Sexed semen 101?

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Richnm

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What are experiences with sexed semen ? Which company/technology yields the best results? How many hours after standing heat should ai be completed ? Thanks
 
My experiences have been mostly positive. I would recommend it for heifers or young cows. ABS definitely has a better product than ST Genetics. Ideal timing is no different than for conventional semen, but it is a little less forgiving if you're too early with the sexed semen.
 
I have not used sexed semen in my herd, but I have read several articles about it. most if not all confirm that sexed semen has lower conception rates and are around 90% accurate on sex of offspring. cost is usually double the cost of unsexed semen. my thinking is that every cow I have is good enough to keep a replacement out of if she has a heifer calf. if she isn't, she should be on the cull list. If my favorite cow has 2 calves in her lifetime, the chances are just as good she will have a heifer or bull (depending on which sex you want) calf as if I used sexed semen. I could see using it if you are just starting out and want replacements from your own herd to expand more rapidly but other that that, sexed semen is a negative to me because of the lower conception rate. I am sure others use it regularly and are completely happy with it.
 
Alot of dairy farmers here use it on the top 25-35% of the milking herd so that they are getting replacements out of the best milkers....
Cost is about double of the straight semen... 90% of the sex being what you want is about right... unless you are like me... I am walking "Murphy's Law" .... we used sexed semen on one of my cows and 3 years in a row got a bull when I wanted a heifer... and then she got out with some other cows and in with the cleanup bull in with the heifers, and of course she then had a heifer calf.... Most farmers say that conception is about 20% LESS than with normal semen... say 40-50% first service as opposed to 60-70% with straight semen... timing is more critical... Some farmers and technicians are just better at AI than others... you want someone that has a good conception rate to be doing the breeding. Yes, timing and all is important, but the person doing the actual breeding is a big part of it too.
 
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One other thing, male sexed semen, like for beef herds that want bulls for raising to sell, or want alot of bulls to make steers, seem to get more than 95% bulls and conception seems to be higher. Maybe the male carrying sperm can take the sorting processes better.
 

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