Successful non-surgical transfer of horse embryos to mule recipients.

Mules, hybrids resulting from the mating of a horse mare (Equus caballus, 2n = 64) to a Jack donkey (E. asinus, 2n = 62), are generally infertile. Five horse embryos were transferred non-surgically to two cyclic and one acyclic recipient mules.

The use of early pregnant mares as embryo recipients.

Fourteen normal, cyclic mares, treated to synchronise oestrus and ovulation and inseminated artificially with fresh semen, were assigned to a donor or a recipient group after ovulation, with the aim of obtaining a degree of synchrony of > or =2 days. Ten embryos, collected on Day 6 or 7 after ovulation (Day 0), were transferred nonsurgically to inseminated recipient mares (IRM) that had ovulated up to 5 days after the respective donors, or to pregnant recipient mares (PRM) that had ovulated 2-7 days before the donors. Embryonic size and development, as determined by ultrasound examination, were used to distinguish embryos derived from the recipient (recipient embryo = RE) or from the donor (transferred embryo = TE) mare.

Clinical use of prostaglandin F2 alpha to induce early abortion in bitches: serum progesterone, treatment outcome and interval to subsequent oestrus.

Records of elective abortion in 27 bitches presented to the Veterinary Surgery and Reproduction Clinic of the University of Pisa were reviewed. Treatment consisted of twice-daily subcutaneous injections of 150-270 micrograms natural prostaglandin F2 alpha kg-1 for 4 consecutive days starting between cytological dioestrous days 5 and 19. None of the treated bitches whelped.