Ukrainian Journal of Veterinary Sciences

Diagnosis of pregnancy using a rapid test

Oleksandr Valchuk, Vitalii Kovpak, Yurii Masalovych*, Serhii Derkach, Yurii Zhuk

masalovich@nubip.edu.ua

Download article
Abstract

The relevance of this study stems from the need for the timely and accurate determination of pregnancy in cows to improve productivity and the efficiency of reproduction management in Ukraine’s dairy cattle sector, as well as to reduce economic losses resulting from unsuccessful insemination attempts. The aim of the study was to highlight the potential for using a rapid test for the early diagnosis of pregnancy and the detection of infertility in cattle directly on the farm. The main research method was an immunological analysis to detect pregnancy-associated proteins, which enabled a comprehensive assessment of the test’s accuracy and effectiveness at various stages following insemination. The principles underlying the rapid test and its adaptation to farm conditions were substantiated to ensure reliability and ease of use. The optimal timing for testing was determined, ensuring maximum reliability of results in the early stages following insemination. The sensitivity and specificity of the test were established in comparison with traditional methods for determining pregnancy in cows. A correlation was demonstrated between the test results and the actual pregnancy status, confirming its diagnostic effectiveness. The advantages of using the test in terms of the speed and simplicity of conducting tests under various farm conditions were substantiated. It has been shown that the test enables the timely prediction of herd productivity and the optimisation of reproductive processes, thereby reducing economic losses and improving the efficiency of herd management. The results of the test validation demonstrated that its diagnostic accuracy in determining pregnancy status up to two months is 85%. The findings of this article are of practical significance for veterinary specialists interested in improving the efficiency of cattle reproduction management and optimising the productivity of dairy herds.

Keywords

infertility; pregnancy; validation; chorionic gonadotrophin; arborisation; hyperimmunisation

Suggested citation
Valchuk, O., Kovpak, V., Masalovych, Yu., Derkach, S., & Zhuk, Yu. (2026). Diagnosis of pregnancy using a rapid test. Ukrainian Journal of Veterinary Sciences, 17(3), 100-115. https://doi.org/10.31548/veterinary3.2026.100
References
  1. Akköse, M. (2023). Comparative evaluation of two commercial pregnancy-associated glycoproteins tests for early detection of pregnancy in dairy cattle. Theriogenology, 200, 11-17. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2023.01.022.
  2. ARRIVE. (n.d.). Retrived from https://arriveguidelines.org/.
  3. Bisinotto, R.S., Ribeiro, E.S., & Santos, J.E.P. (2014). Synchronisation of ovulation for management of reproduction in dairy cows. Animal, 8(1), 151-159. doi: 10.1017/S1751731114000858.
  4. Brand, W., Wells, A.T., Smith, S.L., Denholm, S.J., Wall, E., & Coffey, M.P. (2021). Predicting pregnancy status from mid-infrared spectroscopy in dairy cow milk using deep learning. Journal of Dairy Science, 104(4), 4980-4990. doi: 10.3168/jds.2020-18367.
  5. Chen, C.P.J., & Ferreira, G. (2022). Evaluation of walking activity data during pregnancy as an indicator of pregnancy loss in dairy cattle. JDS Communications, 4(2), 166-168. doi: 10.3168/jdsc.2022-0304.
  6. Crowe, M., Hostens, M., & Opsomer, G. (2018). Reproductive management in dairy cows - the future. Irish Veterinary Journal, 71, article number 1. doi: 10.1186/s13620-017-0112-y.
  7. Dana, O.I., Ghaidan, M.T., Mukhtar, R.H., & Dyary, H.O. (2020). Comparison of a barium chloride test with ELISA for pregnancy detection in cows. Journal of Veterinary Research, 64(4), 567-571. doi: 10.2478/jvetres-2020-0068.
  8. De la Sota, R.L., Corva, S., Domínguez, G., Madoz, L.V., Jaureguiberry, M., Giuliodori, M.J. (2020). Analysis of puerperal metritis treatment records in a grazing dairy farm in Argentina. Tierärztliche Praxis/Veterinary Journals, 48(04), 239-248 doi: 10.1055/a-1200-0773.
  9. Directive 2010/63/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council “On the Protection of Animals Used for Scientific Purposes (Text with EEA Relevance)”. (2010, September). Retrieved from https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2010/63/oj/eng/.
  10. Dukhnytskyi, B., & Dukhnytskyi, V. (2025). State and problems of livestock development in Ukraine. Herald of Khmelnytskyi National University. Economic Sciences, 342(3(2)), 102-107. doi: 10.31891/2307-5740-2025-342-3(2)-16.
  11. European Convention for the Protection of Vertebrate Animals Used for Research and Other Scientific Purposes. (1986, March). Retrieved from https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/go/994_137.
  12. Fodor, I., & Ózsvári, L. (2018). Early pregnancy diagnosis on large dairy farms and its role in improving profitability. Literature review. Animal Welfare, Etológia és Tartástechnológia, 14(1), 22-36. doi: 10.17205/SZIE.AWETH.2018.1.022.
  13. Ghaidan, M.T., Dana, O.I., & Dyary, H.O. (2019). Accuracy of bovine pregnancy-associated glycoproteins (bPAGs) in the diagnosis of pregnancy: A comparative study of three pregnancy diagnostic methods. Polish Journal of Veterinary Sciences, 22(4), 769-775. doi: 10.24425/pjvs.2019.131409.
  14. Gnemmi, G.M., De Rensis, F., Dall’Olio, E., Tummaruk, P., Andrani, M., & Saleri, R. (2024). Interval from oestrus to ovulation in dairy cows – a key factor for insemination time: A review. Veterinary Sciences, 11(4), article number 152. doi: 10.3390/vetsci11040152.
  15. Green, J.A., Xie, S., Quan, X., Bao, B., Gan, X., Mathialagan, N., Beckers, J.-F., & Roberts, R.M. (2000). Pregnancy-associated bovine and ovine glycoproteins exhibit spatially and temporally distinct expression patterns during pregnancy. Biology of Reproduction, 62(6), 1624-1631. doi: 10.1095/biolreprod62.6.1624.
  16. Hoffmann, B., Hamburger, R., Günzler, O., Korndörfer, L., & Lohoff, H. (1975). Determination of progesterone in milk applied for pregnancy diagnosis in the cow. Theriogenology, 2(1-2), 21-28. doi: 10.1016/0093-691X(74)90040-5.
  17. Jaśkowski, J., Kaczmarowski, M., Kulus, J., Jaśkowski, B., Herudzińska, M., & Gehrke, M. (2019). Rectal palpation for pregnancy checks in cows – the past or an alternative to modern diagnostic methods. Medycyna Weterynaryjna, 75(5), 6156-2019. doi: 10.21521/mw.6156.
  18. Kovpak, V.V., Kovpak, O.S., Valchuk, O.A., Zhuk, Y.V., & Derkach, S.S. (2022). Specifics of vitrification of in vitro-produced cattle embyos at various development stages. Regulatory Mechanisms in Biosystems, 13(3), 265-271. doi: 10.15421/022234.
  19. Kurian, N.K., & Modi, D. (2019). Extracellular vesicle mediated embryo-endometrial cross talk during implantation and in pregnancy. Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics, 36(2), 189-198. doi: 10.1007/s10815-018-1343-x.
  20. Law of Ukraine No. 3447-IV “On the Protection of Animals from Cruelty” (2006, February). Retrieved from https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/3447-15#Text.
  21. Lucy, M.C. (2025). The future of dairy: Introduction. JDS Communications, 6(1), 1-2. doi: 10.3168/jdsc.2025-0941.
  22. Moore, T., Williams, J.M., Becerra-Rodriguez, M.A., Dunne, M., Kammerer, R., & Dveksler, G. (2022). Pregnancy-specific glycoproteins: Evolution, expression, functions and disease associations. Reproduction, 163(2), R11-R23. doi: 10.1530/REP-21-0390.
  23. Nedvyha, V.D. (2002). Methods of early diagnosis of pregnancy, term and determination of calf sex. (Doctoral thesis, Stepan Gzhytskyi National University of Veterinary Medicine and Biotechnologies of Lviv, Chubynske, Ukraine).
  24. Nesrine, S., Deghnouche, K., Hanzen, Ch., & Oussama, S. (2023). Sodium hypochlorite test for early pregnancy diagnosis in cows promising innovative method. Research Square, 1. doi: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3252663/v1.
  25. Northrop, E.J., Rich, J.J.J., Rhoades, J.R., & Perry, G.A. (2019). Comparison of two bovine serum pregnancy tests in detection of artificial insemination pregnancies and pregnancy loss in beef cattle. PloS One, 14(1), article number 0211179. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0211179.
  26. Pohler, K.G., et al. (2020). New approaches to diagnose and target reproductive failure in cattle. Animal Reproduction, 17(3), article number 20200057. doi: 10.1590/1984-3143-AR2020-0057.
  27. Roberts, J.N., Byrem, T.M., & Grooms, D.L. (2015). Application of an ELISA milk pregnancy test in beef cows. Reproduction in Domestic Animals, 50(4), 651-658. doi: 10.1111/rda.12546.
  28. Sasser, R.G., Ruder, C.A., Ivani, K.A., Butler, J.E., & Hamilton, W.C. (1986). Detection of pregnancy by radioimmunoassay of a novel pregnancy-specific protein in serum of cows and a profile of serum concentrations during gestation. Biology of Reproduction, 35(4), 936-942. doi: 10.1095/biolreprod35.4.936.
  29. Sharma, M., Bahuguna, C., Arya, D., Pandey, D., & Verma, A.K. (2022). Protein profile of serum and urine during early pregnancy in sahiwal cows. The Indian Journal of Animal Sciences, 92(5), 570-575. doi: 10.56093/ijans.v92i5.118229.
  30. Siqueira, L.G.B., Areas, V.S., Ghetti, A.M., Fonseca, J.F., Palhão, M.P., Fernandes, C.A.C., & Viana, J.H.M. (2013). Color Doppler flow imaging for the early detection of nonpregnant cattle at 20 days after timed artificial insemination. Journal of Diary Science, 96(10), 6461-6472. doi: 10.3168/jds.2013-6814.
  31. Sousa, N.M., Ayad, A., Beckers, J.F., & Gajewski, Z. (2006). Pregnancy-associated glycoproteins (PAG) as pregnancy markers in the ruminants. Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology: An Official Journal of the Polish Physiological Society, 57(8), 153-171.
  32. Tiplady, K.M., Trinh, M.H., Davis, S.R., Sherlock, R.G., Spelman, R.J., Garrick, D.J., & Harris, B.L. (2022). Pregnancy status predicted using milk mid-infrared spectra from dairy cattle. Journal of Dairy Science, 105(4), 3615-3632. doi: 10.3168/jds.2021-21516.
  33. UNIFORM-Agri. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.uniform-agri.com.ua/baza-znan/.
  34. Valchuk, O.A., Kovpak, V.V., Kovpak, O.S., Salizhenko, M.I., Derkach, S.S., & Mazur, V.M. (2023). Concentration of progesterone in the blood serum and size of the corpus luteum as criteria for selection of recipient cows for embryo transfer. Regulatory Mechanisms in Biosystems, 14(4), 564-569. doi: 10.15421/022382.