Equine Reproduction

 
From pre-breeding evaluations in the winter, to new foal exams the following spring, we enjoy all of the challenges of breeding mares when preforming Equine Reproduction. Once we have a mare bred, and have followed through her successful pregnancy with ultrasound and hormone evaluations, we want to see the foal after birth, examine it, evaluate it for defects, and check a blood sample to insure it has absorbed enough colostrum to support independent life.

Equine Reproduction Services:

Pre-breeding evaluation and management

If you are considering breeding your mare, we should conduct a physical exam with an evaluation of her reproductive tract. This is most important if she has been bred in the past or is an older mare. Many older mares have structural changes that can be either surgically corrected, or managed to help her carry a foal to term.

Ultrasound examinations

The U/S is the primary tool we use to determine timing of insemination and evaluate the embryo during the stages of growth. It enables us to find cysts and check that the uterus is not accumulating fluid. It is also invaluable for evaluating the placenta and fetus in later pregnancy.

Artificial insemination

We artificially inseminate thirty to forty mares per year with chilled or frozen semen shipped in from all over the world. Breeding season is our favorite time of the year!

Embryo transfer

Embryo transfer has become more commonplace in the last several years. Typically we breed the mare, flush the embryo, and ship it to a transfer facility that has a large herd of recipient mares so they can place it in the mare whose cycle is in the best synchronization with our donor mare. If a mare owner can supply at least two possible recipients, we will transfer the embryo here. Embryos can also be frozen for later use or sale.

Foaling assistance

We attend many foalings each year, and most do not require foaling assistance at all. We like to examine the foal and mare about twelve hours after birth to insure that all went well and the foal has nursed adequately. By doing a quick blood test right on the farm, we can tell if the foal has absorbed enough colostrum to have a healthy start in life.

Semen freezing

We have three nitrogen storage tanks for frozen semen. If your mare is to be bred with frozen semen, it can be shipped to us early in the season and will be on hand when needed. Although we do not collect stallions at the clinic anymore, we can make arrangements for your stallion with one of our breeding farms to collect him and transfer the semen to us for freezing. We are also able to receive fresh chilled semen that we process and freeze. We freeze many purebred dogs here and are an AKC-approved semen freezing and storage facility.

For more info on Equine Reproduction, please refer to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horse_breeding

Give Danielle Bercier DVM CCPR a call at Equine Medical for all of your Equine Reproduction Services. Our team is here to guide you through all of our reproduction procedures and make sure your Mare and Foal evaluation is done by an experienced vet for maintaining health and longevity of life.