For The Mare Owner:
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Track your mare's heat cycles very carefully. Especially be sure to get
first day of heat and the last day of heat. Tease DAILY! |
Please Note:
Semen/sperm analysis is extremely specific. Any examination of the semen and the actual insemination is best left to the professionals to determine the best procedures for your situation and facilities.
Call the stallion owner on the first day of your mare's heat (the heat you intend to breed her). Be prepared to give the stallion owner an idea of the average amount of days that your mare stays in heat. You will want to send for the semen anywhere from 4-2 days before the end of that average.
Hire a veterinarian who owns an ultrasound machine to manage your mare at this time. When the dominant follicle gets to about 30mm in diameter and you think you can reliably get semen by the next day, call the stallion owner. If the semen can be collected and shipped for arrival the next day have the vet give her hCG. The hCg will encourage the follicle to mature more rapidly and it usually will go within 24-48 hours.
Note the day she comes out of heat and figure that she probably ovulated the night before. Count 14-15 days past the presumed day of ovulation (NOT the day of breeding) and check for heat. If by 18-20 days past ovulation she has not shown heat, have her ultrasounded again to verify the pregnancy and to check for the presence of twins. At this stage, if there are twins, one can usually be "pinched" by your vet without disrupting the other pregnancy. If you wait too long, the whole pregnancy and your mare's reproductive year could be shot. Call the stallion owner to verify the pregnancy to them.
For the Stallion Owner:
Some very fertile stallions do not "ship" well. Some very fertile stallions
do not "ship" at all!!
To find out if your stallion is one of these, have a veterinarian who is knowledgable in equine theriogenology do a breeding soundness exam on your stallion either in the fall or in late winter. Have his semen tested in equitainers in different extenders. Some stallions do very well in one brand and horrible in another. His producing son may prefer the excact opposite that his sire does well in. You will never know unless it is tested! In addition, have his "longevity" tested. This entails having the vet check his sperm after 12, 24, 48, 72 hours in the equitainer. This way, you can rest assured that your stallion can withstand being stuck at some airport for a couple of days or so, and STILL get a mare pregnant! Or, you can avoid bad PR due to the fact that your stallion in Maine can not make it to Texas without his sperm pooping out.
Make sure that every shipment includes that collection's number of cells, percent progressive motility raw and then extended, the brand of extender,total volume, time of collection, the color of the semen (white, creamy white, yellow, brownish, pinkish, watery) and a note to the mare owner detailing proper handling of the specimen upon arrival. It is strongly recommended that the mare owner take note here and discuss as many of these details with both the stallion owner and the professional who will be performing the actual insemination well in advance of the event. These are steps often forgotten and can lead to a nasty phone call.
And, as a final note to the stallion owner, including some literature on how to check to see if the mare is pregnant and a picture of the stallion is also a nice touch!
Don't "fudge" on the details: Remember, it is your farm and your stallion's reputation at stake!
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