Complete Stud Service
We have a reputation for professional and successful stud services. We are a British Equine Veterinary Association approved centre for artificial insemination with natural covers, chilled and frozen semen and our vets are carefully chosen for their stud experience and ability. We have a stud service to suit your needs.
HELPING YOU PRODUCE YOUR HOPES & DREAMS
FROM CONCEPTION TO FOALING & BEYOND
Complete Stud Service
Our mare packages cover all possibilities, long term livery, short term livery, foaling livery and insemination livery. We can offer insemination services for fresh, chilled and frozen semen from resident, walk-in and worldwide stallions, we do not close our doors to external stallions. Frozen semen can be stored on site. Tower Equine are paramount in our AI services and their experienced team of vets are always on hand to discuss options with mare owners.
But our services do not stop there; we can offer a range of livery for youngstock. This includes relaxed summer grazing as part of a herd for your mare and foal through to ‘as close to possible’ stress-free weaning, followed up by groups of similar aged and sex youngsters running together learning to be horses before the big wide world of their ridden careers takes over.
Our foaling boxes are all 15x20 and are located in a barn to allow good ventilation but protection from the elements. All boxes are monitored by CCTV. All mares wear up to date foaling alarms. We have stocks to aid in the scanning, swabbing and insemination of mares.
All our paddocks, designated specifically for mares and foals, are stock fenced and are of varying sizes to allow mares and foals to graze in a pair or in a herd. We have an indoor and outdoor school, a horse walker, solarium, and wash box.
The veterinary services that we offer are carried out by Tower Equine Fertility veterinary practice. We can organise everything that your mare needs to aid producing that all-so-important foal.
Veterinary packages are offered on an optional basis and all work is billed direct to the owner. Veterinary packages include all visits, routine stud work, and ultrasound scans until your mare is confirmed in foal. For Tower Equine prices please visit their home page here.
Natural Service
Although natural service is becoming less popular with the rise in artificial insemination, we do still have a number of stallions who offer it.
We take the safety of both mare and stallion and of course our handlers very seriously and therefore all-natural service is done in hand – our stallions do not run with mares.
All of our stallions hold the relevant health tests which are taken annually, and all mares covered at the stud must also have a clean bill of health.
We can offer scanning alongside natural service, a nice combination of scientific advantages of artificial insemination, but the continuation of old traditions. For further information on which stallions offer natural service please see their individual pages.
Artificial Insemination
In addition to their own stallions, we can offer clients a high-quality artificial insemination service, allowing them to use chilled or frozen semen from any stallion in the UK or abroad.
The Artificial insemination operation is run by equine veterinary surgeon Roger Lee, of Tower Equine Fertility. Roger is a holder of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons certificate in equine stud medicine. He has worked as a dedicated stud vet in Australia, Newmarket, and has many years of experience in all aspects of equine fertility. Tower Equine Fertility and Brackenspa Stud Farm are on the BEVA approved list for chilled and frozen semen.
How does artificial insemination work? It couldn’t be simpler. You choose the best stallion for your mare and we look after the rest.
The advantages of artificial insemination included vastly increased choice of a stallion, and reduced travel costs for mares. Individual veterinary attention helps even less fertile mares to conceive.
Artificial insemination requires precise timing. For frozen semen, in particular, twice daily ultrasound monitoring is necessary, and for this reason, artificial insemination needs to be performed at a well-equipped centre. Brackenspa Stud Farm has purpose-built mare stocks, a veterinary laboratory and a newly built mare yard.
Mares arrive at the stud just as they are due to come into season. They are then monitored closely so that insemination can be performed at the optimum time.
An experienced vet and an efficient stud team are crucial if artificial insemination is to be successful.
We are also able to offer Embryo Transfer (prices on request)
We have an overall pregnancy rate in excess of 80% from inseminated mares with chilled or frozen semen.
Let us help you breed your own champion.
Semen Collection
After huge success with our own stallions’ chilled and frozen semen collection, we have decided to offer a service to trained external stallions. Stallions can be brought to our dedicated stallion yard for semen collection. Which, in-turn can be inseminated fresh on site by Roger Lee MA, VETMB, CERT EM, MRCVS of Tower Equine or chilled and dispatched to any UK destination.
When choosing Brackenspa to provide this service you are choosing a dedicated and safe environment for your stallion. We pride ourselves in having very good success rates. Our support team ranges from dedicated yard staff, Roger Lee - an experienced stud vet - to Tullis Matson at Stallion AI Services who offers help and advice and was responsible for the training of our stallions.
A purpose-built laboratory for semen analysis, preparation and packaging, a dummy mare, teasing facility and breeding stocks are all well situated for the convenience of the vet, the stallion and the mare if necessary.
We currently offer a dummy training service to external stallions. We can also run a series of extendor tests if required. This will provide you, as the stallion owner, with the relevant information for the extending and shipping of chilled semen. New for 2019 we will be offering a semen freezing service. This can be combined with the Dummy Training your stallion or just used as an insurance policy for already dummy trained stallions.
Service Costs
(all prices are subject to VAT)
Fresh Semen Collection
£80 +VAT per collectionChilled Semen Package
£200+VAT per collectionFrozen Semen Package
£300+VAT per collectionIn foal fee £160 (payable on positive pregnancy scan)
Dummy Training
included in your dummy training package
7 days livery
daily training collections
chilled semen extender tests
full written semen analysis report
£975.00 +vat
“dummy training testimonal”
Livery Charges
Mare & Foal Livery
Mare Grass Livery £12.50 per day
Mare Stable Livery £25 per day
Mare & Foal Grass Livery £20 per day
Mare & Foal Stable Livery £30 per day
Stallion Livery
Stallion Day Livery £25 per day
On site collection £80 (per collection)
Collection including shipping & postage £120
Semen freezing (prices on request)
ALL PRICES ARE SUBJECT TO VAT
INDIVIDUAL TURNOUT IS AVAILIBLE ON REQUEST AT AN EXTRA CHARGE OF £2.50 PER DAY
ALL MARES AND FOALS ARE TURNED OUT INDIVIDUALLY FOR THE FIRST 5 DAYS POST BRITH.
LONGTERM BROODMARE LIVERY IS AVAILIVBLE (price on request)
ALL VETERINARY CHARGES WILL BE BILLED DIRECTLY FROM TOWER EQUINE
ALL WORMING AND FARRIER CHARGES ARE BILLED PRO RATA
Foaling
As mare owners ourselves we understand the anxieties related to the birth of your foal. Here at Brackenspa we have purpose-built foaling boxes (15’ x 20’), CCTV linked directly into the house (kitchen, office, and a bedroom), plus all mares are fitted with foaling alarms prior to their due date.
We have an experienced foaling team on site 24 hours a day to assist your mare through the foaling process. In the event of veterinary intervention Roger Lee at Tower Equine Fertility is based very close by, and all mares and foals are given a full health check post foaling. All mares are fed a specific stud diet supplemented with hay/haylage. Daily turnout is available as an option.
Service costs (all prices are subject to VAT)
Foaling fee
£300 +VAT
“FOALING TESTIMONAL”
Boarding
We have a full range of services available, including broodmare at grass with worming, farrier, hay and feed, weaning, weanling at grass, yearling – 3-year-old at grass with hay and feed, young stock crew yard with hay and feed, or young stock stabled with hay, feed, and turnout.
Weaning (duration 1 week)
£250 +VAT
Post weaning Foal (stabled, inc. hay/hard feed)
£20 +VAT per day
Post weaning Mare (at grass, inc. hay/hard feed)
£12.50 +VAT per day
Long term broodmare livery (includes farrier and worming. Excludes livery associated with foaling or livery with a foal at foot.
£330 +VAT per month
