Mega Frustration

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HOSS

HOSS

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Well, I had my 2nd day of instruction for the A.I. class at Mississippi State University. This morning we started practicing on live cows. I was successful in getting the gun threaded through the cervix on just two cows all day :x I am really struggling to hold the cervix in place. I will have it in my hand and the cow shifts and then it is gone. I have to start all over again in sweeping the pelvic floor to locate it again and the whole circus starts. I get to practice more tomorrow so I am hoping for better results. The semen handling, tank and tools protocol is a cinch for me when others are struggling with that part. Those same folks are a whiz at threading the gun through the cervix.....oh well....back at it tomorrow morning :cowboy:
 
You are not the only one out there that had the same problem. Last April I went to one in CO. I just could not get thru the cervix. Everyone else was popping thru every time. I only needed to get into 2 cows to pass the course and after several hours I finally got into the 2 I needed. My instructors were great and talked me thru it. Well all my hard work paid off. I just needed to relax and not have anybody stand over me. I came home and got my heifer ready to bred. It took me about 10min. and everyone leaving me alone . I got her on my first try. The second and third heifers I had the same problem again, but I got thru. With a total of 4 bred, I am not sure if the other 3 took due to the person not having them preg checked. Mine calved out 2 weeks ago. I breed our 2 new ones on Sunday. I have to wait until the end of April for our cow. Relax, take your time, don't get upset, and listen to the instructors. Good luck.
 
It's a repetition thing. The more cows you do the faster you get. You find all the little tricks that they seem to have for keeping you out of the uterus and get a feel for how aggressive you need to be inside the cow. AI is truely a case of practice makes near perfect.

Not to deflate you but it could take several years to get really comfortable if you only breed a few. When I started I only bred a few a year. By the time i was getting decent I would be done for the year; the next year was like starting over again. Now I'm at the point that it only takes me a couple to warm up. Good Luck.
 
When I went to school we spent half of the first day in class then about 6 hours inside of cows. When I went home that night I was still baffled, everything felt so alien and I oculdn;t figure out what was what or what I was doing. The next day we did about an hour of class then into the cows. The dirst one I reached into everything felt like I had beeen doing it for years. It just sort of turned on. Most of the others in the class felt pretty much the same way. One of these times when you reach in everything will just click. It's almost a subconsious tyupe of thing
 
When i took the ABS class it was about like Dun said, half a day of class and the rest of the day working in the cows. I don't no how many cows you guys have got to practice on. there was about a dozen of us and we had about a dozen cows each day. The thing i learned pretty quick was we had had some young ones that thought it was a race to see how many cows they could get in and the longer that went on the harder it got to get the job done. So when you get to the cows get a fresh one and stay with her till you get her. Wasn't until i got to know a really got AI hand that i really learned how to AI.
 
Hoss, I had problems and still do. I am good at the tank and everything else but seem to never be very fast at the AI. Partnered with a friend who was good at it and I do the tank work and he does the AI. I can do it but we work together everything just goes so much better.
The more cows you do the better you get. That is part of my problem as we only AI about 25 a year and turn the bulls to the others.
 
Hoss, everybody feels the same during class. Part of the problem is that the cows in class usually isn't in season. Its alot easier to get the pistolette through a cervix with the proper tone and lubrication like a cow in season has.

Even after years of AI every now and then you'll still get a heifer that will humble your opinion of your own AI skills again.
 
Update: This morning went much better. I was able to successfuly do 4 cows out of 8 attempted. It seems that I had an easier time with the Jersey cows due to the cervix not being as deep as the Holstiens. I still need allot of practice.

I highly reccomend this class. The instructors were top notch and very helpfull. To answer one question the class cost 150.00 and it lasted for 3 days. The University dairy provided about 65 head of cull holstiens and jersey cows for practice. Another good this is that I can go back free of charge for the rest of my life. I may go back and repeat it in October. The MSU Vet school is top notch too. The MSU campus was very nice. I can't say anything bad about the class or my experience other than my own inability to get through the cervix.
 
Hoss - my husband used to "gear up" to breeding season by putting a strong rubber band over his fingers & exercised by opening his fingers with the pressure of the rubber band. He always found it was so difficult to OPEN his hand against the pressure of the cow. This worked great.
 

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