• Minimizes exposure of mares to infectious diseases & breeding injuries.
• Eliminates the need to transport mares , many with foals at their side to and from the breeding farm
• Cost savings - no chute fees or boarding fees
• Semen is less contaminated
• Safer for stallions and mares , especially mares with foals at their sides

Requires a veterinarian knowledgeable and experienced with chilled equine semen and insemination procedures. Veterinarian needs to be able to predict the mares time of ovulation two days in advance.

Requires completion of all breeding contracts , receipt of stud fees , shipping costs , and deposits BEFORE the shipment of semen is needed. Semen will be sent via FedEx Priority Overnight after collection from stallion and arrive at your home or your Veterinarian's office (prearranged destination) usually between 9am and noon the next morning depending on your location. Your veterinarian will have been prescheduled to inseminate the semen to your mare.

1. Contact stallion's farm office on the first day of mares heat.

2. Requires serial palpations or ultrasounds, usually one or two, every other day, to establish the optimal time for insemination (within two days prior to ovulation).

3. Have mare prepared for insemination before the Equitainer is ever opened.

4. Insemination by your veterinarian.
a) Check certificates verifying identification of mare, use of semen and disposal of any left-over semen.
b) Cooled semen is NOT pre-warmed prior to insemination - the best incubator is the mare.
c) Semen motility is evaluated with the ejaculate remaining in the sample bag after insemination, only a small amount is needed.

5. Pregnancy checks
a) 18 - 21 days : transrectal palpation or ultrasonography . DO NOT POSTPONE - if your mare is not pregnant we do not want to waste any time - mare will need to be checked for breeding soundness and rebred hopefully by her next heat (the cycle USUALLY lasts 28 days from the first day of heat in one cycle to the first day of heat in the next cycle). If she is not pregnant at this time she should be coming into heat again.
b) later pregnancy check recommended at around 40 days.

How to determine the best time to inseminate mare?

• -keep good records
• -mare has to be in heat
• -teasing
• -Ultrasound or rectal palpation : vet checks uterus, cervix and follicles
• -insemination has to occur close to ovulation ( less than 48 hours )
• -HCG ( Human Chorionic Gonadotrophin ) can be used to induce ovulation after insemination
• “OVUPLANT” (Deslorelin), given after insemination works very well, much better than HCG in our experience.
• -may use Regumate for 10 - 14 days, followed by 10mg Lutalyse to bring a mare into heat

Mark Carter ( owner of the Carter Performance Horses Ranch and of Peppy Dry Bonanza ) and our attending veterinarian Dr. Bill Crank D.V.M. are both certified by Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine in equine artificial insemination and chilled equine semen preparation and procedures for transportation.