Reproductive performance of Arab mares in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Summary

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the reproductive performance of the Arab mares in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Methods: Managers of 26 studfarms containing 1014 Arab mares at five districts were asked to complete a questionnaire on the reproductive efficiency of their mares. Results: The mean age at first mating was 3.06 ± 0.5 years. Mares were mated equally in winter and all over the year. Natural mating was mostly used (76.9%). The means of estrus duration and estrus interval were 6.58 ± 1 days and 19.57 ± 1.8 days, respectively. The means of first service and overall pregnancy rates and the number of cycles/pregnancy were 52.71 ± 20.2%, 83.72 ± 15.0%, and 1.46 ± 0.3, respectively, with no effect of the postpartum interval, district, or season. The average pregnancy duration was 335.5 ± 10.2 days. It was shorter in mares mated by day 9 postpartum than in those mated later (p < 0.05). The ratio of stallion/mares ranged from 1:4 to 1:24, with no correlation with the pregnancy rates or the number of cycles/pregnancy. Discussion: Photoperiodic regulation and changes in the hypothalamichypophyseal axis of mares are usually associated with the seasonal reproductive activity of mares in the temperate but not in subtropical areas. Short duration of gestation for mares mated by day 9 after foaling may be related to the nutritional status of dams. Conclusion: The obtained data represent the first record of the reproductive performance of Arab mares in the KSA, which could be used to anticipate their performance under different managements. Clinical relevance: The Arab mares in the KSA are not seasonal and can reproduce efficiently all over the year. District and season did not influence the fertility.

Zusammenfassung

Ziel dieser Studie war, die Reproduktionsleistung von Araberstuten im Königreich Saudi-Arabien (KSA) zu ermitteln. Methoden: Manager von 26 Gestüten mit 1014 Araberstuten in fünf Bezirken wurden gebeten, einen Fragebogen über die reproduktive Effizienz der Stuten auszufüllen. Ergebnisse: Das mittlere Alter bei der ersten Paarung betrug 3,06 ± 0,5 Jahre. Stuten wurden teilweise im Winter, teilweise das ganze Jahr über belegt. Überwiegend erfolgte die Belegung durch den natürlichen Deckakt (76,9%). Die mittlere Brunstdauer und das interovulatorische Intervall lagen bei 6,58 ± 1 bzw. 19,57 ± 1,8 Tagen. Die Mittelwerte der Erstbelegungs- und Gesamtträchtigkeitsrate sowie die Zyklen pro Trächtigkeit betrugen 52,71 ± 20,2%, 83,72 ± 15,0% bzw.1,46 ± 0,3, wobei kein Einfluss des postpartalen Intervalls, der Bezirke oder der Jahreszeit festgestellt wurde. Die durchschnittliche Trächtigkeitsdauer betrug 335,5 ± 10,2 Tage. Sie war bei Stuten, die am Tag 9 nach der Geburt belegt wurden, kürzer als bei Stuten, bei denen die Belegung später stattfand. Das Verhältnis Hengst/Stuten reichte von 1:4 bis 1:24 ohne Korrelation mit der Trächtigkeitsrate oder der Anzahl der Zyklen pro Trächtigkeit. Diskussion: Die photoperiodische Regulation und Veränderungen in der Hypothalamus-Hypophysen-Achse von Stuten sind in der Regel mit der saisonalen Fortpflanzungsaktivität der Stuten in den gemäßigten, nicht aber in subtropischen Gebieten verbunden. Die kurze Trächtigkeitsdauer bei den am Tag 9 post partum gedeckten Stuten kann in Zusammenhang mit deren Ernährungszustand stehen. Schlussfolgerung: Die gewonnenen Daten stellen den ersten Datensatz über die Reproduktionsleistung von Araberstuten im KSA dar, mit deren Hilfe der Einfluss des Betriebsmanagements auf die Leistung der Stuten beurteilt werden kann. Klinische Relevanz: Die Araberstuten in Saudi-Arabien zeigen keine saisonale Reproduktion und können sich effizient das ganze Jahr über fortpflanzen. Bezirk und Jahreszeit beeinflussten die Fruchtbarkeit nicht.

Key words

Reproduction - horse - pregnancy rate - pregnancy duration

Schlüsselwörter

Reproduktion - Stute - Trächtigkeitsrate - Trachtigkeitsdauer

• References

• 1 Taveira RZ, Mota MDS. Genetic and quantitative evaluation of breeding traits in Thoroughbred mares. Revista Eletrónica de Veterinaria 2007; 8: 1-11.
• 2 Cilek S. Survey of reproductive success in Arabian horse breeding from 1976–2007 at Anadolu State Farm in Turkey. J Anim Vet Adv 2009; 2: 389-396.
• 3 Sullivan JJ, Turner PC, Self LC, Gutteridge HB, Bartlett DE. Survey of reproductive efficiency in the Quarter-horse and Thoroughbred. J Reprod Fertil 1975; 23: 315-318.
• 4 Cunningham EP. The Genetics of Thoroughbred Horses. Scientific American 1991; 1264: 92-98.
• 5 El-Wishy AB, El-Sayed MAI, Seida AA, Ghoneim IM, Serur BH. Some aspects of reproductive performance in Arabian mares in Egypt. Reprod Domest Anim 1990; 4: 227-234.
• 6 Valera M, Blesa F, Santos DR, Molina A. Genetic study of gestation length in andalusian and Arabian mares. Anim Reprod Sci 2006; 95: 75-96.
• 7 Benhajali H, Richard-Yris MA, Ezzaouia M, Charfi F, Hausberger M. Factors influencing conception rates of Arab mares in Tunisia. Anim Reprod Sci 2010; 117: 106-110.
• 8 Meliani S, Benallou B, Abdelhadi SA, Halbouche M, Naceri A. Environmental factors affecting gestation duration and time of foaling of pure bred Arabian mares in Algeria. Asian J Anim Vet Adv 2011; 6: 599-608.
• 9 Arabian horse association. https://www.arabianhorses.org last updated 11/7/2012, 8, 20 2012
• 10 Hugason K, Arnason TH, Jónmundsson JV. A note on the fertility and some demographical parameters of Icelandic toelter horses. Livest Prod Sci 1985; 12: 161-167.
• 11 Tekin N, Yurdaydin N, Klug E, Yavas Y, Aksu A, Gülyüz F. Survey of the reproductive features and insemination/mating results in full blood Arabian and Haflinger mare herds on stud farms in west and middle Anatolia. Dtsch Tierarztl Wochenschr 1991; 98: 350-352.
• 12 Ozdemir B. The reproductive performance, viability and body measurements of purebred Arabian horses raised in Sultansuyu state farm. Ph.D. Thesis Uluda G. University the Institute for Health Sciences; Bursa, Turkey: 1998
• 13 Brück I, Anderson GA, Hyland JH. Reproductive performance of thoroughbred mares on six commercial stud farms. Aust Vet J 1993; 70: 299-303.
• 14 Allen WR, Brown L, Wright M, Wilsher S. Reproductive efficiency of flatrace and national hunt thoroughbred mares and stallions in England. Equine Vet J 2007; 39: 438-445.
• 15 Sharma S, Davies MCG, More Dhaliwa GS. Factors affecting the incidence of postpartum oestrus, ovarian activity and reproductive performance in Thoroughbred mares bred at foal heat under Indian subtropical conditions. Theriogenology 2010; 74: 90-99.
• 16 Hanlon DW, Firth EC. The reproductive performance of Thoroughbred mares treated with intravaginal progesterone at the start of the breeding season. Theriogenology 2012; 77: 952-958.
• 17 Demirci E. Length of gestation period in purebred Arab mares and correlation between age and gestation length. J Fac Vet Med 1988; 3: 69-79.
• 18 Koc M. The studies on some characteristics of arabian horses at anadolu state farm. Ph.D. Thesis Istanbul University the Institute for Health Sciences; Istanbul: 1990
• 19 Kucuk H. Estimation the level of production characteristics of arab, haflinger and halfbred haflinger horses kept at karacabey state farm. Ph.D. Thesis Istanbul University the Institute for Health Sciences; Istanbul: 1990
• 20 SPSS. Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Chicago, IL, USA: SPSS, Inc.; Copyright for Windows 2009. version 18.0.
• 21 Cebulj-Kadunc N, Cestnik V, Kosec M. Onset of puberty and duration of seasonal cyclicity in Lipizzan fillies. Equine Vet J 2006; 38: 350-353.
• 22 Dhakal P, Hirama A, Nambo Y, Harada T, Sato F, Nagaoka K, Watanabe G, Taya K. Circulating pituitary and gonadal hormones in spring-born Thoroughbred fillies and colts from birth to puberty. J Reprod Dev 2012; 58: 522-530.
• 23 Hemberg E, Lundeheim N, Einarsson S. Reproductive performance of thoroughbred mares in Sweden. Reprod Dom Anim 2004; 39: 81-85.
• 24 Langlois B. Effect of stallion on fertility in the breeding of Warmblood horses. Ann Zootech 1977; 26: 329-344.
• 25 Malmgren L. Assessing the quality of raw semen: a review. Theriogenology 1997; 48: 523-530.
• 26 Katila T, Reilas T, Nivola K, Peltonen T, Virtala AM. A 15-year survey of reproductive efficiency of Standardbred and Finnhorse trotters in Finland – descriptive results. Acta Vet Scand 2010; 52: 40-51.
• 27 van Buiten A, Westers P, Colenbrander B. Male and female and management risk factors for non-return to service in Dutch mares. Prev Vet Med 2003; 61: 17-26.
• 28 Yurdaydin N, Sevinc A. Fertility in Arabian, haflinger and halfbred haflinger mares. J Fac Vet Med 1983; 30: 283-291.
• 29 Vogelsang MM, Vogelsang SG, Lindsey BR, Massey JM. Reproductive performance in mares subjected to examination by diagnostic ultrasound. Theriogenology 1989; 32: 95-103.
• 30 Morris LH, Allen WR. Reproductive efficiency of intensively managed Thoroughbred mares in Newmarket. Equine Vet J 2002; 34: 51-60.
• 31 Loy RG. Characteristics of postpartum reproduction in mares. Vet Clin North Am Large Anim Pract 1980; 2: 345-348.
• 32 Liuex P. Comparative results of breeding on the first and second post-foaling heat periods. Proc Am Assoc Equine Pract 1980; 129-132.
• 33 Roberts ST. Veterinary Obstetrics and Genital Diseases. 3rd edn.. Woodstock, Vermont: 1986: 373-390.
• 34 Ishii M, Shimamura T, Utsumi A, Jitsukawa T, Endo M, Fukuda T, Yamanoi T. Reproductive performance and factors that decrease pregnancy rate in heavy draft horses bred at the foal heat. J Equine Vet Sci 2001; 3: 131-136.
• 35 Panchal MT, Gujarati ML, Kavani FS. Some of the reproductive traits in Kathi mares in Gujarat State. Indian J Anim Reprod 1995; 63: 47-49.
• 36 Aoki T, Yamakawa K, Ishii M. Factors affecting gestation length in heavy draft mares. J Equine Vet. 2012 Sci. doi:
• 37 Sevinga M, Barkema HW, Stryhn H, Hesselink JW. Retained placenta in frisian mares: Incidence and potential risk factors with special emphasis on gestation length. Theriogenology 2004; 61: 851-859.
• 38 Cacic M, Caput P, Ivankovic A. Influence of environmental and genetic factors on the reproductive characteristics and fertility of posavina mares. Stocarstvo 2002; 56: 243-256.
• 39 Perez CC, Rodriguez I, Mota J, Dorado J, Hidalgo M, Felipe M, Sanz J. Gestation length in carthusian spanishbred mares. Livest Prod Sci 2003; 82: 181-187.
• 40 Rollins WC, Howell CE. Length of the horse genetic sources of variation in the gestation. J Anim Sci 1951; 10: 797-806.
• 41 Allen WR, Wilsher S. The influence of mare numbers, ejaculation frequency and month on the fertility of Thoroughbred stallions. Equine Vet 2012; 44: 535-541.