"I'm just not good at ultrasound. My brain doesn't work in 3D. Other vets just get it and I don't."

If you've ever had this thought, here's what might surprise you: confident scanners think the exact same thing.

The difference? They've learned one crucial secret that changes everything—and it has nothing to do with natural talent or having an "ultrasound brain."

After nearly 20 years of veterinary ultrasound experience and helping hundreds of vets build their scanning confidence, I've noticed something fascinating: the vets who feel most confident aren't the naturally gifted ones. They're the ones who stopped waiting to feel ready and started building habits instead.

"I Just Don't Have an Ultrasound Brain"

Let me start with a confession. I used to say it too: "I just can't do 3D anatomy. I'm not a visual thinker. I don't have an ultrasound brain."

Sound familiar?

Here's what I've learned from working with hundreds of vets: confident scanners don't rely on innate talent. They don't scan perfectly every time. They've simply learned how to structure their scanning, think through what they're seeing, and build confidence one small habit at a time.

Take this comment from one of our FOVU members: "I'm still building confidence that I'm seeing the full extent of the head of the spleen when I scan, but I found the IVALA images really helped my brain work out what I should be seeing and on what angle. So that's super helpful for me!" 

Notice the mindset? Not "I can't," but "I'm working on it."

That's exactly the shift we need to make.

Why Confidence Follows Action (Not the Other Way Around)

Here's something that might surprise you: confidence doesn't precede action—it follows action.

It's a loop: Scan, think it through, adjust, scan again.

Most vets think they need to feel confident before they start scanning regularly. But confident scanners know the opposite is true. They scan, even when they don't feel ready. They track their progress. They stick with it.

And gradually, scan by scan, confidence builds.

"I Want to Feel Confident That I Haven't Missed Anything"

They Follow a Repeatable Framework

The more predictably you scan, the more reliable your pattern recognition becomes. Random scanning builds anxiety. Structure builds calm, and calm builds confidence.

This is where the FOVU abdominal scanning framework comes in—it gives you a repeatable route through the abdomen every time, no matter the case.

They Think in SPEEDS™

Confident scanners don't just look and hope they see something abnormal. They use a systematic approach to describe what they're seeing:

• Size 
• Shape
• Position
• Echogenicity
• Echotexture 
• Edge
• Dynamics 
• Distribution
• Sampling

Let's see this in action.

Without SPEEDS™, you might write: "Left kidney, NAD" (nothing abnormal detected).

With SPEEDS™, your veterinary ultrasound report might read: "Measured 3.6 centimeters in length with reference range for this species and body weight. Typical bean shape located in normal anatomical position. Corticomedullary distinction clearly visible. Margin smooth, well-defined. No pyelactasia, no nephroliths. Doppler applied, normal perfusion, sampling not performed."

That's clear. It's descriptive. It's not jumping to a diagnosis—it's walking through a process.

"I Need Someone to Check What I'm Seeing"

Here's where everything comes together: confident scanners don't just scan, they track.

They don't just try harder—they measure progress.

I've developed something specifically for this: the FOVU ultrasound practise tracker. It's designed to help you:

• Scan more consistently
• Spot scanning patterns and gaps
• Build habits one step at a time

How to Use Your Veterinary Ultrasound Practise Tracker

When you download the tracker, you'll see organs grouped by lateral recumbency (right and left). Some organs are highlighted in pink (those we cover in our Basics course), others in purple (The Trickier Bits course).


Download your practise tracker here →

Here's the key: You don't need to scan every organ every time.

Instead, I recommend this approach:

1. Pick one organ per week to focus on
2. Aim for two to three attempts that week
3. Tick the box each time (it's a good little dopamine hit!)
4. Think about how it felt

That's it.

As one of our members said: "All the scanning I've done since being on the course has felt easier and I've had more confidence with it." 

Notice—that's not about quantity. That's about quality and repetition.

"I Don't Want to Waste the Owner's Money"

B.J. Fogg, author of "Tiny Habits," says: "Make the habit so small it's impossible to fail."

So instead of saying "I'll do 30 scans this month," try "I'll scan the gallbladder on two patients this week and track it."

Let me ask you something: What organ do you find yourself avoiding?

Take a moment to think about it.

Now, here's your challenge: This week, I'll focus on [insert your organ]. Make it public (comment below!), make it small. That's how it sticks.

"I Struggle to Find the Smaller Structures"

Progress isn't a neat upward curve. It's messy. It's three steps forward, one scan where you see nothing, then a moment of clarity.

It's that moment when a structure you've struggled to find suddenly appears and you think, "Was it always this obvious?"

Yes and no. It was always there, but now so are you—focused, steady, ready. You've trained your eyes, quieted your panic, and built the habits that let you stay curious instead of defeated.

That's when confidence starts to feel real.

Sometimes confidence sounds like: "I didn't get it today, but I know what to try tomorrow." Or: "I don't know what this is, but I know how to describe it clearly."

Those moments matter more than textbook-perfect scans.

"I Never Have Time to Practise"

Let me paint a picture of what this looks like in practise:

Monday: You're back from the weekend. Stable patient on the table, 15 minutes to spare. You open the tracker, pick your goal—spleen. You find it, scan it, tick the box. Win.

Tuesday: Chaotic day. No time to scan. That's fine.

Wednesday: You manage to scan the urinary bladder on a fractious cat. You notice wall thickening, document it using SPEEDS™. Tick the box.

Thursday: Fully booked, no scanning time. The tracker stays open—no judgment.

Friday: You're tired, but a senior dog comes in for blood work. "Let's just find the liver," you think. You do it. Tick the box.

Five days, three scans. No pressure, no perfection—just progress.

If you track two scans a week, that's over 100 scans a year. Imagine how your confidence could grow if you did that consistently.

"Is Everyone Watching Me Fail?"

Let's talk about something you might not say out loud: scan anxiety.

That moment where the animal's been clipped, the probe is on, and your heart sinks. "Where is the right kidney? Why can't I ever see the pancreas? Is everyone watching me fail?"

I want you to know: that voice in your head isn't telling you the truth. It's telling you a fear story.

Confidence doesn't mean never hearing that voice. It means learning not to believe it.

This is exactly why community helps so much. In our Basics course, we normalise this journey. You'll hear members saying:

"I've been struggling to find the left adrenal this week. Any tips?" 

"This is my first time seeing the Twinkle artifact—what do you guys think?" 

"I learned a lot from your presentation on lymph nodes and the cases you presented. It's always exciting when a new lesson comes out." 

These touchpoints—lessons, "Ask Me Anything" sessions, shared wins—remind you that you're not behind. You're in progress.

"I'm Not Confident Enough to Charge for Scans"

One of the biggest confidence boosters? Learning how to write clear, descriptive veterinary ultrasound reports.

When vets ask "How do you write an ultrasound report?" or "How long does it take to write an ultrasound report?" the answer depends on having a systematic approach.

The SPEEDS™ method gives you that structure. Instead of vague statements, you'll develop the habit of describing exactly what you see using consistent terminology.

For example, when describing hyperechoic structures in veterinary terms, you'll note the echogenicity compared to surrounding tissues and provide context about size, shape, and clinical significance.

This systematic approach to reporting not only improves your documentation but also trains your eye to see more clearly during scanning.

Your Identity as a Learner: Rewriting the Story

Here's something foundational we need to address: your identity as a learner.

Many vets carry hidden weight—the sense that if they're not already good at something, they must not be cut out for it. It's a lie we quietly absorb through vet school and early clinical practice.

You are not bad at ultrasound. You are learning, practising, and progressing.

That's what confident scanners do. They don't judge themselves by today's scan. They zoom out. They look for patterns across weeks, not hours.

One member told us: "Learning about the Twinkle artifact has been useful. It stimulated me to do some more reading." 

That curiosity, that desire to go one layer deeper—that's a confident scanner mindset in action.

The Secret: You're Probably Further Along Than You Think

Here's something important: the very act of reading this article, thinking critically about your process, and planning your next small steps—that's growth.

That's exactly what confident scanners do.

You don't need to scan more—you need to scan with intention.

You don't need more hours—you need more pattern.

You don't need to prove anything—you just need to keep moving forward.

Celebrate Your Micro Wins

We love doing this at FOVU—celebrating not just the big wins, but the micro wins:

• You opened the tracker today? Win.
• You scanned a spleen and described its margins? Win.
• You caught yourself falling into old perfectionism and chose progress instead? Big win.

Write these down if it helps. Share them with colleagues. Let them add up, because one day you'll look back and realise you don't feel scared anymore.

You feel ready.

Building a Culture of Learning in Your Practice

If you're a team leader, mentor, or "the ultrasound person" in your practice, consider getting others to download the tracker too.

Set it up in the prep room. Invite a colleague to pick one organ this week. Make it fun, make it a challenge. Share what you found, support their learning.

Because confident scanners don't just build themselves—they lift others too.

Your Next Steps: The Path to Veterinary Ultrasound Confidence

Here's your action list:

1. Download the free practise tracker (link below)
2. Choose one organ—just one, don't overwhelm yourself
3. Set your micro-goal: two to three scans of that organ this week
4. Tick the box each time you do it
5. Come back and comment your progress

That's how confident scanners think. That's how they act. That's how they grow.

Ready to Take It Further?

The practise tracker is just the beginning. If you're ready for structured feedback, practical CPD, and a supportive learning environment, our Veterinary Ultrasound: The Basics course is here for you.

You'll get:

• Real-time feedback and teaching
• A growing archive of content designed for everyday first-opinion vets
• Access to our FOVU Report ultrasound reporting tool
• A community of vets on the same journey

As one member shared: "The FOVU course has been such a great benefit for my career. I'm doing a PgCert in imaging and the FOVU course has complemented my studies in such a good and practical way. I'm thankful for Camilla's work and all her team." 

Another wrote: "The Ask Me Anything is fantastic, so helpful! Either to ask about your own scans but also to learn from other people's cases. Really useful." 

You don't have to do this alone.

Final Thoughts: Small Steps, Big Changes

Remember: you overestimate what you can achieve in a day and underestimate what you can achieve in a year.

Progress is built one scan at a time, one reflection at a time, one small habit at a time.

Keep scanning. Keep reflecting. Keep going.

Ready to start building your veterinary ultrasound confidence today? Download the free FOVU Ultrasound Practise Tracker - the deceptively simple tool that helps you scan more consistently, spot patterns, and build habits one step at a time. Pick one organ, commit to two scans this week, and watch your confidence grow.

About Camilla

I'm Dr. Camilla Edwards, and after nearly 20 years in veterinary ultrasound, I still remember that sinking feeling when the probe was on and I couldn't find what I was looking for (hello, left adrenal gland that haunted my dreams!).

That's exactly why I created FOVU—because I believe every first-opinion vet should feel confident picking up that probe, even on the busiest Tuesday morning when you've got three consults waiting and a fractious cat on the table.

Through our best selling course The Basics and FOVU Club membership, I help vets like you build scanning confidence without the overwhelm. No perfectionism required—just practical frameworks that work in real practice, with real patients, in real time.

Because here's the truth: you don't need to be naturally gifted at ultrasound. You just need the right approach, a bit of structure, and someone who remembers what it felt like to be where you are right now.