Breeding soundness examination of ram or buck

 History
 General clinical exam
o Teeth
o Feet: overgrown? signs of laminitis
o Eye: FAMACHA score or pathology
o Hindquarter
 Genital exam
o Testes: symmetrical, freely mobile, firm and elastic
o Epididymis
 Brucella ovis
 Sperm granulomas
o Scrotal circumference
 Ram lambs > 65kg  > 30cm
 Yearling rams (12 – 18 month)  > 33cm
o Penis
 Fibroelastic: ruminant, pig
 Musculocavernous: horse, dogs
 Examine for signs of pizzlerot (peestersiekte)
 Due to Mycoplasma or protein overfeeding
o Accessory sex gland
 NOT routinely assessed
 Serving capacity test
o Ability to serve repeatedly over time
 Ability to serve test
o Libido & physical soundness
 Semen collection
o Electroejaculator (most common)
o Artificial vagina
 Semen evaluation
o Macroscopic examination
 Volume
 Color (grey, white, ivory)
 Consistency (watery, milky, creamy)
 Related to [sperm]
 Odor
 pH
 Electroejaculator   sample alkalinity
 Test for venereal diseases (Brucella ovis)

NORMAL Macroscopic examination

•Volume = 1ml (0.5-3ml) Sperm-rich fraction
•Color
–Grey | White | Ivory
•Consistency
–Linked to sperm concentration
–Watery | Milky | Thin Creamy | Thick Creamy
•Odor –Slight chlorine
•pH –6.2-6.8
–EE makes sample more alkaline

REMEMBER: COLD SHOCK at any point in your examination will adversely affect the results
•Keep everything (slides, coverslips, extender) warm
•Usually seen a coiled tails on morphological examination

Semen Evaluation –Microscopic examination

Motility
–Mass motility
–Individual motility
Morphology
Foreign Cell Smear
Sperm concentration

Motility
•Mass motility : 5 (4-5)
“Hanging drop” method
5 –whiplikemotility to edge of drop
4 –whiplikemotility not reaching edges
3 –wave-like motion
2 –oscillation but no waves
1 –very little movement
•Individual motility : 85% (75-95%)
Dilute with extender, under a coverslip

Excellent motility
Average motility
Poor motility
Sperm terminology
•Azoospermia–no sperm
•Oligozoospermia–low numbers of sperm
•Asthenozoospermia–reduced motility of sperm
•Teratozoospermia–abnormal morphology of sperm

Microscopic Examination -morphology

•Eosin-nigrosinstain
•Dead sperm stain pink

Microscopic Examination -morphology

•Eosin-nigrosinstain
•Dead sperm stain pink
•Need a minimum of 75% normal morphology to be pass his BSE
•Various systems for classifying sperm defects:
Major & Minor
2.1°, 2°and 3°
Compensable & Non-compensable

Primary, Secondary & Tertiary classification

•Denotes origin, but not severity of defect
•Primary = originated in testes during spermatogenesis
–Eg. All head defects & most tail defects
•Secondary = originated in epididymisduring maturation
–Eg. Distal midpiecereflex
–Some defects can be either primary or secondary eg. Proximal droplets & detached heads
•Tertiary = iatrogenic
–Eg. Coiled tails

Major & Minor Defects (Blom1977)

•Major = associated with infertility
•Minor = not associated with infertility
•Problems with this classification???

Major/Minor abnormalities
Compensable & Non-compensable Defects
•Compensable = hypothetically increasing sperm numbers can compensate for the defect

Eg. sperm that are immotile & cannot reach the uterine tube (Loose heads, DAG’s, Midpiecereflex) or
sperm that will reach the uterine tube but cannot bind with the oocyte(Eg. acrosomedefects)
•Non-compensable = hypothetically increasing sperm numbers will not compensate for the defect

Eg. Sperm that can reach the oocyteand bind with the ZP, butmay have lower fertility (eg. Diadem defect;
head defects)
Foreign Cell Smear
•Diff Quick
•Make a fat-thin smear
•Eg. WBC’s (inflammation DD’s?); RBC’s; Spermatogeniccells (what might this indicate?)

Sperm concentration
•Using photometer
•Or manually -haemocytometer

BSE parametersRam Buck

Libido Usually from history, serving capacitytests uncomm
Examine prepuce & penis Check for pizzlerot, check for phimosis, examine pe
 urethral process (urolithiasis)
Scrotalcircumference 8-14 mnths: 30-36 cm
>14 mnths: 32-40 cm
Testes Symmetrical, firm & elastic, freely mobile in scrotu
Epididymis Check symmetryand consistency
Presence of epididymitis & spermatic granulomas
ovis)