07/02/2024
Oh so good for those having troubles or just starting to think about breeding!
š With breeding season upon us, I wanted to make a post that I hope will be helpful for mare owners who arenāt as familiar with the reproductive process. I believe knowledge is power and the better you understand what the protocol should be, the more likely you are to have positive pregnancies this yearāwhether that is with R2 or not!
š§« Cultures are important. No, we donāt require them. But yes, they should be done. Itās important to make sure your mare doesnāt have an infection or pathogen in her uterus that will keep her from getting pregnant. This can ONLY be diagnosed with a culture/cytology. Your mare can seem completely fine and have an infection contained to the uterus. It happens. Doing this before you start shipping semen can save you a ton of time and money. Talk to your veterinarian! ā”ļømultiparous mares that have been on a break ā”ļøolder mares ā”ļømares bred but never took
š° It can be helpful to flush your mareās uterus. Otherwise known as a uterine lavage, this is to help clear out infection (in the case of a positive culture) and help get rid of excess fluid. This can be used post-insemination as well. If the mare is retaining a lot of fluid, your vet may suggest it as a treatment to increase your chances of pregnancy. I have done this before with great success. š¤
š OXYTOCIN! It is a wonderful medication. (Trying not to get flagged by FB with my word choice.) I honestly donāt think you can go wrong with requesting an oxytocin protocol for your mare during and after the insemination process. Like a flush, oxytocin will help the uterus clear out fluid to increase your chance of pregnancy. I have used it with great success. Itās just one more thing to check off your list to make sure that the first time is the charm. Itās cheap and effective. ā”ļøworks with breeding on foal heat!
š SUCROMATE! (Or whatever your vet has.) Ovulatory drugs are absolutely huge in getting the timing right. These typically do not work until the mare has a 35mm follicle, and should be given the day before insemination to get the absolute best timing possible. For example: if you order semen on Tuesday, we collect Wednesday and you will be breeding Thursday, it should be given on Wednesday. It typically takes 36 hours to kick in, although it can be shorter, which is why itās widely accepted to give it 24 hours prior to insemination. As long as your mare cooperates somewhat into that window, youāre in a great spot. ā”ļøso handy!
š„ Check to confirm ovulation the day after insemination. If she hasnāt ovulatedā¦ check again the next day. This is important to ensure not just that you have the timing right for your 14 day check, but to see how much fluid she is (or isnāt, which is always nice) retaining. It will also help you identify patterns in your broodmares, as most seem to follow a ātrendā of how large their follicle will get before it releases. When using ovulatory drugs this can obviously be influenced, but it will also give you an idea of how she responds to those drugs. I CANNOT understate how important this step is, because if you breed her and your vet says to just ābring her back in 16/17 daysā and you have a twin pinch situationā¦ it may not go in your favor. ā”ļøa cycle Time saver ā”ļø important for accurate foaling dates and other checks
š¤°At this point, the best thing you can do is take your mare home, keep her in a low-stress environment, and think pregnant thoughts!
ā¤ļøāš„ On the stallion side of things, hereās a couple things I want you to know. (Because I do occasionally get worried texts!)
š Semen quality declines. It happens. The way it is packaged is not climate controlled, so it wonāt be kept at a perfectly even temperature. Especially into the hotter months, there will be some die off. Mort has some of the better semen among breeding stallions, but he is not immune to this. This is why shipments contain 1 billion progressively motile s***mā¦ because we account for a 50% die off per day, just like any good farm would. 500 million progressively motile s***m is a breeding dose. Itās what we use when inseminating on site. Itās exactly how much you need.šāāļø
š¦ Donāt panic when you open the box, your vet slaps the s***m on a slide immediately and the motility is low. The little swimmers are cold. We all move slower when we are cold š as my vet told me years ago, āthe mareās uterus will always warm it up right.ā Thereās always a chance it just hasnāt warmed up properly and that reflects in what youāre seeing. If the box was somehow tampered with unfortunately thatās out of our control. (And it can happen, weve had other shippers tamper with it.)
š If you are booked to R2 Studs and you have any questions or need some guidance, you can always contact me on this page. I am here to help spread info to high tech breeding to our Rocky markets and I want every customer happy with their pregnant mare. š„°
Happy breeding season!
