Passage, Survival, and Fertility of Deep-Frozen Ram Semen in the Genital Tract of the Ewe

Abstract

The distribution of spermatozoa in the genital tract was determined in ewes killed 4 hr or 24 hr after cervical insemination with 100 million live spermatozoa from either freshly ejaculated or deep.frozen ram semen. At 4 hr, greater numbers of spermatozoa were present in the cervices, uteri, and fallopian tubes in ewes inseminated with fresh semen than in ewes inseminated with frozen semen. At 24 hr, the numbers of spermatozoa in the uteri and fallopian tubes of ewes inseminated with fresh semen had increased relative to the numbers at 4 hr but no spermatozoa were present in the uterus and fallopian tubes in ewes inseminated with frozen semen.