stallions frozen semen

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Even Mini cooled semen has a shorter shelf life than a normal sized horse. When I bred Morgans, I always had the semen shipped. the shelf life was 48 hours and it usually took 2 trys at $500 a try to get a mare pregnant. one of my mares would never take unless it was live coverage. With Minis, their semen usually only lasts 24 hours. Not enough time to get the semen to the breeder.

Frozen semen is even worse.
 
Counter-to-counter shipping would be more than sufficient, and only adds $50 to the price. $500/shipment is quite expensive! $350 is still pricy, but more industry-average. $250 is ideal, what most places I've worked for charged.
 
Counter-to-counter shipping would be more than sufficient, and only adds $50 to the price. $500/shipment is quite expensive! $350 is still pricy, but more industry-average. $250 is ideal, what most places I've worked for charged.

Shipping at that time was $250, plus $50 deposit on the cooler. That was UPS from their farm to my door. But with the vet bill too, it was over $500 each time I tried. That did not include the stud fees that were $2000 or more.
 
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HOLY CRAP!!!!!!!

We charged $35 for the container, and you KEPT it... cooled better than the Equitainers, too. Shipping was $55, overnight FedEx anywhere in the US. So it was under $100 for shipping, plus $200-250 for the collection/cooling services. Wow.... you need some competition in your area!
 
I am currently working with someone on freezing his stallion in the US. We have calculated that 10 breedings for 400 $ would cover the costs. This is with quarantaine and freezing.

We have announced it here in europe (it is a really great and successfull stud) and I believe that with some more announcement all 10 breedings will sell this year.

The advantage is that you can buy now and use it later.

Perhaps some people would together buy some breedings of a stallion so the owner can put him in quarantaine and have the money for the process.
 
So the US based stallion has to go into quarantine in order to collect semen to ship it internationally??? Wow, as a stallion owner I don't think I'd be willing to put my boy into quarantine. My stallions are usually breeding my own mares as well as showing. My boys are beloved members of our families and I don't think my daughter or I would want them to be away from home that long. Even with a trainer, they are home most of the time.

You are very fortunate to have found a breeder willing to put their stallion into quarantine for you to obtain some of it's semen.
 
Yes, some countries require quarantine. What you do is first select which countries you wish to ship to. Then you find an export facility that is willing to freeze for those countries (since each is different, some are more complicated.... some facilities aren't able to qualify to ship to all countries). Then the facility will tell you, the stallion owner, what types of tests you will need to undergo. Some countries require an initial set of testing, then quarantine for a length of time, then retesting, before the semen can be qualified. In the mean time, collections can still be used for domestic shipping, as well as some less strict overseas countries. As you can imagine, it gets quite complicated keeping it all straight on the paperwork. Once everything is clear and done, the USDA/State Vet has to approve the shipment.

Generally, 60 days residing at the freezing facility is all you need to store up a lifetime supply of export semen. Unless your horse is REALLY popular
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In which case you may be profitable to freeze 2 months out of every year!

The facilities that offer these export services are more than likely some of the top facilities in the country... so leaving your horses there in quarantine is not that big of a deal. And visitors are allowed, usually, so you can come see your horse. Its not like an import/export facility for horses, semen is much different. Besides, you don't do this during breeding/show season... usually you freeze for export in the fall/winter.

The most efficient way is to load a large wet/dry shipper full of multiple stallions, and ship it overseas to a broker. Its MUCH cheaper that way, to share shipping. Plus, you generally find it more cost effective to BUY a brand new shipper ($1500+) to guaranty it's sterile, rather than cleaning one out and expecting it back.
 
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Yes, some countries require quarantine. What you do is first select which countries you wish to ship to. Then you find an export facility that is willing to freeze for those countries (since each is different, some are more complicated.... some facilities aren't able to qualify to ship to all countries). Then the facility will tell you, the stallion owner, what types of tests you will need to undergo. Some countries require an initial set of testing, then quarantine for a length of time, then retesting, before the semen can be qualified. In the mean time, collections can still be used for domestic shipping, as well as some less strict overseas countries. As you can imagine, it gets quite complicated keeping it all straight on the paperwork. Once everything is clear and done, the USDA/State Vet has to approve the shipment.

Generally, 60 days residing at the freezing facility is all you need to store up a lifetime supply of export semen. Unless your horse is REALLY popular
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In which case you may be profitable to freeze 2 months out of every year!

The facilities that offer these export services are more than likely some of the top facilities in the country... so leaving your horses there in quarantine is not that big of a deal. And visitors are allowed, usually, so you can come see your horse. Its not like an import/export facility for horses, semen is much different. Besides, you don't do this during breeding/show season... usually you freeze for export in the fall/winter.

The most efficient way is to load a large wet/dry shipper full of multiple stallions, and ship it overseas to a broker. Its MUCH cheaper that way, to share shipping. Plus, you generally find it more cost effective to BUY a brand new shipper ($1500+) to guaranty it's sterile, rather than cleaning one out and expecting it back.

The bill was $250 for the collection and $50 for the "rental" of the cooler. Then another $250 for the vet for checking the mare, telling me when to order the semen and then inserting the semen when it came and giving her a shot to ovulate. Over $500 for one try. Again, it usually took at least 2 tries to get the mare pregnant. this was with cooled semen. frozen semen was more and usually did not work. With one mare, I was doing embryo transplant. That one would cost me over $10,000 for a foal.
 
I wouldn't say "usually doesn't work".... I've had great luck with my stallion. He's one for one so far, one cycle, one dose inseminated. Frozen semen is about 20% less fertile than fresh semen. Cooled semen is about halfway between the other two. Its about 70%, compared to 90% for fresh. Its not poor!
 
Nathan--I think she sayd "usually did not work" meaning it usually did not work for her. That's how I took it anyway. I know some people who have had great success with frozen semen, and others who simply had no luck at all with it. It does very much depend on ones vet--if your vet isn't familiar with using frozen semen then your failure rate may be much higher than it is for someone whose vet has had a lot of experience with using it. That is definitely something to be aware of before you put out the money to get your mare bred with frozen semen (or even fresh cooled for that matter). We considered it a couple of times with our Morgans but then decided against it as it was just too costly and/or uncertain. At the time our local vets had little interest and no experience with using transported semen so the likelihood of failure was high--we could have taken the mare to a facility where they were experienced with breeding AI (and which was nearer to an international airport than we are here) but that would have added a lot of money to the already high cost of breeding and it simply wasn't worth it for us.

Success/failure can very much depend on who is doing the collection & shipping too. I know of a couple Morgan people who could not get their mares in foal using transported semen. When they did some testing of the straws they received they found out why they were having no success--the straws were contaminated with fecal material...in one case there was much feces and next to no live sperm! These people were not dealing with one farm/stallion, so that meant there were multiple farms having this same sort of contamination.
 
Wow.... that's some very poor handling! I've never heard of fecal material contaminating it before. I'd imagine even a very small amount would have devastating effects on the sperm.
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Totally bad, and the fact that it was more than one farm that had that same problem was just totally off-putting to me. I really can't imagine how anyone would manage to contaminate a semen collection with fecal matter, if it's extremely sloppy collection procedures, or if it's totally dirty conditions when the straws are being prepared, or perhaps some of both?
 
I am also very interesting in importing frozen semen to Australia. There are lines which are just not available that I want to access. I realise the costs are quite high, but bringing in stallions mares etc, is ridiculous.

I also wanted to look into embryo importing but wasnt sure how they would stand up to being imported?

To import a horse to Australia we are looking at (for under 32") $12,000 , not including transport to Quarentine, taxes we pay when they land etc. TO import a horse over 32" it is $20,000, once again as above. A very costly excercise !

Kylie
 
I am also very interesting in importing frozen semen to Australia. There are lines which are just not available that I want to access. I realise the costs are quite high, but bringing in stallions mares etc, is ridiculous.

I also wanted to look into embryo importing but wasnt sure how they would stand up to being imported?

To import a horse to Australia we are looking at (for under 32") $12,000 , not including transport to Quarentine, taxes we pay when they land etc. TO import a horse over 32" it is $20,000, once again as above. A very costly excercise !

Kylie
I am would be very interested in importing embryos too. I don't think the quarantaine for a foal and the flight are nice to them.

I have asked several veterenary clinics here in Germany and to get here a working embryo would cost app. 400 € (500$) for flushing the mare twice (for two times heat). The import for the embryo would cost a great deal less than an actual foal. I believe in the future more embryos are going to be sold than actual foals/horses.

The shipping of a frozen embryo would also be cheaper and if I see it straight a very well bred embryo would also be cheaper than a weanling for whom the breeder had to wait (and to feed the mare) 11 months long plus the time it is a suckling. I believe it is a really nice alternative to importing foals.

The procedure is done (at least here in Germany) very nice, for the mare it is like insemination. I know that earlier the whole process was a surgery but now they do it like insemination. In Germany it is done regularly and they are very experienced.

Even if one pay say 1000$ for frozen semen it is still much cheaper than importng a horse and it has many advantages:

1. You can get bloodlines and sires that are so good that they just aren't for sale. If you buy a foal you will just a "half" of his sire the mare would throw her half in too.

2. Even if you buy a foal you have to wait and to feed them at least two years until you can breed him to your mares. That alone would cost me more than 1000$.

3. Unless you have 10 or more mares you won't need much semen and if you have servced every mare twice you have his filly foals and you wouldn't need him anymore and you could go to another stallion to make the fillies even better.

4. It the stud wouldn't work for you and the foals aren't what you have expected you won't have a stud to sell. Even in Europe is the market difficult.

5. You wouldn't have to promote this stud and bring him to a trainer and show him to get a nice show record for himself.

In Germany insemination is as a flat rate 170 € (200 $) and this isn't much if you think that you would bring a mare with the foal at her side to strange barns and you have to pay for the fuel too.

I am planing to get frozen semen of my studs myself. It has many advantages andI believe it could be worth the try for stallion owner:

1. If your stud dies in an accident or illness you would have some breedings left. I for myself feel this would benefit me in this situation.

2. You can send frozen semen in the US and in the whole world so you could get more mares and get more money with breeding fees. At the moment aren't much studs offered so I believe you could sell some quickly, if you freeze a very good stud.

3. You wouldn't have to send foals into quarantaine and on the flight.

4. You would help develop great bloodlines in the whole world and to spread the quality miniature horse.

Jessica
 
Before investing money in this venture, have the stallion owner test the stallion's semen to make sure it will freeze and thaw with a respectable count, and do it several times, test for storing it for a period of time, and make sure you get a good solid contract or you could be out a good bit of money.

So Nathan, your stallion is a mini that is one for one?

Last I have heard there has only been one live birth from frozen mini semen and would be very interested to hear if there are others.

I know a lot of breeds are successful, but was told that mini semen just doesn't hold up with any kind of quality.
 
No, my stud who's frozen is a QH. I never cooled/froze my pony. I don't have access to the facility to play with it again, unfortunately. Would love to, now that I've heard so much more about issues with miniatures.

All reputable freezing facilities will do a test freeze first, before jumping into commercial freezing, unless your horse has a history with freezing using that farm's chosen extenders (protocols). There is no need to store the semen for any length of time before doing a test thaw. Our SOP was to thaw immediately following freezing. I have heard some farms prefer to wait 24 hours and report better results. But more than that is wasted time.

Also remember that frozen semen is sold differently than cooled or fresh semen is. In Europe, its sold as a commodity. "X straws for $xxx". Nowhere does it say anything about fertility or PMS. The industry (world-wide) standard dose of frozen semen is 800 million sperm. That's TOTAL sperm, NOT motile sperm post-thaw. Post-thaw motility has to be over 30%, but that is NOT a standard, only a recommendation. Some major freezing facilities in the US are trying to change that by implementing higher standards, with higher guaranteed post-thaw numbers. Any "substandard" stallions/freezes come with a disclaimer, or are given extra straws to compensate. Some facilities in Europe are doing similar things, offering wacky doses of 5, 7, even 15 straws per dose! It gets very confusing.

When ordering frozen straws, its important to ask for:

Number of straws per dose

Number of sperm per straw

VOLUME of straw (0.5ml straws are VERY different than 0.25ml straws, and 3ml straws, etc)

Post thaw motility (not progressive motility, just total) PER COLLECTION. (Its common to send multiple collections in a single dose, you need to know each date's motility)

Number of doses included per fee
 
Important also is will it get a mare pregnant. There are a couple of famous warmblood stallions who are known to be "iffy" when it comes to freezing. Argentinus was a really good example. No trouble getting mares pregnant at the station or via AI. Frozen? Notoriously iffy, no matter the batch you got. <br /><br />Even if the post-thaw looks great it doesn't mean it will get a mare pregnant. And post thaw it can look like garbage and still get a mare pregnant. There are stallions that "freeze well" and those that don't. <br /><br />Nathan is also right about how frozen is typically sold. You typically buy it by the dose and take your chances. That's why the first question on a mare owner's lips is normally "does it get mares pregnant?"
 
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Yes, I should have added that
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EACH BATCH's fertility record, in addition to overall fertility. Don't be afraid if they don't have each batch's available, but overall is important too.
 
This is all very interesting. All I can report is what our research has found here in our area....and in this area where Thoroughbred and QH semen is big business so collection & transport is a well known subject.

It would have been interesting to have had Cowboy evaluated for freezing before he left here. Every time we had him collected and evaluated our vet and the lab were blown away. 25 1/2" and he out performed the bigs in every way.

Koriana, I hope you can find some farms that can supply the semen you want at a cost that makes it reasonable. The costs here just are not within reason....then the issue of quarantine for the stallion.
 
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