Best Time to Breed
Today, the availability of frozen and chilled semen makes it possible for breeders to choose a stud dog from anywhere in the world. However, knowing when to breed requires knowledge of the estrus cycle.
The cycle begins with a rise in estrogen. Just before LH rises to a peak, progesterone begins its rise. Following the rise in progesterone will indicate the best time to breed. Typically, bitches ovulate about two days after LH peak and it takes about two days for the ovulated eggs to mature so that sperm can fertilize these eggs. The fertile period in a bitch’s cycle is 4–7 days from LH peak.
We recommend seeing your bitch within 5-7 days from the start of her cycle.
Artificial Insemination
In addition to natural breeding, OSSVH offers artificial insemination (AI) with fresh, chilled, or frozen semen. AI techniques include vaginal insemination, transcervical insemination, and surgical implant.
Transcervical inseminations (see the photographs on this page) are accomplished using special endoscopic equipment or the Norwegian Pipette system. Transcervical inseminations are done on an awake, standing bitch. Due to anatomy, transcervical inseminations cannot be accomplished in every bitch, and we will recommend surgical implant under anesthesia as an alternative. In a surgical implant, a small incision is made in the abdominal wall, the uterine horns are elevated, and the thawed frozen semen is injected into the horns. Patients recover quickly and seldom experience complications following this procedure.
Our recommendation on the type of insemination will depend on the quality of semen.
Pregnancy and Ultrasound
When OSSVH is involved in your bitch’s AI, we will tell you when your bitch can be checked for pregnancy and give you an estimated whelping date.
OSSVH recommends an ultrasound between 25-28 days from the bitch’s first breeding. If X-rays are requested, we prefer doing them 1 week before the bitch is due to better see the puppy skeletons. Ultrasound allows us to confirm pregnancy and permits us to determine the pups’ well-being by observing their heartbeats. At the time of the ultrasound, we will discuss management of the bitch throughout her pregnancy and nursing. We also provide elective c-sections when indicated for specific breeds or for bitches with a history of whelping problems.
Neonatal Care
Successful conception, gestation, and whelping are only the first parts of a successful breeding. Neonatal puppies are most vulnerable during the first 3 weeks of life. At OSSVH, we counsel breeders on proper nutritional requirements of the nursing bitch, how to monitor for and prevent mastitis, how to monitor and treat for intestinal parasites, and methods for optimal weaning. We can help with early warning signs of “failure to thrive” or weak pups and provide solutions for giving the pups the best chance possible. Our goal is 100% survival of healthy puppies though the weaning stage and beyond.
Female Fertility
OSSVH offers consultations, examinations, and appropriate testing for those breeders whose bitches are not getting pregnant, have an abnormal discharge after being bred, have had problems delivering, have lost litters, or experienced other events associated with infertility. It is important to consider the bitch’s prior history, such as prior or concurrent medical problems, and whether ovulation timing was applied to determine the best time to breed.
Our goal is to find a solution that will enable a successful breeding and a litter of healthy and happy pups.
Male Fertility
To evaluate male fertility, we collect semen and perform an evaluation that first notes the color and volume. We then place a very small volume of the semen in a sperm counter to get the concentration (sperm/ml). Then a drop of the semen is placed on a warm microscope slide, cover slipped, and evaluated for progressive motility and morphology (see the Sperm Morphology chart on this page). Minimum quality semen consists of at least 70% normal progressively motile sperm with a minimum concentration of 150-200 million motile sperm.
When we encounter semen problems, such as blood in the semen, low concentrations, or changes in morphology, our goal is to diagnose the cause and recommend a treatment plan. In this situation, diagnosis often requires ultrasound of the prostate and culture of the prostate fluid.
Freezing Semen
OSSVH has been a certified AKC freezing center for the past 25 years. We store and inventory frozen semen in our hospital and clients have complete control over the use of their dogs’ semen. Upon request, OSSVH will ship frozen semen to other veterinary facilities anywhere in the world, including Australia, New Zealand, Poland, and Slovakia.
We recommend freezing your dog’s semen when the dog is young in order to produce a larger quantity of better quality frozen semen.
Please bring a copy of your dog’s registration and DNA to your appointment. We recommend bringing an in-season female to your appointment to make it easier to collect the male and to produce a better collection.
Chilled Semen
Chilled semen is becoming the most common method of breeding when a significant distance separates the female and male. Chilled semen involves collecting the male, adding special extenders, and shipping the semen overnight to a veterinarian who will inseminate the bitch. Today, some extenders can keep the semen viable for up to 10 days, making it possible to send chilled semen overseas. While it is significantly less expensive to ship chilled semen than frozen semen, chilled semen shipments must coincide with the bitch’s heat cycle. Frozen semen can be shipped anytime and stored until the bitch starts her cycle.
OSSVH prepares and ships chilled semen Monday through Saturday. Please try to schedule your appointment prior to 12:30 pm so that we may schedule courier pickup.