Transcervical Insemination (TCI)

Why do TCI?

A Revolution in Canine Insemination

Transcervical insemination (TCI), compared to surgical insemination, is:

More effective (higher pregnancy rate and larger litter sizes)

Much less invasive (no anesthesia, no surgery)

Much less expensive

Faster

Repeatable (you can do more than one in a cycle)

Easier on your bitch

The ethical choice

Dr. Christensen performing a surgical insemination.
Dr. Christensen performing a TCI.
A Basset Hound receives a Vaginal AI treatment.
Dr. Christensen performing a Vaginal AI.

Transcervical insemination (TCI), compared to vaginal artificial insemination (AI), is:

More effective (higher pregnancy rate and larger litter sizes)

Just as easily tolerated

Almost as fast to perform

Published, controlled, peer-reviewed scientific studies have compared TCI with both surgical AI for frozen semen breeding and vaginal AI for fresh or chilled semen breeding and has shown in all cases that TCI achieves superior pregnancy rates and litter sizes compared to the other methods of breeding:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25082020/
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29680455/

Minimizing Stress, Maximizing Success

The Science and Strategy of TCI

Just a little thought and it all makes perfect sense. TCI and surgical AI both put the semen in the exact same place (the uterus), but TCI does it without the stress and chemical manipulation of anesthesia and without the trauma and inflammation of surgery. TCI is done with the bitch awake and stimulated so that her uterus is actively contracting, moving sperm up to the tips of the uterine horns.  And in instances where two inseminations are recommended, you can do that with TCI, but not surgical AI. 

Thinking about TCI compared with vaginal AI also makes sense that TCI is better. TCI places the semen past the cervix, directly into the uterus. Virtually none of the sperm are lost. Vaginal AI places all of the semen into the vagina and then relies on gravity to get the semen into the uterus as you hold the bitch’s legs up in the air. Much of the semen is lost as it comes back out onto the

Dr. Christensen performing TCI on an endangered Mexican wolf.

ground. If you are breeding with lots of extra sperm (which is sometimes the case), then enough sperm do get through the cervix to achieve fertilization. But if you are dealing with lower numbers of sperm (which is often the case), your success will be lower with vaginal AI than TCI. For a modest increase in price to perform a TCI, it is worth it to actually have a pregnant bitch and a larger litter. 

Certainly experience makes a difference. If any procedure is not performed correctly by practiced, expert hands, then the results will be poor. At Kokopelli Veterinary Center, we have performed thousands of TCI’s. We are the only practice with a board-certified reproductive specialist serving the canine breeding community in Northern California. Experience and expertise do matter.

Minimizing Stress, Maximizing Success

The Science and Strategy of TCI

Just a little thought and it all makes perfect sense. Transcervical insemination and surgical AI both put the semen in the exact same place (the uterus), but TCI does it without the stress and chemical manipulation of anesthesia and without the trauma and inflammation of surgery. TCI is done with the bitch awake and stimulated so that her uterus is actively contracting, moving sperm up to the tips of the uterine horns.  And in instances where two inseminations are recommended, you can do that with TCI, but not surgical AI. 

Thinking about TCI compared with vaginal AI also makes sense that TCI is better. TCI places the semen past the cervix, directly into the uterus. Virtually none of the sperm are lost. Vaginal AI places all of the semen into the vagina and then relies on gravity to get the semen into the uterus as you hold the bitch’s legs up in the air. Much of the semen is lost as it comes back out onto the ground. If you are breeding with lots of extra sperm (which is sometimes the case), then enough sperm do get through the cervix to achieve fertilization. But if you are dealing with lower numbers of sperm (which is often the case), your success will be lower with vaginal AI than transcervical insemination. For a modest increase in price to perform a TCI, it is worth it to actually have a pregnant bitch and a larger litter. 

Certainly experience makes a difference. If any procedure is not performed correctly by practiced, expert hands, then the results will be poor. At Kokopelli Veterinary Center, we have performed thousands of TCI’s. We are the only practice with a board-certified reproductive specialist serving the canine breeding community in Northern California. Experience and expertise do matter.

Dr. Christensen performing TCI on an endangered Mexican wolf.
Dr. Christensen performing a transcervical biopsy on an African Painted Dog.
Dr. Christensen performing a transcervical biopsy on an African lioness.
Dr. Christensen instructing veterinarians using a plastic canine reproductive simulator.

The Kokopelli Difference

Experience matters. Dr. Christensen and Dr. Shelby have performed thousands of TCI’s.

Dr. Christensen is one of two veterinarians in the country who teaches a course in transcervical insemination; he has instructed dozens of veterinarians from all over the continent in a TCI course offered twice a year in Wisconsin.

Kokopelli Veterinary Center is the only facility in the Sacramento area where veterinarians perform each and every TCI.

We include the bitch’s owner in every TCI procedure. You are encouraged to stay in the room with your dog to offer her encouraging words and be a comforting presence during the procedure. You witness with your own eyes the catheter passing through the cervix and watch as we carefully infuse the semen into the uterus.

Every semen sample is evaluated with our state of the art computer assisted semenanalysis (CASA) system prior to each TCI, so you are assured an accurate, transparent, honest prognosis for success.

Our success speaks for itself. Over 90% of bitches bred with TCI using fresh or chilled semen and 75% of those bred with frozen semen get pregnant at Kokopelli Veterinary Center.

Dr. Christensen, as a recognized expert, has been contracted to perform TCI in multiple species for zoos across the country.

Breeding is a Breeze with TCI at Kokopelli Veterinary Center

Ready to revolutionize your breeding practices? Contact us to discover how TCI can elevate your animal’s reproductive results.

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