Dandie Dinmont Terriers in the UK

At last the UK Kennel Club has 'relaxed' their rules concerning the import and use of semen.

According to the new Form 2 (AI) (dated 3rd October 2006) the UK Kennel Club no longer require prior notification and, as long as the DEFRA rules on importing semen are adhered to we can now, subject to a few rules, register the litter from a non-surgically inseminated bitch normally with Form 1 and the additional Form 2 - the AI Form .

The rules:

1.  All litters produced by AI will be subject to existing Kennel Club registration
   regulations.
2. The sire must have produced at least one registered litter naturally.
3. The General Committee will not normally accept an application to register an AI litter if the donor male is alive and domiciled in the United Kingdom, with one exception namely that Irish Wolfhounds of 8.5 years or older and domiciled in the UK can be used as donors in AI.
4. Litters produced by AI using bitches that have not produced a registered litter naturally may be registered, but the Kennel Club will not register a litter produced by AI from one of her progeny, unless said progeny has already produced at least one registered litter naturally.

Notes:

• The form must specify the official registered name of both donor dog and
  bitch together with their registration numbers, if available.
• In the case of a dog domiciled outside of the UK, the dog must be registered with a recognised overseas Kennel Club,confirmed by an official three generation pedigree issued by that Kennel Club.
• The certificates of any resultant progeny will be endorsed with the initials (AI) after the dog's name to indicate that they were bred by artificial insemination.
• If however the AI does not satisfy all of these requirements, the owner will need to apply to the Kennel Club for special approval for such registration. Such submissions should be made directly to the Kennel Club stating clearly the reasons why the above requirements have not been or will not be met.

Important:

If the submission involves the use of surgical insemination, the case must be accompanied by a declaration from a veterinary surgeon as to why this particular procedure is/was necessary. There is no guarantee that any such litter will be registered.

Methods of Artificial Insemination (AI):

1. Non-surgical, which is usually done trans-cervically using a catheter and/or an endoscope
2. Surgical, requiring general anaesthesia

These approaches have different 'welfare debts' for the bitch being inseminated. It is generally considered that the 'welfare debts' of the non-surgical methods in i are extremely low and so the benefits from using AI need not be too large to justify the use of this technology to achieve insemination. For this reason, the General Committee will approve the registration of AI litters produced from non-surgical approaches, provided that all of the above requirements are met.

The Kennel Club is advised by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons that surgical insemination as described in ii, has "many disadvantages for the bitch", and so has a higher 'welfare debt'. This means that the benefits accrued from its use will have to be considerable to offset this 'welfare debt'. The RCVS advises veterinary surgeons that surgical AI is justified "only for exceptional reasons", and requires the vet to "record in the bitch's clinical records why trans-cervical insemination is not a practical option and the justification for the invasive procedure". The General Committee therefore expects that the number of applications to register a litter conceived by surgical AI will be small, and each request will be dealt with on its merits.

The Committee will require justification of the net benefit to the bitch in conceiving as a result of the "invasive procedure". Breeders should therefore discuss this with their AI practitioner before proceeding and, in making a case for registration, include a statement as to why surgical insemination is/was necessary. They should also provide a statement justifying the need for AI and the benefits that accrue from its use. Approval in such cases will be at the discretion of the General Committee.

N.B. It is essential that the applicant conforms to all current requirements imposed by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) on imported semen.

[Ed. Note: this information is provided from a KC Press release dated 30th October 2006 and Form 2 (AI) dated 3rd October 2006 - naturally this information should be double checked and the current DEFRA rules investigated before proceeding with insemination]

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