The preparation of seminal doses for swine Artificial Insemination (AI) can be carried out at the farm level.
Semen quality control
Currently, the preparation of semen doses for swine Artificial Insemination (AI) can be carried out at the level of livestock farms in a small laboratory attached to the farm, or in large AI centers specialized solely in the production of doses and that serve a large group of farms. In these centers, the animals are in optimal conditions since the housing conditions, environment, sanitary measures, etc. They have a very strict control.
Conservation of seminal doses. Aspects to consider:
- Good initial semen quality.
- Dilution. It must be done in the first half hour of collection; being semen and extender at the same temperature.
- Temperature drop from 37° to 15°C in 3-5 hours.
- Conservation in anaerobiosis: extracting the air corresponding to the head space of the container of the seminal dose.
- Preservation diluent. At the time of the distribution of the seminal doses, this should always be done at refrigeration temperature, the most common being 15° to 16°C.
- The preservation of sperm quality in optimal conditions during the period of use of the doses is essential to maintain adequate fertility parameters.
Seminal quality control in veterinary laboratory
In small laboratories at the farm level, seminal quality control is more rudimentary than in large AI centers. Normally, these small veterinary laboratories are supported by sending seminal samples to specialized laboratories for seminal quality control.
Convet SL has recently implemented techniques that guarantee the quality of semen and seminal doses. So we provide a service to farms to improve the control of seminal characteristics.
We can carry out volume, motility and concentration controls, through very precise protocols such as:
- Ejaculate concentration
- abnormal shapes
- Acrosomia
This evaluation is the one that has the highest correlation with the fertilizing capacity of the sperm.
- Microbiological analysis
It is important to carry out a good microbiological control of the semen since high concentrations of bacteria have been detected in it, which significantly lowers the conservation capacity and fertility of this semen.
Process Guarantee and Seminal Quality Control
Contamination problems are solved by testing the sensitivity of these agents against antibiotics, adding them to the seminal dose to achieve a good inhibition of bacterial growth.
The transmission of infectious processes through semen is one of the great current concerns. The diseases in which semen plays an important role as transmitter are: Leptospirosis, Brucellosis, Aujeszky’s, Parvovirus, Classical Swine Fever, African Swine Fever and PRRS.
To avoid the presence of fastidious microorganisms in the seminal control dose, it is very important to correctly follow the collection procedures and thus minimize the risk of contamination.