A. I. - Page 1

I was wondering how successful A.I. is and the cost involved. I have a female who is 3 years old I wold like to breed but the few males I like are quite far away.

Irose, it depends on the type of A.I. done. The non-surgical procedure is quite simple, where semen is collected from the male and then transferred by a application tube that is inserted past the cervix. This is typically done without anesthaesia and although it can be done by an experienced breeder(using sterile equipment and reasonable cleanliness)it is usually done by a veterinarian. The surgical procedure involves anesthaesia and a small incision, and the semen is injected directly into the horns of the uterus. The success rate for this procedure is higher than that for a "normal" A.I.. With either scheme, the progesterone level of the bitch must be very closely monitored in order to deliver the semen at the correct time. But, one must consider the additional scarring of the uterus to be a factor when deciding to use the surgical A.I. procedure. If it is a one-time ordeal then it should be okay, but I would not advise repeated use of this procedure. For an A.K.C.-registered litter, either A.I. procedure is fine, but there is a special litter registration form for a pregnancy produced by A.I.. Be aware that the S.V. does not allow the use of either A.I. techniques for any litters registered with them. I could be wrong here, but I think that U.S.c.A. agrees with the rules of the S.V. on this subject. As far as cost? I would think that the non-surgical A.I. would cost from U$200.00-U$300.00 and the surgical version may easily exceed U$500.00. Add to that the expense of two (2) or more progesterone tests at about U$100.00 each (including overnight freight) and shipping the bitch off site becomes a bit more attractive. Of course there is the additional cost for the test to determine the presence of brucellosis, and this is required by many stud owners. This test is a good one to do anyway even for a litter that is to be produced by A.I.. I used a surgical A.I. procedure one (1) time, and have never done the "normal" A.I.. In this case it was for a tough working-line bitch who would not let the male mount without a fight, but who did allow the male to mount and breed her naturally one (1) year later. Bob-O

Bob-O, Do you know is any breeders in are Germany willing to ship semen to the US if the litter will be AKC registered, not registered through the SV? Thanks, Tina

Semen shipping container $? I do not know offhand the price of these. Semen collection fee is an additional charge many stud owners add in for. Shipping the semen $200, was quoted this amount to add to that of the stud fee and collection fee. Surgical insemination $750, was quoted this price by the veterinarian I consulted. She is 6 hours away, but people ship dogs to her for these procedures from all over the place. The veterinarian, you choose, consult with and so on may charge more or less, you have to ask them. Then there is progesterone testing, medications (if needed), plus boarding and kenneling at the veterinarian's office / kennel. No names of kennels mentioned, when I checked into using AI, it ended up being over $3,000 for me, if I was to choose this route. I decided the best route, for me was a live cover / actual tie with both dogs physically locked backside to backside.

Tina, There are German imports and domestically bred dogs in the United States, that their owners will stud out by AI. These dogs have show ratings, working titles, breed surveys and so on. Some are BSP participants others were shown in the BSZS, even some, both. It all depends what you are looking for and if the stud owner approves of your female for mating to their stud. What exactly are you searching for in a stud that is available by artificial insemination? Show line, working line, color, hips, promising & or titled progeny, there are many variables, you just need to define what you are hoping to find. Brian

Psygod, thanks for the additional information concerning the cost of collecting and shipping frozen semen. I certainly did not take that into account, as I have never done it. Animules, I do not know any German breeders who offer this service, but I have seen it occassionally advertised. Regarding the stiff rules of the S.V., I do not know whether a breeder subjects himself to a sanction by the S.V. if he collects and ships frozen semen from one (1) of his S.V.-registered studs, but I doubt it. As long as the litter is NOT to be registered with the S.V. I don't see where it would cause a problem for him/her, but again, I don't know. Puppies registered through the A.K.C. can recieve a S.V. registration number upon successfully passing a hip and elbow examination performed by the S.V. at the minimum age of one (1) year. This special number begins with the numeral "9" and the dog receieves of course an "a" stamp rating. If the puppies are both of German-born parents who are S.V.-registered with an "a" stamp then a factual Zuchtwert number is assigned. Now, someone correct me if I am wrong here. For dogs whose parents are not registered with the S.V. and are of course not "a" stamped I believe the S.V. assigns a Zuchtwert rating of 100. The only way this will ever change is if the dog produces progeny and these dogs are examined by the S.V., or the parents are examined by the S.V., or both. I think that once one examines all of the costs to perform an A.I., especially the surgical procedure, then one sees that it is perhaps cheaper to ship the female and let the dogs do it naturally. That's best anyway, but we all know that. I realize there is some Angst involved with shipping one's bitch far away, and for some it is something they do not wish to do. An ethical German breeder (just as any other ethical breeder) will of course want to see passing hip scores throughout the pedigree and some will require at least a SG show rating for the bitch, just as do some breeders in the U.S.A.. Of course some don't, but they still want to be sure that the bitch is 100% in conformation with the breed standard, and has at least an acceptable temperament. Bob-O

I would reccommend getting chilled semen from a dog that has been collected before that way you know how well he chills. Some dogs semen doesn't chill very well. Or if the dog you are wanting to use hasn't been collected and chilled before I would have him collected and chilled and then examined to see what the semen quality is. It is better to have only that small cost vs. having all the progesterone tests, shipping costs, etc... to find out that the semen you received is of bad quality. I wish I would have done this when I had my dogs A.I.'d. I've done chilled semen twice on two different females and both times were not successfull. They both ended up costing around $2000.00. Both were due to poor quality semen. I would also recommend getting a chilled semen kit to ship the semen along with an extender. I would also reccommend having her inseminated twice if it is possible for a higher chance of conseption. JMO. Mysti

Well, let's take an actual example of the ICSB (International Canine Semen Bank) costs that was done recently. Total costs of needed items for three AI's? $268.19. Total cost of shipping three times? $214.40, not including any time or gas to transport the semen to the FedEx office (one hour each way). Add in all the fees as stated above, and you come up with quite a large bill. Progesterone tests here run about $80 each (a little more), of which you should expect to do 3-4 of them. AI costs of $72 EACH time, times however many times you plan to do the AI's. This would be only for AI's not the surgical implantation, for then you only need ONE vial of sperm shipped, as they only do ONE insemination directly into the horns, as Bob-O stated above. Good luck!! :)

I thionk Bob-O has covered the situation adequately regarding fresh semen. Since you are considering shipping, it's sounding like frozen will be your most likely option. I have not had satisfactory results with frozen. I have one of the best fertitity doctors in the region and done both transcervical with a scope and surgically. The sperm has always thawed and been viable, progesterone tests were done and the results are not good. I no longer consider it an option. It was an expensive lesson. Live cover is the best.

Great information, thanks all. Great thread. I did not know puppies born here could be registered with the SV under those conditions. I will have to research that more as we have some that would fit that are out of import stock and would be nice to have dual registered. And it's time for their a stamps.... May do both at once.