How to Increase Horse Sperm Count
Whether you breed your backyard mare or run a sophisticated breeding farm, your end goal is always the same -- to produce a healthy and happy foal. Your first step is to ensure that both your mare and stallion are reproductively healthy. This article discusses improving your stallion's sperm count so that you can increase the likelihood of fertilization.
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Instructions
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Important Factors Affecting a Horse's Sperm Count
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Choose a stallion carefully. When breeding horses, it is important to consider what kind of stock you want to have out there on the market. Unless you are planning to keep the foal for your own personal use, consider the type of horses that are desirable on the market. In many cases, horse buyers will only consider purebred horses with certain bloodlines. Therefore, you want to consider a stallion's pedigree, his show record, his temperament, his conformation, and his health before deciding to use him as a stud.
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Have the stallion examined by a licensed veterinarian, who can ensure that the horse is fit for breeding and, if necessary, test for any genetic defects that could be passed on to the stallion's offspring.
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Check the stallion's age, as age and fertility are related. Younger stallions around ages 2 or 3 years are not as fertile as stallions 4 and older. On the other hand, stallions who have approached middle-age and above (around 15 to 18 years and older) may exhibit a decline in fertility.
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Check the stallion's feed. If a stallion does not have adequate nutrition, his sperm count is likely to be adversely affected. Therefore, it is very important to ensure that all of the horse's dietary needs are fulfilled before you begin breeding. Anecdotal evidence indicates that flax seed oil may improve horse sperm count, but this has not been scientifically proven.
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Horses, like so many other animals, respond to the pheremones of other animals. Exposing your stallion to mares and mare scents can jump start his reproductive system into producing sperm.
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Tips & Warnings
If a stallion does have a low sperm count, consider pasture breeding rather than artificial insemination. Remember that the healthier and happier the horse, the more likely the successful breeding.
Some stallions may have a lower sperm count due to biological reasons. Consider that some stallions' sperm may freeze or travel better than others stallions' sperm. This is important if you are operating a breeding operation that ships horse sperm to distant places.
