I am presuming that you are thinking of extender to flush the pipette with? There is usually no need to add extender to thawed semen, which should typically either be deposited directly into the uterus from the straw using an insemination "gun" (there is one available from Minitube that is similar to a cattle "gun" but which allows deposition of multiple consecutive half-ml straws such as are typically found in an equine insemination dose), or "pooled" in a suitable container (e.g. a centrifuge tube or Vacutainer) and then drawn up into a regular pipette/syringe for insemination. In either case, it may be necessary to "chase" the insemination with a little (5 ml) bit of warmed extender to ensure clearance of any semen left in the pipette - although the Minitube pipette system is very good at clearing all of the semen as long as the straw is cut using a straw cutter to give a clean non-compressing cut (so use a straw-cutter!).
With a 5-ml (macro) straw, a flushing extender is unnecessary.
It is typically not advisable to add extender to thawed semen (or vice versa) to increase volume for insemination, as that can lead to osmolarity change and compatability issues.
So... going back to the original "if"... If you are going to "chase" the dose with some extender, the best extender to use is the same extender as the semen is frozen in. This however is often not practical for the mare owner, so they are obliged to use a commercially available extender. As noted, this does lead to possible issues related to compatability, so it really is not desirable to do, but in the event that one has no option, either INRA '96 or a plain (no antibiotic) Kenney extender are often used. Note that the volume required to flush the pipette should not have to exceed 5 ml.
That is exactly what I meant - sorry my original note wasn't more clear. Thank you very much and much appreciated!
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