Stallion Owners: Can an Older Horse be Trained for AI??

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Irish gal

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I'd be very interested to hear what people involved in studs think. Can a horse who has performed natural covers all his life be trained at 15 years-old to also do AI. Many studs today only use AI and no longer do live cover. I'm considering purchasing this stallion but would stand him at an established stud and if he doesn't do AI then this might not work out! What do people think. I really see a lot of potential in him, he has been used at a private stud up to now and has produced a couple of international eventers from very poor mares. He has a phenomenal jumping pedigree and damline so I'm hoping he can get good jumpers with mares from jumping families. I'm trying to decide, with all the different factors in the mix, whether this really is a runner. I have never had a stallion or even considered having one until this opportunity suddenly came up.
 
I asked a vet this exact question last week, thinking of using my 15yo Highland stallion. He said "Yes". but I suspect there is more to it than that!

Do a Google and phone around a few vets who offer this service?
 
I taught my lad to use a dummy at 16, having covered naturally all his life. After a very short time I could do this on my own. Planning, patience and more planning worked. Started him using the AV jumping a mare for the first couple of times to get him used to it. Then moved onto the phantom with a very delicious girl to chat up in front of it. He very quickly settled into having a nice chat with the real girl, then popping round the back of the phantom and jumping on.
 
Thanks irish only....that sounds very promising. We'll have to take him for training perhaps - as I'm no stallion master! In the right hands he should come round, he seems a good lad with a nice nature. Hopefully he'll get the chance to realise his potential.
 
We've successfully trained 2 older TB stallions to 'cover' a dummy so that we can collect from them.

One was 17 and the other 14 and had both covered naturally for a number of years. The younger chap was happy to bonk the phantom with only a rug covered in mares wee as encouragement, the other one needed a real lady to chat to but both soon got the hang of it.
 
My husband and I went attended training at Lion D'Angers National Stud. We students had an opportunity to watch the teaser at work and to put different stallions to a dummy. Mine was an enormous Percheron.

The set up was interesting. Mares were in stocks in front of the dummy, but protected by a barrier. I felt confident that it would not be difficult to train a stallion to use a dummy. Also don't forget that experienced AI technicians can also collect from the ground during natural covering.
 
I would say yes it is possible in most cases. Training to the dummy is remarkably easy with a modicum of patience and awareness. Having covered mares before is actually a plus because an experienced stallion will behave predictably towards a teaser mare, and mounting in response to chest bumping is already an established behaviour.
 
Thanks Rollin and fburton, that's more encouraging information...interesting about the chest bumping. It's a matter of manipulating their instinct. But what do people use as teaser mares, given that mares aren't in season all the time - how does that work?
 
Irish gal said:
Thanks Rollin and fburton, that's more encouraging information...interesting about the chest bumping. It's a matter of manipulating their instinct. But what do people use as teaser mares, given that mares aren't in season all the time - how does that work?
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One possibility is to keep a stock of frozen urine from oestrus mares and use that (thawed!) in addition to the sight of a not-in-season mare. But really, in my experience it is much easier if the mare is in season because all the natural triggers are there. I just wouldn't attempt initial training without an oestrus teaser. This becomes less important once the stallion is used to being collected, and for some stallions with good libido collection is rewarding enough that a mare doesn't need to be present. As always, it's depends on the individual horse.
 
On a visit to West Kington stud I was told that stallions experienced at covering in hand were easy to train to a dummy. In fact when Cleveland Bay stallion Bantry Bere arrived there for collecting, he came through the big doors, saw the dummy and leapt straight on it. He never needed any form of encouragement. For an experienced stallion perhaps the shape of the dummy plus the smells of collecting shed are sufficient stimulus.
 
Yes, the benefit of having a set routine is that everything associated with collection such as specific breeding bridle and the location will also act as stimuli in addition to the natural ones.
 
Thanks folks, amazing all the little tricks that can be used like the wee soaked rug. I can imagine with all the routine as fburton says, how they can be got used to performing.
 
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