Test for Sterility in Dogs

Laboratory testing and physical examinations are ways to see if a dog is sterile. Urinalysis is a routine lab test used to determine the presence of infection-causing organisms that can cause sterility. According to the Encyclopedia of Surgery, urinalysis entails an in-depth series of manual and/or automated qualitative tests performed on urine for general health screening.

  1. Urine Test

    • A urine sample is obtained from the dog at the veterinary clinic and analyzed in the laboratory (urinalysis). Different ways are used to obtain a urine sample from a dog. A veterinarian may use a urinary catheter, or perform a procedure referred to as cystocentesis. In cystocentesis, a veterinarian inserts a small needle directly into the dog's bladder through the body wall to obtain a urine sample.

    Steps

    • Three steps are commonly followed to perform a complete urinalysis. First, the urine color and turbidity (cloudiness) and urine specific gravity (a measure of the concentration of urine) is checked and recorded. A chemical analysis is then performed using a multi-test dipstick, a piece of plastic that has chemical reagent pads attached. A centrifuge, a machine that rapidly spins liquid samples and separates particles by their density, is finally used to examine the urine sediments under a microscope.

    Analysis

    • Blood in the urine sample points to problems in the urethra, penis, prostate, uterus or vagina of the dog. Presence of bacteria such as brucellosis, which causes Canine Brucellosis leads to sterility in dogs. Additional urine tests referred to as urine "culture and sensitivity" can be done to get more information on the type of bacteria present in the dog's body and which antibiotics would be effective for treatment.

    Other Tests

    • Other laboratory tests for sterility in dogs include reproductive hormone testing to determine the fertility and receptivity of female dogs and checking testosterone levels in males. The vet may take a vaginal culture to evaluate presence of bacterial and mycoplasma in females and conduct a semen evaluation to ascertain if a male dog can successfully impregnate a female dog. An ultrasound test may be taken to look for abnormalities of the ovaries and uterus for females with a history of misconception and stillbirths.

    Benefits

    • Sterility testing in dogs informs people on whether their dogs can reproduce or not and when is the period of optimum fertility and receptivity for conceiving a pregnancy. Moreover, apart from general health screening; sterility testing helps dog breeders ensure fertility problems in breeding dogs are not passed on to next generation of dogs.