AI success rate?

[hornedfrogbbq]

We popped off our highest success rate so far in our short lifetime as a cattle company (6 years). Depending on the sets, we used a 14 day co-synch or a 7 day co-synch...both with CDRS.

Yearling heifers - 66%
Second calf cows (one calf on the ground) - 76%
Cows - 80.1%

We had a 90% breed up rate overall sets. We're pretty happy with that. We keep a tight window. All sets get their AI session and 50 days (2 cycles) after and that is it. As we like to say, "they'll earn their way on the team or off the team" based on fertility.

I honestly was a bit disappointed in the yearling heifers. We may have had them too fat honestly. We need to improve that for sure. We don't have the labor to heat-detect.

How is everyone doing this year on their AI success rates?

 

[jscunn]

That is a great number on timed protocol in my opinion. Congratulations. What bulls did you use?

 

[hornedfrogbbq]

We used President and Sensation on the cows (note the higher breed-up rate...that higher semen cell count may actually work). We used Hoover Dam and Broken Bow on the heifers and used our own Connealy bull we bought at their fall sale on the second calf cows.

 

[Bright Raven]

Agree with jcunn, good rates for Synchronized AI. Congratulations

 

[Till-Hill]

First group of custom Ai heifers was 67.5% my cows today were 68%, take out first calvers and was 80%, but bull was only in 63 days as of today and we found 21 of 29 cows preg either ai or to bull (all cows we couldn't confirm pregnancy had a cl) so if everyone is 21+ days pregnant today we only got a 42 day window next year. I was happy. Preg checked month early but had to work calves so might as well get as much done while I had help!

 

[1Sport]

How are you guys measuring success rates? I use Patches and natural heat. I was telling my semen agent that I was proud of the fact that when i'm able to observe standing heat, breed twelve hours later, and feel confident in placement, i'm close to 70%. But.... I'm not very experienced, so sometimes all three of those things don't happen. So, I end up using two straws, sometimes from not confident in placement, or tag is rubbed off, maybe partially, and unsure when standing was so I put one in and a few hours later another. Anyway, looking at the number of units I buy vs the certificates I buy, I get down to around 35% really quick. Kinda burst my bubble.

 

[Till-Hill]

AI success rate is number of cows bred to number found pregnant with 1 service. Conception rate is what I call it. Pregnancy rate in dairy world is heat detection rate x conception rate I believe.

 

[hornedfrogbbq]

AI success rate is number of cows bred to number found pregnant with 1 service. Conception rate is what I call it. Pregnancy rate in dairy world is heat detection rate x conception rate I believe.

Agreed. We ultrasound to check.

 

[Bright Raven]

How are you guys measuring success rates? I use Patches and natural heat. I was telling my semen agent that I was proud of the fact that when i'm able to observe standing heat, breed twelve hours later, and feel confident in placement, i'm close to 70%. But.... I'm not very experienced, so sometimes all three of those things don't happen. So, I end up using two straws, sometimes from not confident in placement, or tag is rubbed off, maybe partially, and unsure when standing was so I put one in and a few hours later another. Anyway, looking at the number of units I buy vs the certificates I buy, I get down to around 35% really quick. Kinda burst my bubble.

Till Hill is correct:

AI success rate is number of cows bred to number found pregnant with 1 service.

I operate like you do. Patch them, heat detect and breed about 6 to 12 hours after confirmed standing heat. I never use two straws. I only use TAI/synchronization if I need to initiate an estrus cycle.

I started a thread on here that included a study on placement. If you get through the cervix and deposit the semen in the uterus, placement is not a significant factor. Caution: you should still attempt to place just an inch beyond the cervix. But studies with radioisotope marked semen demonstrates that the spermatozoa move out and occupy the entire uterus in minutes of deposition.

I will try to find the link to that thread.

 

[Bright Raven]

Here is the article

https://hoards.com/article-4904-it-just-takes-one-sperm.html

BY JEFF STEVENSON, KANSAS STATE UNIVERSITY

April 16, 2012.

The author is professor of animal sciences at Kansas State University, Manhattan.

"It is clear that semen placed in the uterus differentiated the above average from the below average technicians. The largest difference among technicians was that the above average technicians never placed semen in the vagina or cervix."

Site of deposition

"Research shows that sperm deposited into only one uterine horn of the cow will be transported to the other uterine horn - what is called intercornual transport. Sperm deposited in one horn will redistribute to both uterine horns so both horns eventually contain substantial numbers of sperm. Fertility is not compromised when semen is deposited in the uterine body or in either or both of the horns (Table 2). Only cervical depositions reduce conception rates!

Dr. Phil Senger points out in his colorful reproductive physiology text that, for years, it was erroneously assumed that most sperm find their way into the oviducts after A.I. In recent studies, however, a large proportion of sperm deposited in the uterus of the cow are lost from the tract by retrograde transport. In most cows, approximately 60 percent of sperm inseminated into the uterus are lost to the exterior within 12 hours. Most of these sperm are lost via mucous discharge and urination."