Fetal fluid centesis in the bitch
Author(s):
Smadar Tal
Updated:
APR 15, 2022
Languages:
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To date, amniocentesis has rarely been used in veterinary medicine, despite having tremendous potential for both clinical and research applications; this paper discusses an established method for fetal fluid sampling in bitches.
Smadar Tal
DVM, Dip. ACT, Dip. ECAR, Koret School of Veterinary Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel
Dr. Tal graduated with honors from the Ontario Veterinary College in 1992 and worked in a Canadian private practice for several years before relocating to Israel, where she established and owned a successful private small animal practice near Tel Aviv for 22 years. She became a diplomate of the American College of Theriogenologists in 2011 and went on to attain her diploma from the European College of Veterinary Reproduction in 2014. She currently heads the Small Animal Theriogenology department at the Koret school of Veterinary Medicine, and is also a PhD candidate at the Hebrew University in Israel. Her research interests include different aspects of canine pregnancy and neonatology, as well as clinical research involving wildlife.
Key points
- Fetal fluid collection via ultrasound in the pregnant bitch can be achieved with relative ease.
- Amniocentesis offers new diagnostic, therapeutic, and research insights into prenatal clinical medicine, including diagnostics of fetal death and identification of heritable disease.
- Fetal fluid collection via needle puncture from after day 35 to the end of the pregnancy is an easy and safe procedure in the bitch.
- Done carefully, fetal fluid collection carries very few risks to either the dam or developing puppies.
Introduction
Breeders invest much time and effort in designing the best breeding protocols to ensure healthy litters, but there is currently very little information relating to the immediate environment of the canine fetal “unit”. The fetal membranes contain the developing puppy throughout pregnancy and, along with the placenta, play an integral role in fetal growth and progression [1], as they are essential for the metabolic, gaseous, and hormonal exchanges between dam and fetus [2]. The fetal membranes of the canine species are the allantois, amnion, chorion and yolk sac [3], but the ones pertinent to fetal fluid sampling in this species are the amnion and the allantois (Figure 1).
Figure 1. A schematic diagram of the canine placental structure in late pregnancy.
Credit : Redrawn by Sandrine Fontègne
What are fetal fluids?
The amniotic cavity provides physical protection for the developing fetus within a liquid medium [4], the amniotic fluid. This is a complex biofluid which allows both mechanical and antimicrobial protection for the fetus as well as lubrication, nutrition, and growth factors, all of which are important for normal development [5]. Amniotic fluid is formed with contributions from oral, nasopharyngeal, tracheal and pulmonary secretions, and urine excretion from the conceptus [6].
The allantoic fluid in carnivores accumulates within the allantoic membrane surrounding the amnion [7]. The allantoic sac grows to line the chorionic sac almost entirely and persists until parturition. It communicates with the urinary apparatus of the fetus and acts as a waste reservoir for fetal metabolic products [4]. The main mechanisms for the initial accumulation of allantoic fluid are probably the transmembrane transport and the secretory activity of the extra-embryonic membranes, and – later in pregnancy – from the mesonephros, metanephros and kidney secretions [8]. [...]
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