embryo and/or fetus during gestation, various measurements used to estimate gestational age throughout gestation, and lastly, images of the applications of Doppler and three-dimensional ultrasound in pregnant goats.