In offering reproductive services, our goal is the same as yours – to help breed a healthy, happy litter. But, sometimes breeding naturally just isn’t in the cards. With today’s technology, we are able to offer artificial insemination to help breeders simulate natural breeding and reproduce healthy pets. In order to achieve this, we offer several methods of insemination that require testing to accurately time the female’s ovulation patterns, increasing her chances of successfully producing a litter. If you have any questions, or want to make an appointment to begin the process for your pet, contact our office today.

Reasons to consider artificial insemination: 

• Convenience of not needing the male and female to be in same place at same time. 
• Cuts down on breeder costs because female doesn’t have to be shipped to stud. 
• Good for females who have had difficulty conceiving.
• Female isn’t interested in stud, or female won’t allow male to mount her.
• If stud is a show dog, artificial insemination won’t interrupt his show schedule. 
• Male is younger and doesn’t understand mounting process.

Methods of artificial insemination

There are several different methods of artificial insemination, each with its own benefits. The veterinarian will discuss the various options with you and will help you decide which method is best for your pet based upon the pet’s health, age, and fertility.

Surgical insemination – During the surgical process pets undergo general anesthesia. The veterinarian makes an incision similar to a spaying incision. Semen is then injected into the exposed uterus with a needle, and the incision is closed. Conception rates via surgical insemination are very similar to natural mating conception rates; it is the most successful form of artificial insemination.

Transcervical/Laparoscopic insemination – Doesn’t require sedation and does not cause damage to cervix, uterus, or vaginal tract. The veterinarian uses a stiff endoscope to visualize the cervical opening and inserts a pliable plastic catheter through the cervix into the uterus and deposits the semen.

Vaginal insemination – Similar to transcervical insemination, vaginal insemination does not require sedation; it only requires manual restraint. Being the simplest method of artificial insemination, the veterinarian quickly inserts a syringe loaded with semen into the vagina and deposits the semen then withdraws the syringe.

If you have any questions about artificial insemination for pets, please contact our veterinary practice.