Frozen Semen - Fact verses Fiction

Tune into Season 1, Episode 18
Frozen Semen - Fact verses Fiction

In this episode of the Brabant Bulletin podcast host, Stacy Pearsall, dives into the many myths and mistruths of frozen semen in the European Brabant draft horse world. She'll talk about importing frozen semen from Europe, the expenses, the benefits and more. Tune in!

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Transcript

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This is the Brabant Bulletin brought to you by the European Registry of America, where people, passion and preservation are our mission. Well, hello, fellow Brabanters Today I'm going to dive into the use of frozen semen. Many mare owners are resistant to using frozen semen for a number of reasons. One trope I've heard a lot go around is something like, “I heard it from a friend, who heard it from another friend, that had this mare and they used frozen semen and it failed. And it was gigantic waste of money.” I've also heard people say,“Those who breed horses with artificial insemination are promoting subpar breeders,” and “Only lazy stallions are collected because they can't get the job done doing life cover.” Would it surprise you if I said that Stallions who are clinically assessed for freezing undergo volume, concentration, motility and morphology tests to determine their viability from jump, and only those stallions with outstanding numbers will qualify. That hardly sounds like subpar stallions and subpar breeding. So today I'm going to take the opportunity to discuss some of the myths and mistruths that likely have propagated through the European Brabant draft horse community over the years. And sometimes it goes down to fear of the unknown. So I hope to provide some information that you can digest and consider when thinking about who to breed to with your mare, and how to address those concerns and dispel some of the myths that may prevent you, my fellow mare owners, from taking advantage of modern day frozen semen technology. And for you, my fellow stallion owners, for maximizing your horse's marketability and reach. All right, let's go. Some say breeding mares with frozen semen requires around-the-clock veterinary examinations to achieve acceptable pregnancy rates. Actually folks, not anymore. This is one of the most common misconceptions about the use of frozen semen today. It's primarily a result of how frozen semen used to be marketed over the years, And it's definitely a dated way of looking at things, considering that was how frozen semen was used in the 1980s. But mare owners would typically purchase 2 to 3 doses of frozen semen with no guarantees and take it to their veterinarian to breed their mare. Knowing that the supply of semen was very expensive of the veterinarian tried to manage the mare so that only one dose of semen was used per heat cycle. Studies show that pregnancy rates are highest for frozen semen when mares are inseminated in a period of 12 hours before or 6 hours after ovulation. Although many fertility studies report very acceptable pregnancy rates for these mares examined and inseminated only once. It is clear that post population inseminations must be performed within 6 to 8 hours of ovulation, since accurately predicting ovulation within 12 hours is really, really difficult. It's logical that a practitioner with only a single dose available would examine mares at 6 to 8 hour intervals in the pre ovulatory period. Wait until ovulation is detected and then inseminate with that single dose at that time. However, a new protocol for managing mares with frozen semen was developed by Select Breeder Services. This new protocol involves a single daily examination until a 35 mm preovulatory follicle is detected in the mare. Administration of an ovulation inducing agent like HCG and then insemination with two doses of semen, one at the 24 hour mark and one of the 40 hour mark after administering that ovulation agent of HCG. The use of this protocol ensures that the viable sperm are available for fertilization in the mares reproductive tract during that time period of 12 hours before and the 6 hours after ovulation for mares ovulating 18 to 52 hours after that administration of the HCG Hey, if all of that jargon just went over your head. Here's the simple version of it. Essentially, your mare is going to ovulate and that veterinarian wants to time the insemination perfectly so that the semen can, you know, copulate with the egg. So essentially what they will do is just the same as fresh cooled semen, will time the insemination accordingly. And now this new protocol, just like using fresh cooled semen, will use two doses. Once they figure out the mare has a 35 millimeter follicle, they will administer a shot that prompts ovulation. And then 24 hours after giving that shot, they will inseminate with the first dose and then 40 hours after the shot was given. They will inseminate with the second dose. By doing this, they're going to be trying to hit that 12 hour pre ovulation and six hour post ovulation insemination timings. You are probably asking yourself, why the heck does this matter? Well, essentially, by doing this approach, you are reducing the amount of mare management, While also maximizing your fertility success rate. Because, again, you are using two doses and increasing your chances of hitting that ovulation right on. Now, there's a rumor out there that frozen semen is more expensive than fresh cooled shipped semen. In fact, the total cost of frozen semen to both mare and stallion owners is very similar. Costs for stallion owners come primarily from the actual collection of the semen and the processing, whether cooled or frozen. This requires having the equipment for collection and the processing of the semen and the shipping. Or you can hire a veterinarian or use a collection facility for these necessary services on a as needed basis, mostly outside of equine fertility facilities. Charge a stallion owner 125 to $200 to collect and process cooled semen. Since the useful lifespan of cooled semen is 24 to 48 hours, most of these collections are really only good for one to two mares. The cost to the stallion owner can easily exceed $100 per dose. Moreover, if the mare do not ovulate as predicted, a second collection for the same heat cycle may be required. Add to this the labor cost to trailer the stallion to the collection facility, and to administer the cost to coordinate the cooled semen request. The overall semen production cost per mare bred can easily exceed $125 per dose, depending on the number of sperm produced by any given stallion, frozen semen costs a total of $45 to $90 per dose, including all the labor and the board at the collection facility. Typically, 2 to 3 doses are shipped per heat cycle, so the production costs per mare bred for frozen semen are similar to or even lower than those for cooled semen. Pretty crazy. That costs for mare management and insemination are comparable for cooled and frozen semen if there are more than one dose per cycle like the protocol I described earlier. Mare owners are typically responsible for the shipping and handling charges of cooled or frozen semen. These charges are higher for frozen semen than cooled semen because of the necessary canisters and cryo stuff. However, the added benefits of using frozen semen far outweigh the increased costs. With frozen semen, the shipment can be scheduled well in advance of the anticipated day of ovulation and breeding, which eliminates concerns about last minute scheduling, shipment delays and stallion availability. When the mare is ready to be inseminated, the semen is there and ready for you. Moreover, a single frozen dose of semen can contain enough doses to inseminate one single mare through multiple cycles or even multiple mares for a single location. You may be wondering if there are cost differences between frozen semen from a domestic stallion here in North America versus importing frozen semen from a stallion abroad. The short answer is no, not really. There are some Brabant stallions in Belgium and Holland that have already been collected per USDA guidance and are ready for purchase and shipping right now. To import from Europe, you can expect to pay the following $100 for handling fee from the vet clinic.$80 for a health certificate from Europe.$80 for a USA Health certificate,$180 for the shipping container rental fee, $180 to return that same container back to the originator,$600 for the shipping insurance and the agent fee. And of course, the tariffs and taxes over in Europe, which is roughly about $400. But don't forget, there's always the stud fee and you will have to negotiate that stud fee with the stallion owner or its agent. On the average, you can expect to invest about 350 to 550 USD per dose. Given the expense to import, I recommend importing no less than ten doses per shipment. So for this exercise, let's say ten doses at $350, which is $3,500. So based on all that, you are all in looking at about $4,720, which comes to roughly $472 per dose. Yes. You will be forced to pay for multiple stud fees all at once and upfront. But the benefit of frozen semen is that it can be stored indefinitely and therefore can be used for several breeding seasons to come. Now, if you select a stallion who hasn't been collected for USDA export, then you will be likely responsible for the associated collection fees, the processing fees and the testing fees. And you may get through that whole testing process only to find out the stallion is not a good candidate for frozen semen breeding. However, the benefits of importing semen are extremely high in terms of the introduction of new genes and pedigrees into North America. And of course, there are also more stallions for you to select from abroad so you can identify more candidates based on what you want and what you desire for your offspring. If you are considering importing, you can always survey other mare owners who want to import as well. They can share the import expense and therefore lowering your overhead costs for bringing frozen semen in to North America. Alternatively, you can pre-sell some of your own doses to help offset the expense of importation. One more thing I haven't mentioned about frozen semen yet, whether domestic or imported, frozen semen has storage fees incurred. Often clinics will charge a storage and insurance fee to keep your doses safe on ice. It's a nominal fee that varies from clinic to clinic but you can expect to pay around $150 to $250 a year. It's a good idea to roll that fee into your price per dose when calculating a stud fee. So there you go. Frozen semen stud fees are really no more expensive than live cover or fresh cooled semen or even domestic frozen semen stud fees. All right. Let's talk about fertility. Fertility rates in frozen semen, particularly. Not all stallions produce sperm that can be frozen successfully. And selection of stallions for use in commercial frozen semen breeding programs is essential. In general, per cycle, pregnancy rates for mares bred from frozen semen are slightly lower. That's about 10% lower than mares bred with cooled semen. However, seasonal pregnancy rates have been found to be quite similar. Of course, many factors contribute to the success or failures of insemination, including mare age and reproductive status, i.e. is she maiden or barron, stallion fertility and semen quality as well, and appropriate handling and use of the semen. That means you need a good vet. Mare owners should be aware that pregnancy rates with frozen semen are lower in mares older than 16. Pregnancy rates also depend on the stallion. Some studs’ semen freezes better than others’. For the best chance of success, owners should breed to a stallion that is known to have good quality frozen semen and have produced live foals. In some cases, stallions are just now getting around to doing frozen semen and you may not have that data yet. So some practitioners and mare owners have reported that some mares inseminated with frozen semen have exhibited post breeding endometritis presumably in response to the component of frozen semen extenders. Or at least that's what's been thrown around the community. However, recent studies have shown that that's not really the case. It has been clearly demonstrated that all mares have been noted to have immediate inflammatory responses to sperm in the uterus. This occurs with natural mating and artificial insemination with fresh cooled or frozen semen. The seminal plasma present in the semen plays a role in mediating this inflammatory response and promotes uterine clearance. With frozen semen insemination that appears to be delayed clearance of this normal and sterile inflammatory fluid in some mares. This is most likely due to the fact that prior to freezing, a majority of seminal plasma is removed from the semen by centrifugation. And that is a necessary step for successful cryopreservation. Delayed uterine clearance of post-meeting induced inflammatory fluids is most prevalent in older mares that have a large uterus with poor tone that do not contract well, And it's difficult to physically clear that fluid. Older maiden mares may also have the same mechanical problem and it can cause cervical dysfunction. It is recommended that these mares exhibiting clear fluid in the uterus post insemination be treated with oxytocin so that it can produce uterine contractions and aid in that mechanical clearance of that fluid. Let's say you've got mare who's a good candidate for frozen semen insemination. You're likely thinking,“I have to pay to haul my marriage to the fertility clinic and pay all those daggone fees.” Well. It's true that handling frozen semen is technically more difficult than, say, cooled semen transfer. And therefore requires a veterinarian with a lot of previous experience using frozen semen. The actual process is really quite simple. And you do not. You do not. Let me repeat this again. You do not need to have your mare at a clinic for breeding with frozen semen. Your ambulatory veterinarian can perform this insemination on your farm. Be sure to work with a practitioner who is experienced with this breeding method as timing and handling of the semen is an important factor in determining success. Also, ensure that your farm has adequate necessities so that the veterinarian can successfully work. That means power and lighting. In short, help them help you. It should also be noted that equine sperm are very sensitive to temperature changes and improper thawing and handling can damage that sperm. most frozen semen shipments are accompanied with detailed thawing and handling instructions and arrive in a nitrous container that will maintain that semen for several days after arrival. A water bath that's maintained at 37 degrees Celsius with an accurate thermometer, a pair of hemostats or tweezers to remove this straws from the sterile test tube are all things that you need to properly thaw semen and have it ready for insemination. A veterinarian with a solid background in reproduction, artificial insemination and mare management is critical to the success of any breeding program using frozen semen, whether on the farm or even at their clinic. Now, let me summarize this by saying the benefits of using frozen semen when breeding Amare are numerous. First and foremost from the European Brabant Registry of America's perspective is genetic diversity. Having the ability to bring fresh blood is so very important to the future of this breed. Please consider importing frozen semen. Plus there are other added bonuses. Cryopreservation or freezing allows long term sperm storage, which in turn allows you, the mare owner, to buy and store semen from the stallion of interest that you like and for your mares and future breeding. The ability to import frozen semen from other countries allows you the access to quality stallions from all over the world. And storing frozen semen gives you the option to breed to stallions that have died or have been castrated too. Plus, frozen semen can be stored indefinitely in properly maintained liquid nitrogen tanks for a nominal monthly fee. While the cost per dose varies, it is comparable to an average live cover and fresh cooled semen stud fee. Yes, shipment costs will be incurred and frozen semen can be considered a little bit more expensive in the process. But consider this, that live cover requires that you haul your mare to the stallion owner and you will pay a chute and boarding fee anyway. So in the end, it's tomato, tomato folks. I hope you enjoy this program. Be sure to like and subscribe to the Brabant Bulletin wherever you get your podcasts. Until next time, Remember to Ride a Brabant is to fly without wings.