Veterinary Stethoscopes are used for listening to the sounds of heart, lung and gastrointestinal sounds of different animals. Difficulties can arise when the functionality of stethoscope is compromised due to incompatibility with, or when it does not match the weight, size, breed and location of the organ of the animal. There are four types of the veterinary stethoscope:
- Infant Veterinary Stethoscope is ideal for use in the diagnosis of small animals, like lizards, frogs and snakes.
- Paediatric Veterinary Stethoscope: is used for the diagnosis of birds,
- Littmann Veterinary: is suitable for small animals like cats or dogs and also for huge animals like bulls, cows, camels or even elephants.
- Lightweight Stethoscope: is specially designed for physicians with weak neck muscles.
Reviews of the Best Veterinary Stethoscope
**Below, you’ll find our more detailed reviews, but you can also click the links above to see current prices or read customer reviews on Amazon.
Top 10 Best Veterinary Stethoscope Reviews
1. 3M Littmann III Stethoscope, Black Plated Chestpiece and Eartubes – 3131BE
This is an non-electronic, mechanical or acoustic stethoscope. It can transmit sound through hollow tubing to your ears. Its tube length is enough to keep you out of danger of an attack from the sick, stubborn animal. Injured pets can be aggressive towards their parents as well as strangers. This flexible and long tube will help you to maintain a safe distance between the animal and yourself or your team. It is helpful for all specialists like physicians, nurses, and veterinarians, cardiologists, paediatricians, gastroenterologists, pulmonologists, and respiratory professionals in hospital, clinical, or other healthcare facilities. Listening to the sound can help you a lot in the diagnosis of the disease. This stethoscope can clearly differentiate between a healthy heart sound and an unhealthy one. Two tunable diaphragms are extremely easy to use. You can very easily change the pressure to capture low and high-frequency sounds. Apply less pressure to listen to low-frequency sounds and firm pressure to listen to high-frequency sounds. You can easily convert the pediatric side to an open bell for low frequencies, using the included non-chill bell sleeve. It has a durable, dual lumen tube. This two in one tube design eliminates noise interference, which was common in traditional double tubes. It prevents two external tubes from rubbing against one another. It is very comfortable to use with an angled headset to meet the path of your ear canals.
Pros:
- The ONLY cardiology stethoscope with a dual-sided chest piece,
- Two tunable diaphragms
- Convertible pediatric side
- Non-chill bell
- Dual lumen tubing
- No interference of external noise
- Angled headset
- Promotional warranty offer for students is included
2. 3M Littmann Master Classic II Veterinary Stethoscope, Single-sided Chestpiece
This stethoscope is a useful diagnostic instrument that amplify sounds made by the body from the heart, lungs, abdomen and intestinal tract, or other body sites of animal, birds, reptiles or fish. It can detect and study internal systems, such as fetal development, blood flow or blood pressure (BP), and respiration, and sounds, such as cardiac, venous, arterial, pulmonary, and uterine from within the body of your pet. This stethoscope has a Y-shaped rubber tubing that allows sound to travel from the chestpiece to your ears. It has an open bell that can detect low-frequency sounds, and a diaphragm detects high frequency sounds. You can detect, listen to, and study heart, lung, and other body sounds of an animal for physical assessment and diagnosis. 3M Littmann tunable diaphragm technology delivers excellent acoustic sensitivity, versatility and time-saving feature.
Pros:
- Mutiple function
- Long navy blue tube
- Excellent acoustic sensitivity
- Time-saving feature
3. ADC Adscope 600 Platinum Series Cardiology Stethoscope with Tunable AFD Technology
AFD technology stands for adjustable frequency design. It has a CNC precision-machined, stainless-steel chestpiece. Its AFD technology provides you with an outstanding acoustic performance. It has a bi-lumen or dual channel headset that optimizes the acoustic pathway. It features a compact sculpted design. It allows you to tune the diaphragm to enhance both high- and low-frequency response. This feature will help you assess quickly and prevent any attack from the animal.
Pros:
- AFD technology
- Stainless steel construction
- Bi-lumen or dual channel
- Compact sculpted design
- Tunable diaphragm
4. MDF Instruments MD One Stainless Steel Premium Dual Head Stethoscope – Free-Parts-for-life
This veterinary stethoscope has a Lifetime Warranty. It features Free Parts for Life Program. Its construction is durable, sturdy and acoustically-superior stainless steel. This veterinary stethoscope delivers accurate auscultation of heart, lung, and Korotkoff sounds from an animal’s body with acoustic integrity and clarity. It has an ergonomic design which ensures comfort for you and the sick animal, even during constant use. This product will satisfy you with its unmatched performance, durability, and aesthetics. It has a handcrafted stainless steel dual-head chest piece that is precisely machined and hand polished for the highest performance and durability. It has a full-rotation acoustic valve stem with green indicator dot which allows you to easily identify the active sound channel and seals in sound. Its tubes are constructed of thicker, denser, latex-free PVC. The Y-configuration non-stick acoustic tubing seals out ambient noise. It is stain resistant and environmentally friendly. It has a longer-than-average length allowing a comfortable space between you and the aggressive animal. It has a patented internal metal-alloy chamber located in its acoustic tubing below the spring that keeps its tubing channel open for maximum sound transmission into your headset. It has soft silicone ComfortSeal eartips in standard and small sizes that are clear for hygienic purposes and conform to your ears to seal out extraneous noise and prevent interruption in desirable results. Free parts for life program Include accessories like two extra sets ComfortSeal eartips, one spare ultrasensitive diaphragm, and an ID tag.
Pros:
- Comfortable
- Durable
- Long tube for safety
- Free parts for life
- Lifetime warranty
5. Prestige Medical Veterinary Clinical I, Purple
This veterinary stethoscope has a stainless steel chest piece and stainless steel binaural. It incorporates the most effective sound conducting metal available. The scope has a design that features longer thick walled single tubing for added safety. It has an alloy sound conductor inside the tubing which provides a clear and crisp transmission of sound. An easy to use snap-on rim and diaphragm help make it an outstanding performer. The extra diaphragm is also included.
Pros:
- Comfortable
- Purple colour
- Durable
- Added safety with a longer tube
- Extra parts
6. 3M Littmann Classic II S.E. Stethoscope 2201
This is a true clinical workhorse, providing high acoustic sensitivity through its dual-sided, stainless steel chest piece; with a tunable diaphragm on one side and traditional bell on the other. You can identify, listen to, and study heart, lung, and other body sounds for physical assessment and diagnosis of pet animals, birds, fish or reptiles.
Pros:
- High acoustic sensitivity
- The dual sided chest piece
- Tunable diaphragm
7. Vive Precision Stethoscope Bell with Case, Accessories and Dual Head Diaphragm Bell,
This is a comfortable and lightweight Veterinary stethoscope. It has a single lumen design with a durable stainless steel diaphragm. Its diaphragm can detect high frequencies and its small bell can detect the low frequency and auscultatory sounds. Its stainless steel headset is tipped with soft silicone for a complete acoustic seal and a comfortable wearing experience. Its flexible PVC tubing in the standard single lumen will help keep at a safe distance from the animal.
Pros:
- Comfortable
- Durable
- Lightweight
- Flexible tube.
8. MDF Realtree Max-5 Camo MD One Stainless Steel Dual Head Stethoscope – Limited Edition
This stethoscope is constructed from acoustically-superior stainless steel. This veterinary stethoscope delivers accurate auscultation of heart, lung, and Korotkoff sounds with acoustic integrity and clarity. An ergonomic design ensures the comfort you and the animal, even during extended use. This instrument has unmatched performance. Whether you are listening to the heartbeat of a horse or a dog, this veterinary stethoscope will satisfy you.
Pros:
- Durable
- Comfortable
- Affordable
- Free parts for life
9. Ultrascope Adult Stethoscope – Pink Paisley Head with Hot Pink Tubing
UltraScopes are pressure sensitive stethoscopes for assessment of heart / lung sounds animals, birds and humans. Its head is machined from an extremely crack resistant modern plastic. Its head, tubing and binaural assembly filter external noises while amplifying heart or lung sounds without batteries or electronics. Another main feature of UltraScope Classic Stethoscope is the best solution for hard of hearing users due to unimpeded sound delivered to each ear. I recommend hard of hearing doctors try the UltraScope Single Stethoscope first.Pros:
- Suitable for hard of hearing doctors
- Crack resistant plastic
- Filters external noise
10. Virtuoso Rx, Dual Head Cardiology Quality Stethoscope
It has a tight fitting head. It has flexible latex free tubing. It is affordable and durable. It is beautiful, bright orange colour makes you look stylish.
Pros:
- Bright ORANGE color
- Very affoedable
- Tight fitting head
- Flexible non latex tubes
How to use the stethoscope
How veterinary stethoscopes work?
Veterinary stethoscope picks vibrations caused by various physiological functions through the chest piece, then transmitting them to your ears through the airtight tubing and headset.
Differences between veterinary stethoscope and human stethoscope
- chest piece and diaphragm :
Animals vary in sizes and shapes, so all veterinary stethoscopes have double sided chest piece and a tunable diaphragm. Assessing animals need to be performed really quickly without any interruptions and removing or replacing parts or repositioning them. While human patients can be diagnosed easily with any single sided or double sided chest piece and diaphragm.
- Tube Length :
Pet animals can be skittish around strangers and wild animals from a zoo or wildlife park are very dangerous for physicians and other caretakers. Naturally, a longer tube will be safe for everyone concerned. These long tubes do not compromise on the acoustic quality and deliver desirable results. While human stethoscopes have a limited tube length.
- Material used :
Veterinary stethoscopes are made up of seamless integration. It has an aerospace headpiece technology, stainless steel chest piece and hard wearing flexible tubing. Thus it can resist rust, corrosion or abrasion. While regular stethoscopes are made up of different materials, some are durable others are not.
Things to consider when buying a veterinary stethoscope
- Your Budget:
Select the veterinary stethoscope that is most affordable and cost-effective. Select the one with long replacement, refund or maintenance warranty.
- Length of the tube :
Choose the veterinary stethoscope that has the maximum tube length. The length will help to maintain a safe distance between the animal and yourself to prevent any attacks or mishaps.
- Best Acoustic Quality:
Pick the veterinary stethoscope that does not compromise with the desirable assessment results. Electronic veterinary stethoscopes are preferable, as they are perfect for animal use. Electronic veterinary stethoscopes are much more useful than the manual ones. There is a built-in rechargeable lithium battery sold along with the set of your stethoscope. The monitoring, assessment and diagnosis become quicker and easier using an electronic stethoscope. You will remain out of danger of an attack by the sick unhappy wild animal. An electronic veterinary stethoscope is able to transmit the auscultation to smartphones, speakers, headphones and tablets. You will be able to listen to the auscultation sounds of an animal alone or in a group. You can adjust the volume as you or your team desires. You can record and share the auscultation sounds, for future judgment of improvements and help your patient to recover as a result to perfect diagnosis. This modern stethoscope amplifies the sound of auscultation twenty times. Thanks to android the apps are always free. The option to record and share is too helpful for trainers to teach and train the freshers the contrasts and comparisons between a healthy animal’s body sounds and a sick animal’s body sounds. It will also help you as a veterinarian to inform the owners of the pets about the exact disease or disorder their dear pet is suffering from. And also you can attach the file to the patient’s record by just a click.
- Amplification of sound :
Pick the electronic veterinary stethoscope that amplifies auscultation sound up to ten decibels. This the most useful feature for people with weak hearing or conductive and sensorineural hearing loss.
- Easy to use:
Choose an electronic veterinary stethoscope as it is easier to use. Pick the electronic stethoscope that is wireless and portable. You can simply remove the tube of your stethoscope and use the Bluetooth communication to improve the quality of auscultation sounds. The chest piece of an electronic veterinary stethoscope can be changed easily. There are two diameters available: paediatric and standard. You can replace the chest piece whenever necessary. Wifi connection is the most useful feature of an electronic stethoscope. The auscultation audio remains saved, enabling you to edit and visualize the audio. You can easily follow the patient evolution or treatments to the audio recorded with your mobile device.
- Elimination of ambient noise:
Choose the veterinary stethoscope that eliminates all ambient noise. Select from a range of electronic stethoscopes for amplified auscultation sound. Such stethoscopes have a wifi connection to your smartphone, Bluetooth and an optional hearing aid, headphones and interface receivers for users with hearing loss.
- Waterproof:
Pick a veterinary stethoscope that is fully water resistant and also rust resistant. The bodies of snakes, frogs or lizards are wet and the water is dripping from them. So always buy a waterproof veterinary stethoscope to prevent any harm to your device.
Final Verdict
After many weeks of research, comparisons and gathering expert opinions I have concluded that the title for the best veterinary stethoscope goes to: 3M Littmann III Stethoscope. It is the ONLY cardiology stethoscope with a dual-sided chest piece, two tunable diaphragms, convertible pediatric side, non-chill bell, dual lumen tubing and no interference of external noise.
Or you can also go for: 3M Littmann Master Classic II Veterinary Stethoscope. It can detect and study internal systems, such as fetal development, blood flow or blood pressure (BP), and respiration, and sounds, such as cardiac, venous, arterial, pulmonary, and uterine from within the body of your pet.