Developments in European horse breeding and consequences for veterinarians in equine reproduction.
Abstract: The liberalization of European animal breeding legislation and an increasing diversity of equestrian sports have led to a constant rise in the number of horse breeds and breed registries. In addition to the trend towards more and smaller breed registries, there is another trend towards an international expansion of the bigger established sport horse breeds. Regional breeds, at least in smaller countries, may no longer be able to run an independent breeding programme. The typical horse breeder, in the future, will be a female and qualified in equestrian sports. Artificial insemination (AI) mainly with fresh or cooled-transported semen has become a major breeding tool, allowing breeders all over Europe to benefit from the best stallions of most breeds. New AI techniques such as low-dose insemination may remain restricted to individual stallions and also the interest of breeding programmes in sex determination of foals via semen sorting is limited. Embryo transfer and associated techniques, although allowed by most breeds, have not contributed significantly to genetic progress in European sport horses so far. A potential use of cloning may be to produce gonad-intact copies from geldings that have performed to a superior level. With a more open and international structure of horse breeding and increased use of AI, equine reproduction and biotechnology should be emphasized by veterinary curricula and continuing professional education programmes.
Publication Date: 2006-07-28 PubMed ID: 16869881DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0531.2006.00719.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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The article investigates changes in European horse breeding due to amendments in animal breeding legislation and diversity in equestrian sports. The research also delves into how these factors have led to changes in veterinary practices, specifically in equine reproduction.
Changes in European Horse Breeding
- The research highlights an increase in the number of horse breeds and breed registries due to the liberalization of European animal breeding legislation and the vast variety of equestrian sports.
- There is a trend towards the expansion of larger established sport horse breeds, which might result in regional breeds in smaller countries being unable to sustain an independent breeding programme.
- It also suggests that future typical horse breeders are likely to be females with qualifications in equestarian sports.
Role and Impact of Artificial Insemination (AI)
- AI is majorly conducted with fresh or cooled-transported semen. This development has been beneficial for breeders across Europe as it has allowed access to the best stallions of most breeds.
- New AI techniques such as low-dose insemination may remain restricted to individual stallions. Also, the interest of breeding programmes in determining the sex of foals via semen sorting seems limited.
Contribution and Usage of Cloning and Embryo Transfer
- Although most breeds allow embryo transfer and associated techniques, these have not contributed much towards the genetic progress of European sport horses so far.
- However, cloning has potential usage, especially for producing gonad-intact copies from geldings that have performed at a superior level.
Implications for Veterinary Practice in Horse Breeding
- As horse breeding becomes more open and international, the importance of equine reproduction and biotechnology gets more emphasis in veterinary practices.
- This necessitates an increase in focus on these areas in veterinary curricula and continuous professional education programmes.
Cite This Article
APA
Aurich J, Aurich C.
(2006).
Developments in European horse breeding and consequences for veterinarians in equine reproduction.
Reprod Domest Anim, 41(4), 275-279.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0531.2006.00719.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Animal Breeding and Reproduction, University of Veterinary Sciences, Vienna, Austria. joerg.aurich@vu-wien.ac.at
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Breeding / methods
- Breeding / standards
- Education, Veterinary
- Embryo Transfer / veterinary
- Europe
- Female
- Horses / physiology
- Humans
- Insemination, Artificial / methods
- Insemination, Artificial / standards
- Insemination, Artificial / veterinary
- Male
- Registries
- Reproduction
- Sex Determination Processes
- Veterinary Medicine / methods
- Veterinary Medicine / standards
References
This article includes 34 references
Citations
This article has been cited 5 times.- Bisiau C, Moffett P, Graham J, McCue P. Comparison of Nanoparticles and Single-Layer Centrifugation for Separation of Dead from Live Stallion Spermatozoa. Vet Sci 2024 Jul 10;11(7).
- Malaluang P, Wilén E, Lindahl J, Hansson I, Morrell JM. Antimicrobial Resistance in Equine Reproduction. Animals (Basel) 2021 Oct 22;11(11).
- Loureiro KC, Lima-Verde IB, Johannisson A, Ntallaris T, Jager A, Štěpánek P, da Costa Mendonça M, Severino P, Morrell JM. Effects of cashew gum and nanoparticles on cooled stallion semen. Acta Vet Scand 2020 Jun 18;62(1):31.
- Gibb Z, Aitken RJ. The Impact of Sperm Metabolism during In Vitro Storage: The Stallion as a Model. Biomed Res Int 2016;2016:9380609.
- Varisli O, Agca C, Agca Y. Short-term storage of rat sperm in the presence of various extenders. J Am Assoc Lab Anim Sci 2013 Nov;52(6):732-7.
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