AQHA MAGAZINE May / June 2020 AQHA May-June YB 2020 WEB LR | Page 70

PG.68
HORSE HEALTH
THE UPS AND
DOWNS OF
BREEDING WITH
A STALLION
stallion man
ARTICLE BY: WESTVETS EQUINE REPRODUCTIVE CENTRE V PHOTO BY: EV LAGOON PHOTOGRAPHY
Breeding your own horses is an
option that many horse owners
try at some stage. Most owners
have a mare that they breed from,
however very few owners decide
to manage and educate a stallion
with the prospect of using him as
a breeding proposition. Stallions
might be considered a breeding
option to increase genetic gain,
financial gain or prestige. Stallions
are 50% of the genetic equation
and as such are an important factor.
This article answers some of the
questions associated with using
stallions for breeding.
Why do people choose to collect a stallion
rather than simply use a natural cover?
Stallions can be used for live cover/natural mating
or can have their semen collected for artificial
breeding. This artificial breeding can be for fresh,
chilled or frozen semen artificial insemination
(AI). The amount of processing varies but
generally increases from fresh AI to frozen AI.
Fresh AI is for relatively immediate use. Chilled
AI is for transporting semen for up to 48 hours.
Frozen semen is to preserve semen indefinitely
and allow transport (especially internationally) or
long term storage.
There are several reasons why stallions are not
used for live cover. These vary depending on the
wishes of the owner. There might be breed society
restrictions on the use of Artificial Breeding. For
example the Thoroughbred Industry does not
allow any form of Artificial Breeding and so if
genetics are to be imported then importing the
stallion is one way to achieve this. There are a
lot of “shuttle stallions” that travel from one
hemisphere to the other enjoying a very long
breeding season!
Fresh AI can be used when the stallion has too
many mares to cover that day, or it is more
convenient for the stallion owner to collect once
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