Short communication. Synchronization of ovulation and artificial insemination protocol for Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica) based in progesterone and cloprostenol

Abstract

This study describes the effectiveness of a method to synchronize ovulation in Spanish ibex for artificial insemination, based on one previously described for use in domestic goats. Estrus and ovulation were synchronised in eight adult ibex females (aged 3-5 yr old) during the breeding season (January) by i.m. injection of 25 mg of progesterone in olive oil plus an 100 μg i.m. of cloprostenol on day 0 followed by a single dose of 100 μg cloprostenol i.m. 9 days later (day 10). Ibexes were inseminated by laparoscopy with 200 & 106 spermatozoa at 52 h after the second cloprostenol injection. Two of the eight treated ibex (25%) conceived and carried their pregnancies to term. The protocol described here minimizes animal handling (in contrast to synchronization methods utilizing intravaginal progestins and equine chorionic gonadotropin injections), which greatly facilitates the application of reproductive technologies in Spanish ibex captive breeding programs.