ET questions

[Cattleman200]

Actually you need a more powerful microscope to check semen than you do to look at embryos. I had a friend that was expecting the embryolygist at his place. His neighbor knew that the man was coming and he had a bull that he needed semen checked. The embryolygist ran about two hours late getting there and his neighbor was upset about waiting that long. The embryoligist told the neighbor ... had you called me I could have saved you the wait, my microscope is not powerful enough to check sperm.

Actually what I have always been skeptical about are the inline filters that they use to catch embryos when they flush. The liquid flows freely through them yet the filter catches embryos that you need a microscope to even be able to see them. I have just alway wondered if some got through the filter but I reckon it is designed to catch them all. Just my thoughts.

Circle H Ranch

 

[Cattleman200]

The few people I've known of that check it will take drop of semen before they inseminate the cow. The loogic (if there is any) may be that if the motility is bad you could use multiple straws.

This is especially handy to do if you are flushing and concerned about semen quality. When you have about $250-$300 invested in a flush plus about 17-18 days of your time from start to finish you dont want to come up with a goose egg on a flush and lose it all.


Circle H Ranch

 

[hillsdown]

I have to edit my embryologist microspope comment as I have never seen an embryologist use a microscope ,,I have however seen the "genetic physisist" use it though. Sexing ,splitting etc. and that microscope was very very pricey or should I say priceless..


We had a flush once where the cow came up with zero fertilzed eggs ,,chalked it up to her as another cow flushed to the same batch of semen and gave us 12 first class embryos.. Who knows maybe it was the two straws bad, we decided to breed her back and not flush her until later ,she bred on first AI..We never did flush her again ,but sold her . I don't know if the new owners have flushed her either.

Interesting though.




Please excuse spelling and typos, not my reg. computer.

 

[4CTophand]

ET is fairly simple if you have the AI procedure down. finding the CL is pretty simple you just have to palpate a little deeper and most AI techs palpate the CL to feel for cystic Ovaries.
I wrote an ET manual in Grad school and Taught a Undergrad and Grad course in ET.. If you want I could send it to you via email-- let me know.
I dont prefer frozen embryos personally because many times those embryos < 40% conceptions. It is by far the easiest to do because all the lab work is done --no grading embryos; no freezing processes, and such. Like was said above all you really need is an ET gun instead of an AI gun. I prefer fresh to fresh but there is alot of work involved in this procedure, although a fresh to fresh kit is only 300 bucks and it will do 10 recips and 1 donor. Superovulation is simple-- no problem there. fresh to fresh does require a Microscope but it doesnt have to be a great one. learning to grade embryos isnt rocket science and I am sure you could do it with some practice and there are visual aids available to help you grade embryos. I know many a cattleman/woman who has gone out and purhased a donor cow and started a great herd of cows--- which is based mostly on the "Cow family" - progeny from a few super cows like in Angus. (Leachman)

basically fresh to fresh is only going in to the Falopian tube that has the CL--In AI you also pass the end of the cervix and place the semen, so all you are doing with a catheter is going into the Y and filling your bulb with 10+ cc of air in order to flush. then gravity does the rest as your solution comes out and with it your embryos.. no biggie .. --- you grade and transfer fresh to fresh just like AI

Your Superovulated cow is bred twince instead on just once ---both am and pm after standing heat. and we normally use 2 straws per event.

when you place the embryo in the Y you are sitting smack down on top of the implantation site--- done!
let me know if you want me to send you my ET Manual via email
T