Reproductive management in small ruminants

1. Reproductive management in small ruminants M.A. Driancourt, MSD AH, R&D Pharmaceuticals Feb 2012

2. Backbone of the presentation • What are the main reproductive features of Middle East sheep and goat breeds? • What are the consequences on these physiological features on production? • What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • How can we improve fertility? • How can prolificacy be improved?

3. What are the main reproductive features of Middle East sheep and goat breeds? Awassi sheep Display a seasonal pattern of reproduction Tend to display a late puberty Commonly produce a single lamb (low prolificacy) Are good milk producers

4. What are the main reproductive features of Middle East sheep and goat breeds? Damascus goats Display a seasonal pattern of reproduction, with a variable breeding season (June to Oct in Jordan or Sept to Feb in Cyprus) Tend to display a late puberty Are mildly prolific (1.5 kid per litter) Are good milk producers (500kg/lactation)

5. What are the main reproductive features of Middle East sheep and goat breeds? Links between month of the year and cyclicity in sheep and goats % of females in estrus Transition Transition BS BS anoestrus Very seasonal breed or female 100 Less seasonal breed or female 50 0 Dec Jan Month of the year Sept May

6. What are the consequences on these physiological features on production? • The seasonal pattern of reproduction does not allow to have reproduction timed to generate milk or lamb meat when prices are highest. • The seasonal pattern of reproduction may not always fit with the periods when forage and feedstuffs are available to cover the production needs of the late pregnant and lactating ewes or the growth needs of the lambs • Low prolificacy negatively affects the income of the farmers • The random pattern of cyclicity between individual ewes of a flock does not allow to use AI (and the associated diffusion of genetic merit)

7. What are the consequences on these physiological features on production? Breed during anoestrus (hence “break” anoestrus) Synchronize estrus during the breeding season (to use AI ) Increase prolificacy Technical needs triggered by these physiological features

8. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices • Use the ram effect • Use melatonin

9. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? SHEEP • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices Three types of devices are available: cronolone (20mg) impregnated sponges (Chronogest CR, MSD AH), MAP (60mg) impregnated sponges and CIDR(0.3g progesterone) 55h Typical treatment schedule Day 17 Day 14 Day 0 Sponge insertion AI or mating Sponge removal and PMSG injection If mating is used, preparation of the rams (flushing, light treatment or melatonin) and a suitable ewe to ram ratio are needed

10. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices (+ 400IU PMSG and mating) in Awassi ewes SHEEP Ozyutlu et al 2010

11. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices GOAT Three types of devices are available: cronolone (20mg) impregnated sponges (Chronogest CR, MSD AH), and CIDR 44h Typical treatment schedule Day 13 Day 11 Day 9 Day 0 Sponge insertion AI or mating Sponge removal Prostaglandin injection and PMSG administration Bucks also need to be prepared!

12. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices GOAT Fertility Alpine & Saanen goats Intervet registration files Prolificacy= 1.97+/- 0.8

13. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • Use the ram effect • Pre-requisites: • Target a breed with a light anoestrus or females during the transition period • Ewes/goats need to be away from the rams/bucks for at least a month • The rams/bucks need to be prepared (light treatment/melatonin)

14. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • Use the ram effect Estrus and formation of normal corpora lutea do not happen immediately! Chemineau et al 2006

15. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? • Use melatonin ear implants (18mg) I Implants need to be inserted between 50 and 70 days before breeding (Gomez et al 2006), Manchega ewes

16. What are the technical options to break seasonal anoestrus? Take home message

17. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices • Use of Ovsynch type protocols • Use of double prostaglandin protocols SHEEP

18. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? SHEEP • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices Three types of devices are available: cronolone (20mg) impregnated sponges (Chronogest CR, MSD AH), MAP (60mg) impregnated sponges and CIDR (0.3g) 55h Typical treatment schedule Day 17 Day 14 Day 0 Sponge insertion AI or mating Sponge removal and PMSG injection If mating is used, a suitable ewe to ram ratio needs to be respected

19. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices SHEEP Intervet registration files

20. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Sponges allow to obtain improved reproductive performance in Awassi ewes managed in a “3 lambings in 2 years” management system (6 breeding periods) SHEEP Zarkawi et al 2011

21. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices GOAT Three types of devices are available: cronolone (20mg) impregnated sponges (Chronogest CR, MSD AH), and CIDR 44h Typical treatment schedule Day 13 Day 11 Day 9 Day 0 Sponge insertion AI or mating Sponge removal Prostaglandin injection and PMSG administration

22. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Use progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices • Damascus goats GOAT Al Merestani et al (2003)

23. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Use of Ovsynch type protocols (Deligiannis et al 2005, Titi et al 2010) SHEEP AI GnRH PGF2 a GnRH 50% fertility in Greek ewes Day 0 5 6.5 7 GnRH PGF2 a Rams in 60% fertility in Awassi ewes 5 6 0 Day

24. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Use of Ovsynch type protocols (Holtz et al 2008) Boer goats GOAT

25. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Use of double prostaglandin protocols ( 7 to 11 days apart) SHEEP Fierro et al 2011

26. What are the technical options to synchronize estrus during the breeding season? • Vaginal sponges are the best approach • Ovsynch may be an alternative in goats • Double prostaglandin treatment reduces fertility Take home message • When a successful synchronization is obatined, • Diffusion of genetic merit becomes possible (AI) • Breeding can be focussed on a narrow part of the year (labor efficiency) • Lambing is limited to a narrow time period (labor efficacy) • An homogeneous lamb crop is ready to be sold at a set time every year

27. How can we reach optimal prolificacy? • What is optimal prolificacy? • An homogeneous crop of twins! (no triplets) • If • 1. maternal behavior of the ewe is OK! • 2. Milk production of the ewe is adequate!

28. How can prolificacy be improved? • Use PMSG at removal of progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices • Use Androvax, a vaccine against an ovarian steroid • Use genetic introgression of a prolificacy gene (such as Fec B) into your sheep breed

29. How can prolificacy be improved? • Use PMSG at removal of progestagen/progesterone impregnated vaginal devices Ovulation rate Dose of PMSG (IU) Quirke et al 1986

30. How can prolificacy be improved? • Use Androvax, a vaccine against an ovarian steroid A vaccine against a steroid (androstenedione coupled to a carrier (bovine lactalbumin) in a DEAE adjuvant), applied as a primary and a booster on the first year of treatment. The recommended vaccination schedule is First vaccination (2ml): 8 to 10 weeks before joining Booster (2ml): 4 to 6 weeks before joining The antibodies reduce negative feedback of the steroids on LH secretion. The increased frequency of LH pulses increases the proportion of double ovulations (by around 20%) Not affecting seasonality (not inducing ovulation in anoestrous ewes) Not synchronizing ovulation, hence compatible with mating by rams A booster is needed every year to obtain the prolificacy increase, but may be skipped if the environment is too harsh

31. How can prolificacy be improved? • Use Androvax, a vaccine against an ovarian steroid Prolificacy data from 27 farms in NZ

32. How can prolificacy be improved? • Use genetic introgression of a prolificacy gene (such as Fec B) into your sheep breed • The Booroola gene (Fec B) is a major gene that has large effects on prolificacy (but not on seasonality). • Homozygous ewes and heterozygous carrier ewes display over 5 and around 3 ovulations (vs 1 for the non carriers) • This gene acts by interfering with the signalling of bone morphogenic proteins • Its position in the sheep genome is known • By crossing a specific breed with homozygous rams and then backcrossing to the initial breed, it is possible to introgress the Fec B prolificacy gene in that breed, while keeping all the production features of the breed (was done with Awassi)

33. How should fertility problems be analysed? • Questions to be asked when fertility is lower than expected • Is the problem physiological or pathological? • What evidence do I have that low fertility is only a female problem? • What evidence do I have that the ewes were indeed ready to be bred (i.e. cycling) • Was body condition of the ewes adequate for initiation and maintenance of pregnancy? • What were the climatic conditions in the days around ovulation and early embryonic development?

34. Conclusion : the tools to work from…

35. Conclusion: how to implement these tools according to your needs • There are many tools that are available to move from extensive production systems towards more intensive ones (provided the farm technical management and food availability allow it) • Several steps of intensification are possible (from mild such as the use of Androvax or melatonin implants to a more “European” production system using sponges to obtain three lambings in 2 years with increased prolificacy)

36. Questions?