Horse breeders face a dilemma every year as the breeding season nears. Should they breed for early foals or breed their mares to foal out in the spring and summer? The fact that all foals in the northern hemisphere share the same
Lacey is beautiful, full of personality, and very athletic–for a mule, that is. Her owners plan on showing their cherished mule when she is ready, but they face an obstacle that all owners of female mules or mares go through–heat cycles.
New research has revealed that a commercially available progesterone test is reliable and practical, and it can help veterinarians manage breeding mares more efficiently.
According to researchers from the College of Veterinary Medicine at
Manipulating the estrous cycle in mares is a big part of many breeding operations, and medications play various roles in the process. There are several options for inducing ovulation, including human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG),
Only 20 miles from downtown St. Louis, Mo., is a 1,200-acre research farm owned by the nutrition company Purina Mills. On Oct. 3-5, 140-plus veterinarians and another 50 Purina Mills representatives gathered to tour that research facility and
Prostaglandin F2 alpha (PG) is used to shorten a mare’s cycle and hasten ovulation for breeding. Unfortunately, the standard PG dose (5 mg) also causes undesirable side effects, including sweating, trembling, increased heart rate, and
If you’re a breeder, frankly, it pays to be in the livestock business. Cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs all make life easy for those trying to produce young stock–they are all facultative-induced ovulators, meaning that matings early in their”P>If you’re a breeder, frankly, it pays to be in the livestock busi
In the continuing effort to increase the fertility of horses there comes a new weapon–superovulation. Inducing a mare to ovulate multiple oocytes can translate into producing more foals from selected females. Assisted reproductive technology ca
Teasing mares can be a time-consuming and boring procedure, but it is essential if one is to detect when a mare is in estrus. Unfortunately, all mares do not react to teasing in the same manner, so one approach doesn’t suit all.
Having mares come into estrus at regular intervals can be an important assist in maintaining his fertility.
A broodmare which fails to conceive or carry a foal to term can be an emotional and financial liability. For the backyard breeder, the liability might be primarily emotional, when that special mare you wanted to produce your next trail horse or
For all things there is a time and a season. Nowhere is this more true than in equine reproduction. Nature has established a definite time and season for mares to conceive and bear foals. It is a very sensible approach on the part of
For a successful domestic species, the fertility rate of the horse is surprisingly low. Coupled with an 11-month gestation period and a single offspring per year, producing a foal is a significant investment for any breeder. So, if you’re
Moody. Inscrutable. Temperamental. Cantankerous. Mares seem to get tagged with such stereotypical labels. When your female equine displays inappropriate behavior, you might hear someone snort, Typical mare! Your mare’s nature and individual”P>Moody. Inscrutable. Temperamental. Cantankerou
At what age does a filly go into heat? Our 18-month-old Haflinger/Arab mix shows signs of coming into heat.
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